coreopsis Archives | Diana's Designs Austin

Blooms abound in the spring garden

My morning walk through the garden brightened my day. My garden is still young, compared to my previous 16-year-old garden. Filling in holes where plants have been lost and adding layers over time has paid off. This spring the garden feels full and lush. Today. (Check back with me in August!)

We’ve been fortunate to have had a little bit of rain lately in our part of Austin. Because of our topography, it’s not uncommon for different parts of town to have dramatically different rainfall.

It’s been a rough couple of years. Snowpocalyse Uri in 2021, another terrible freeze in 2022 and multiple days at 110 or higher last summer.

This spring feels like the garden is coming into its own. Things are filling out and look like my vision for the space.

Jerusalem sage is one of my go-to plants. It doesn’t mind our heat and it’s evergreen and deer resistant.

Few things perk up the spring landscape like shasta daisies.

While I have a large swath of bluebonnets along my creek bed, this year I ventured out and bought a few of the cranberry-colored ones to add into the garden.

They look so interesting compared to all the blue ones.

We won’t talk about the idea that they were bred to represent A&M University, the arch rival of Austin’s University of Texas!

A fabulous border plant, purple skullcap looks great trailing over my street-side boulders. This soft, mounding perennial blooms reliably from spring through fall.

This scrappy little Damianita grows throughout the tough landscape of the Texas Hill country in the most difficult conditions. Another great border plant, it grows about 18 inches tall.

The bluebonnets are almost done. I’m just waiting for the seed pods to dry out and start to open before plucking them. In November, I will plant all of this year’s seeds, so we have an even bigger show next spring.

The ditch lilies and the coreopsis intermingle and blow in the breeze together.

Heartleaf skullcap is another of my spring favorites. The luminescence of the tiny blooms is enchanting atop the velvety-soft leaves.

Lemon mallow makes a striking statement against the nearby Henry Duelberg salvia.

It’s 90+ today, but we are all holding out hope that this summer isn’t as brutal as last. Spending as much time in the garden now as we can!

By Diana C. Kirby|2024-05-08T13:18:48-05:00May 8th, 2024|blooms, blue bonnet, blue bonnets, bluebonnet, coreopsis, cut flowers, Daimianita, daisies, daisy, day lilies, daylily, ditch lily, Garden, golden coreopsis, lily, mealy blue sage, sage, salvia, Sharing Nature's Garden, shasta daisy, skullcap, spring, spring bloomers, tall coreopsis, Uncategorized|2 Comments

More Texas wildflowers to enjoy…

The deer nibbled on some of these coreopsis tinctura when they first started growing in the spring, but they persevered and are now full of blooms.

I love how they look against the structure of the grey Gopher plant.

This is in the bed planted outside our back fence where there is no irrigation. Once or twice a month in the middle of the scorching summer heat and drought I drag an extra long hose out there and water a little. It’s my drought- tolerant test bed. These are REAL drought conditions.

We’ve had lots of fall and spring rain, so the plants are quite happy — for now!

By Diana C. Kirby|2016-04-14T02:39:36-05:00May 14th, 2012|Blog, coreopsis, coreopsis tinctura, gopher plant, Sharing Nature's Garden, Wildflowers|0 Comments

Wildflower Wow

Wildflowers along our highways and byways were few and far between this year thanks to the drought.

But one little plant seems to have taken off outside of my garden.

Thanks to a some dribbles of water coming from the cutting garden bed on the other side of the fence, this wildflower has exploded into bloom in the easement beyond our property. (Like my Wisteria vine, it seems to enjoy playing hide and seek with me.)

After some research, I believe I’ve identified it as Coreopsis tripteris, or Tall coreopsis/Tall tickseed.

In any case, it’s fabulous.

I know some of those seeds are going to find their way into my hands and then into an open area (more visible!) with some fresh soil and periodic gentle hand watering this fall.

This beautiful show of color is well worth a little starting TLC to help it along.

And here it is, sneaking through the spaces in the fence to show off to the other blooms in the cutting garden.

Although it’s a little sparse because of the drought, the cutting garden has perked up in the last few weeks thanks to cooler night temperatures and our recent restorative rain.

Speaking of wildflowers, today begins the amazing Fall Plant Sale at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. Here’s the basic information from the Wildflower Center — you can find more at their website.

Plant Sale — Friday, Saturday and Sunday, October 14 – 16.

Did the hottest, driest summer in Austin’s recorded history leave you looking for new garden solutions? We can help! At the Wildflower Center’s Fall Plant Sale and Gardening Festival you can choose from nearly 300 species of hardy Texas natives bred to deal with our Central Texas climate. Feel free to leave your plant purchases at the Holding Area while you finish enjoying your visit, or up until the Plant Sale closes Sunday at 5 p.m.

Admission: $8 adults, $7 seniors and students, $4 UT faculty, staff or students with identification, $3 children 5 through 12, members and children under 5 free.

If possible, bring your own wagon to haul your purchases
Plants may be purchased and held for pick-up
Recycle your reusable 4-inch and one gallon plastic pots, collection bin available at the front entrance.
Free cold filtered water, just bring your reusable water bottle, or buy one in the store.

Members Only Sale: Friday, October 14, 1 to 7 p.m. Friday’s sale is exclusively for members of the Wildflower Center. Become a member online or at the preview sale.

By Diana C. Kirby|2019-07-15T19:14:21-05:00October 14th, 2011|Blog, coreopsis, coreopsis tripteris, cutting garden, Sharing Nature's Garden, tall coreopsis, Wildflower Center, Wildflower Center plant sale, Wildflowers, wildlflower|0 Comments

Wildflower Wednesday — Way out of control

Welcome to Wildflower Wednesday, when we join Gail of Clay and Limestone to share our photos and stories of native wildflowers. My favorite today is in my own garden.

Golden Coreopsis has grown out of control in my garden. They were 1 foot tall when I put in the original plants 2 years ago. Last year I didn’t have any at all – some garden helpers pulled them out in early spring thinking they were weeds. But this year they are back with a vengeance – a towering 4 feet tall, growing over all my other perennials and shrubs. So I am enjoying the show they’re putting on, and then I plant to pull them and let them reseed in a more appropriate place where they can grow to their heart’s content!

Golden Coreopsis, Coreopsis tinctoria
This amazing wildflower gets 1-4 feet tall. The yellow and reddish/brown leaves are bright and bold, made even more so by the giant stems on which they rest.

By Diana C. Kirby|2017-11-29T23:27:28-06:00May 26th, 2010|Blog, coreopsis, golden coreopsis, Sharing Nature's Garden, Wildflowers|0 Comments

Wow!

I have an iris, I have an iris! Planted two years ago, this is the first of a batch of irises I’ve been anxiously waiting to meet. And boy-oh-boy was I excited to see her arrival today. My DH took these amazing close-ups for me so I could share them with you. Thanks, sweetie!

I love these colors – they are so vibrant and unique. I can’t tell you what kind it is because this was planted before I kept any real records. If you know, feel free to tell me.

And here is one of our first roses from my spring bush plantings. This is Mrs. B.R. Cant, 1901. The deer did munch on it when it first went in, but I think it’s out of their main path and we’ll just keep trying. If she’s tough, she’ll survive…kinda heartless, but I have so few options in the sun due to the deer.

This bright yellow beauty is Euonymos.

And perky coreopsis.

Iris I.D. Guesses based on my online searching:
Victorian Love
Choctaw Ridge

By Diana C. Kirby|2016-04-14T02:45:15-05:00April 20th, 2008|1901, Blog, coreopsis, Eonymous, iris, Mrs. B. R. Cant, rose, Sharing Nature's Garden|0 Comments

A-n-t-i-c-i-p-a-t-i-o-n………….

No, I’m not writing about ketchup. The most exciting thing, after the long wait of winter, is finally seeing mini green shoots and sprouts, peeking out from mulch and dead leaves.

I’m all aquiver with the anticipation of plants yet to come, so I thought I’d share my eagerness with you. (Unfortunately, they just plain don’t photograph as well as blooms and full-grown plants!)

Ok, this isn’t really a test, but if you don’t scroll all the way to the bottom of the pictures, you can guess what’s peeking out, looking for Spring! Tell me how many you get right!

‘Victoria Blue’ Mealy Cup blue sage (Salvia farinacea)

Un-identified lilies — I’ll post about these later when they
are blooming, because I need help to name them.
They are my red mystery lilies that aren’t Oxbloods.