Mexican Plum Archives | Diana's Designs Austin

Ice in the garden…

Baby, it’s cold outside…

Central Texas gardens are being slammed with ice and even snow in some parts. I feel for our northern friends who have it so much worse than we do. We’re feeling very deprived of our “normal” warmer early spring temperatures.

Iris, wisteria, and Texas Mountain laurel buds are being sabotaged. Delicate new shoots on perennials have bitten the dust. And, our evergreens will once again be slow to start their growth.

Here are a few signs that it’s really cold in my garden.

This Japanese aralia will recover, but isn’t this one of the most pitiful things you’ve seen in the garden. It’s hard to believe that it will perk back up when the temperature warms back up.

After several years, the pump on the birdbath fountain died. I replaced it a few weeks ago with one that was the same size – to fit in the reservoir – but much more powerful. It has a great bubbler. If you look carefully, you can see that the majority of the water is frozen, except for the bubbling center, announcing loudly to the bird world that the water bar is still open for business.

Luckily, both the plum tree and the loropetalum were already in full bloom when the ice hit, so I am still enjoying this sight in the back landscape.

It’s 31 degrees and raining this morning, so I guess it’s time to settle in with the seed catalogs for a little bit longer around here.

By Diana C. Kirby|2016-04-14T02:38:53-05:00February 28th, 2015|Blog, fountain, frozen, ice, Japanese aralia, loropetalum, Mexican Plum, Sharing Nature's Garden, winter|0 Comments

Early bloomers are putting on a show in the spring garden

Even though it’s only March, it’s already spring here in Central Texas.

After our exceptionally mild winter and welcome rains, the early bloomers are already hard at work in my garden.

In addition to the daffodils I included in my last post, many of the other perennials are already flowering.

This loropetalum is bursting with hot pink fringe-like blooms.

It’s the one I’ve pruned to become a small tree.

These pretty little blooms below called to me at the Natural Gardener last week.

And as soon as I started typing, the name flew out of my head! I’m sure you know just what they are – they aren’t mums, they might be gaillardia.

The wisteria is starting to bloom. Like last year, there is some growth on the back side of the fence, but there are plenty of buds for me to enjoy inside the fence.
I love looking at the Mexican plum tree buds against the pretty blue sky.
The stone wall makes a nice backdrop for the trailing lavender lantana behind the pool.
The hellebores would have preferred a colder winter, but some of them are giving me some blooms — this is ‘winter’s wren.’
The strawberries are blooming their ever-loving heads off! Soon we will be able to eat more than one ripe one at a time. I long for the day when we get a small bowl full.
My absolute favorite low-grower is ‘homestead’ verbena. That bright purple color is just stunning.
All of my blackfoot daisies are back again from last year. You just can’t beat these little guys for drought tolerance.
The alyssum is mounding up all over along the rock path already.

‘May night’ salvia can do great in the garden here, but my luck with them has been hit and miss. I love their low-growing form, but they are hard to get established.
Kallie’s window box is full of little pretties that I got last weekend at the Natural Gardener.
After some slacking last year, many of my irises are showing off for the first time. I don’t know the name of the purple or the white iris, though I believe the white one may be a pass along from Pam of Digging or Annie of The Transplantable Rose.

As always, Fletcher wanted to know what I was doing in the garden with that camera around my neck, so he had to come check out the salvia, too! I’m sure he thought there must be something edible in there!

By Diana C. Kirby|2017-11-29T23:27:19-06:00March 4th, 2012|alyssum, blackfoot daisies, Blog, Fletcher, Hellebore, iris, irises, Lantana, loropetalum, May night salvia, Mexican Plum, Sharing Nature's Garden, spring, spring bloomers, strawberries, verbena, winter's wren hellebore, wisteria|0 Comments

Too much of a good thing!

This week we were blessed with three quenching inches of rain. It came with a vengeance, bringing with it clashes of thunder and bolts of lightning too intense to ignore, even at 3 a.m.

Living in perpetual drought (Okay- I exaggerate just a smidge, but not much!), we welcomed the storm and the resulting drink. But today, I saw the flip side of all that rain at once. Just like our tomato skins will split with too much surprise moisture, my first crop of plums burst at the seams from the rain.

Let me tell you, though — it was like nectar of the Gods when I ate the rest of it! It’s a little small and a little too tart yet, but I LOVE that I have plums. I thought this was an ornamental tree until Dakota (the dog) ate her first fallen plums a few weeks ago.

Then I had to cut back the monstrous overgrowth of Wine Cups that have obliterated the rock pathway and begun taking over the lawn. All that rain just fed the monster!
So, THEN, I had to go through the beds and get some cutting flowers for make a lovely posey for the kitchen.
That makes me happy. Who said you can have too much of a good thing?

By Diana C. Kirby|2016-04-14T02:42:31-05:00June 11th, 2010|Blog, cut flowers, cutting garden, Mexican Plum, posey, Sharing Nature's Garden, winecup|0 Comments

Finally a few blooms for their day…

We’re breathing a sigh of relief here in Central Texas as we celebrate Garden Bloggers Bloom Day with our friend Carol of May Dreams Gardens.

Blooms are slowly coming back to our gardens. We’ve had a taste of true winter here this year, and like most of our neighbors to the north, have had to wait a long time for spring to show her face.

We are about a month behind in growth for most plants in our gardens. And while the official chance of frost has not yet passed (the range takes us to the end of March), we think we are probably safe. (How’s that for scientific guesstimating?) Isn’t that what we gardeners do though?

So here are my blooms for this very slow March. Above is a new Phlox that I added to a front bed this week.

My favorite time of year for the little peach tree – in its full glory. Since it never produces peaches, this is it – enjoy it!
After trying hard to kill all my Amaryllis this fall and winter, once they went into the greenhouse and got farther away from me, they were all happy and growing. This is the first one to bloom – it opened this week.
Okay – don’t put me in time out. I know these aren’t in the ground yet, but they will be this week and they’re just so pretty I wanted to photograph these Diamond Frost Euphorbia that will join the shade bed soon.
My Sierra Memorial Impatien is still blooming – bloomed all winter long. I hope it’s equally happy when it moves outside next week, because it’s getting a little too hot in the greenhouse when it’s 80F outside.
I have lots of strawberry blooms and even have little green strawberries growing already. I think these kinds of blooms are my favorite because I know they will yield sweet, juicy fruit that I can eat standing in my garden.
A few white and fucsia colored Alyssum plants went into vacant spots in the rock garden path yesterday. They love living in the crushed granite.
As does the Ice plant and the Homestead Verbena.

I hear my paperwhites are short because I planted them late, but they are really cute and they don’t flop over as easily either. Maybe I’m onto something!
Not a great shot, but you know the Hellebores are shy and hang their little heads so you can’t get a good photo of them. She’s pretty in spite of my lack of photo skills.
Even though the vines are pretty skanky-looking after our hard winter, I do have a few blooms on the Primrose Jasmine.
And much to my surprise, the mystery Viburnum left by the previous owners even has a little bloom on her.
The first Hymenoxis opened today and there will several following on her heels. They are growing where no one else will grown, and they like it there just fine.
Daffodils of all types are still blooming all over the beds. Sadly, I fear that those not close to blooming may not make it because it’s already too hot for them. It’s been 80F for several days and I see some leaves on daffodils without buds are already turning yellow.
Don’t ban me from GBBD for this one, but I just had to show you how close the Texas Mountain Laurel is to actually blooming. And yes, it is a full month behind. I was showing off beautiful Mt. Laurel blooms on Feb 18 last year: http://bit.ly/9BpqxP
A little Dianthus returning after the blooms all went away for the bitter cold of winter.
Loropetalum showing off her hot pink fringe flowers.
Mexican Plum tree in full bloom.
Yellow Grape Muscari “Golden Fragrance” that packs a punch of scent. It’s so sweet and yummy smelling, you almost want to take a bite out of it. (Sure hope no one does!)

By Diana C. Kirby|2016-04-14T02:42:34-05:00March 15th, 2010|Blog, GBBD, Hymenoxis, Mexican Plum, peach tree, phlox, Sharing Nature's Garden, Texas Mountain Laurel|0 Comments

Signs of Spring keep popping out…

Yesterday I was moping about in the yard, looking at the dormant grass, scraggly rock path plants with lots of dead foliage, and the dead or dormant variegated shell ginger.

When what to my wondering eyes should appear — but blooms on my Mexican Plum tree. Lo and behold, it is emerging from it’s long winter’s nap.
One of the handful of bulbs I planted last month (long-neglected and unplanted in a pot in the garage) bloomed today. Can you please ID this for me? I have no idead what this little pretty blossom is.
While not as far along, these are the little buds on my little peach tree that never produces any peaches. I keep saying I am going to rip it out, but then it buds out and I take pity on it and leave it there for another miserable year with two marble-sized and sadly-diseased stones that are supposed to be peaches! It looks like it holds promise, doesn’t it? (Don’t be fooled!)

Spring may be on its way, yet.

By Diana C. Kirby|2016-04-14T02:42:34-05:00March 4th, 2010|Blog, bulbs, Mexican Plum, peach tree, Sharing Nature's Garden|0 Comments

Spectacular signs of Spring

Here she is, Miss Tangerine Crossvine in her full spring splendor. See how gracefully she climbs up into the nearby Live Oak tree?
Her blooms are cheerful and bright – bringing a cacophony of color into the shady corner bed.
And she just keeps on cruising down the fenceline, spreading her beauty.
Out front the little Anacacho Orchid tree that I planted last year is living up to her full expectations with a profusion of delicate white blooms.

The variegated lemon tree is chock full of pink buds, ready to burst into lemony goodness very soon. The bees are eager for the buds to open, too, as they were hovering around just like me!
Green beans peek out of the ground in the veggie garden.
The tomatoes planted before we left for our Indiana Spring Break trip were damaged by the 1 cold night in Austin last week. I think it got down to the mid-30s and the tomatoes all have leaf damage, but they will be fine. See, this one has a BLOOM!!!!! A wannabe tomato…the plants may not be pretty any more, but they are growing and developing, so I won’t complain.
These are the White Icicle Radishes shown in the sidebar photo above. Tasty – and spicy.
Here’s another Bluebonnet blooming in the greenhouse bed. I gave in a planted plants this year as I have not had luck with seeds — we just have too much mulch where I want to plant them, so I carefully amended the soil and pulled back the mulch and put in 15 plants this spring.
The Mexican Plum tree is full of blooms this week, too.
Aren’t they pretty?
This, however, is NOT so pretty. Witness, please the GAZILLION Live Oak leaves that are cascading from my trees. If they were white, you’d think it was snowing in parts of my yard. And they aren’t even 1/2 done with their littering of my beds.

I’m itching to get out there and blow them elsewhere, but more will fall right into their place, so I will wait a week or two. I know, for instance, that there are dozens of wildflower seedlings under here waiting to get out…and I can’t wait to see them…next week maybe!

By Diana C. Kirby|2016-04-14T02:44:38-05:00March 20th, 2009|anacacho orchid, Blog, blue bonnets, green beans, Mexican Plum, oak trees, radishes, Sharing Nature's Garden, tomatoes, trumpet vine|0 Comments

Mexican Plum

Ice in the garden…

Early bloomers are putting on a show in the spring garden

Too much of a good thing!

Finally a few blooms for their day…

Signs of Spring keep popping out…

Spectacular signs of Spring

Escape in the garden