The latest kid on the block, Pride of Barbados (Caesalpinia pulcherrima), grabs jaw-dropping adoration all over town these hot days. Bees and butterflies are just as glad to see those nutritious flame-orange and golden flowers flaunting deep red stamens. Now that it’s easier to find, many g
Create a beautiful yard with these creative landscape ideas with big impact.
Impervious (in my garden, anyway) to deer, pale pavonia handles the dry shade of live oaks with aplomb.
Great Design Plant: Sweet pepper bush - by Paintbox Garden | Houzz
Pollinators play a vital role in our ecosystems. So many pollinator-friendly plants to choose from, here are seven of our favorites.
You can see this attractive vine in more and more landscapes in Austin.
Scientific Name(s): Capsium annuum Abundance: uncommon What: fruit How: raw, dried, roasted Where: borders When: summer, fall Nutritional Value: assorted beneficial chemicals Dangers: HOT!!! Medicinal Summary: Fruit - antifungal; increases blood circulation, soothes muscle and nerve pain (tincture, infused vinegar, liniment, salve) Leaf Arrangement: The leaves are arranged alternately along the stems. Leaf Shape: The leaves are lanceolate, with a length of 1 to 2 inches and a width of about 0.5 inch. Leaf Venation: The venation is pinnate. Leaf Margin: The leaf margin is entire. Leaf Color: The leaves are typically green, with no significant color variation between the top and underside. Flower Structure: The flowers are small, tubular, and occur in clusters. The diameter of an individual flower is approximately 1/4 inch. Flower Color: Chile Pequin flowers can range in color, including shades of white, yellow, orange, or red. Fruit: The fruit is a small, round or oblong berry, often changing color as it matures, from green to red. Seed: Seeds are small, round, and numerous within the fruit. Stem: The stems are typically squarish, green, slender, and may have a branching growth pattern. Hairs: The plant has fine hairs on stems and leaves. Height: Chile Pequin plants can vary in height but typically range from 1 to 3 feet, depending on growing conditions. Chile pequin bushes are medium-sized, averaging about two feet high and three feet across. Close-up of Chile Pequin bush. Chile Pequin fruit starts out green and turns red. Close-up of Chile Pequin fruit. Note the small size of both the fruit and the leaves. Texas distribution, attributed to U. S. Department of Agriculture. The marked counties are guidelines only. Plants may appear in other counties, especially if used in landscaping. North American distribution, attributed to U. S. Department of Agriculture. The tiny chile pequin peppers are some of the hottest known (Scoville rating 100,000 - 400,000) and add a wonderfully fierce fire and delicious, smoky flavor to dishes. They are hottest when they are young and green then lose a small amount of fire when they turn red but are still extremely hot. Use them any way you would a commercial hot pepper including sauces, salsas, or to add a "bite" to assorted pickled veggies or eggs. Dried, ground-up chile pequins are a common sight on the table of many older Texas families. The peppers appear after the tiny white flower dry and drop off the plant. These bushes can not handle full Texas sun but usually grow best in the partial shade of some larger plant. They do need regular watering otherwise they'll drop their leaves if they get too dry. The bushes may be knocked back by frosts but will return if the roots survived. Mulch the plants in the fall to help protect the roots from the cold. If several mild winters pass in a row chile pequins can actually achieve the size of a small tree! Growing chile pequins from seeds isn't easy as they evolved to pass through a bird's stomach where the acid weakens the seed's tough coat. You can mimic this acidizing by soaking the seeds in battery acid or pool-cleaning acid for 1-3 minutes followed by rinsing then planting. Generally handling the battery acid is a risky thing so if you try this make sure you are wearing safety googles, protective gloves, and old clothing. Also please dispose of the acid properly. Buy my book! Outdoor Adventure Guides Foraging covers 70 of North America's tastiest and easy to find wild edibles shown with the same big pictures as here on the Foraging Texas website.
Beebrush or whitebrush, Aloysia gratissima, is a favorite shrub in my garden. It grow about 10 feet tall and has an arching structure. The deciduous leaves are small and few. This gives bee-brush an open, airy look. Beebrush is in the verbena family and has fragrant flower spikes that are about three inches long. It blooms in spurts from spring through fall. The flowers usually follow rain by a few days, however it can be tricked into blooming with a water sprinkler. It rained some over the last couple of weekends and now the beebrush are in full bloom. The fragrance of the flowers fills the backyard. The flowers are usually described as smelling like vanilla. I guess that is true, but right now, with so many flowers, the strong scent is bordering on smelling like a bathroom deodorizer. I am creating a beebrush thicket in the backyard. Most of the plants are growing in full sun and dry soil, however one plant is slowly being shaded by an oak tree and a volunteer redbud tree. Several internet sources say beebrush is adaptable to shade and poorly drained soil. Texas native beebrush is often available at native plant sales. A closely related native to Argentina is sweet almond verbena, Aloysia virgata. Almond verbena is becoming more common in the local nursery trade. It is cold tender and dies to the ground in the winter in the Dallas area. From what I understand, almond verbena will quickly sprout from the roots in the spring. Beebrush is Texas tough and does not have any problems with our heat, cold, or drought. I usually have a few (less than 10) beebrush seedlings that sprout in the garden each spring. The seedlings are pretty easy to remove, transplant or plant in a pot to give away. How did beebrush get its name? The flowers attract lots and lots of bees.
This native member of the sunflower family forms an attractive, deep-green mound with finely-textured aromatic leaves. It flowers from summer until frost. Size: Listed to 3 feet tall; normally grows to about a foot to a foot and a half. It will spread to about 2-3 feet. Soil: Skeleton-leaf gol
Shrubs are a great addition to most lawns, but if you have a pooch, you'll need to make sure you plant dog-friendly varieties. See our suggestions here!
Scientific name: Vitis mustangensis Abundance: plentiful What: fruits, leaves, young tendrils How: fruit raw (very tart), cooked, dried, preserves, wine; leaves and tendrils cooked, Where: Edges of woods. Mustang grape leaves are fuzzy and have a white underside. When: summer Nutritional Value: calories, antioxidants Other uses: water can be obtained from the vines (see technique in grapes- muscadine post), wild yeast from the fruit Dangers: Mustang grapes are very acidic and handling/eating large amounts of the raw fruit can cause burns to hands and mouth. Leaf Arrangement: The leaves of Vitis mustangensis are arranged alternately along the stem. Leaf Shape: Leaves of young vines are typically simple, palmately lobed with three to five lobes, each lobe being ovate, measuring approximately 2 to 5 inches in width. Leaves of mature vines lack the deep lobes. Leaf Venation: Palmate venation, with veins running from the leaf base out to the tip of each leaf lobe. Leaf Margin: The leaf margin is typically serrated or toothed. Leaf Color: Tops of leaves are green while undersides are light gray. Flower Structure: The flowers are small and greenish, occurring in clusters known as inflorescences. Each individual flower is 1/8" in diameter or smaller Flower Color: Flowers are typically greenish-yellow. Fruit: The fruit is a grape, often larger than most grape species, with a diameter ranging from approximately 1/2 to 1 inch, and usually dark purple to black when ripe. The fruit grow on long, clusters, just like store-bought grapes. Seed: Inside the grape are small, round, and brown seeds. Stem: The stem is typically climbing, with tendrils for support. Bases of mature mustang grape vines can be over 4" in diameter. Hairs: Fine hairs are present on the leaves, especially the leaf underside, and on the stems. Height: Vitis mustangensis is a climbing vine and can reach varying heights depending on its support structure. Mustang grape vine with unripe fruit. Note that the top of the leaves are green while their underside is white/gray. Both sides of the leaf are fuzzy to the touch. Almost-ripe Mustang grapes. The leaves of young mustang grape vines are more deeply lobed (left) than the leaves of mature vines (right). The lobed leaves can get quite large, depending on growing conditions. Texas distribution, attributed to U. S. Department of Agriculture. The marked counties are guidelines only. Plants may appear in other counties, especially if used in landscaping. North American distribution, attributed to U. S. Department of Agriculture. Mustang grapes are easy to tell apart by their leaves from other wild grapes. The topside are dark green and smooth while the undersides are gray and fuzzy like the nose of a horse. These grapes are the first to ripen in the summer here in Texas. Their skins are thick and tough, surrounding a very tart, gelatinous interior containing several small seeds. This acidic tartness of the mustang grape skins makes them unpleasant to eat raw and can result in acid burns on your mouth and fingers. However, this acid gives them a complex flavor when made into jam/jelly or wine. When making jelly include some skins of green/unripe grapes as a source of pectin. I love this book for wine-making recipes: 101 Recipes for Making Wild Wines Due to their fuzziness, the leaves less commonly used in grape leaf recipes, but there's no flavor or other reason not to use them. Mustang grapes seem to prefer climbing along fences, old farm equipment, and other abandoned works of mankind in sunny fields. Buy my book! Outdoor Adventure Guides Foraging covers 70 of North America's tastiest and easy to find wild edibles shown with the same big pictures as here on the Foraging Texas website.
Whether you live in a dry climate or just want drought-tolerant plants you won't have to water too often, these low-water plants will save money and the planet. Even better: they'll pump up your home's curb appeal, too.
A suburban residential landscape featuring Texas native plants.
Planning a trip to Austin and wondering how vegan friendly the city is? Check out this vegan Austin food guide with 6 of my favourite vegan-friendly restaurants and vegan food trucks to ensure you have a full tummy during your stay in the great state of Texas!
Looking for the best shrubs to grow in those shady areas of your garden? We've got you covered. One common challenge for homeowners and landscape designers is to find attractive and appealing shade-loving plants for shady spots in the garden. If you are lucky enough to have mature trees on your prop
Explore 25 resilient desert plants that bring life and beauty to arid landscapes. Discover unique adaptations and vibrant choices for your garden in this comprehensive guide.
“Xeriscape” does not mean “zero-scape!” Simply, it’s designing with water-thrifty plants and water-conserving techniques, whatever your style. And, yes, you can have lawn, too: just mow high and don't pamper with lots of fertilizer and water. Call responsible gardening whatever you like (including
These deer-resistant flowers and plants, placed along with other plantings, can add beauty and a bit of protection to your beloved beds.
Looking for a water-wise garden? Hot, dry days don't stop the lush foliage and colorful flowers of these tough but gorgeous drought-tolerant plants.
Good landscaping in and around your chicken coop can improve flock health by providing well-ventilated shade in the heat of summer and fresh supplemental forage year-round. Well-managed plants help bind the nitrogen in the soil that is produced by chicken manure and minimize run-off by aerating soil into a sponge-like consistency that's better able to
Copper Canyon daisy (Tagetes lemmonii) grows wild in the Sonoran Desert of Arizona and northern Mexico, but it goes very well with native-Texas plants in Hill Country gardens.
A Round Rock Garden Plant Profiles: Flowering Plants for Texas Below is a listing of flowering plants that we are currently growing in our butterfly garden. Many of them are Texas Natives, a…
We do not currently ship to Arizona or California Grown, packaged and shipped exclusively by Wekiva Foliage. Tall spikes hold deep rose-pink flowers atop clumps of slender, green, drought tolerant foliage. Blooms nearly year-round in warm winter regions. An effective choice to add dramatic interest in a rock garden, as a landscape accent or in containers. Partners beautifully with other desert-like plants. This Southwest native is at home in a desert, xeriscape or rock garden. It will add color and textural interest to cottage beds and borders if placed with other low water use perennials. Plant along dry streambeds, landscape boulders or in large Santa Fe-style clay pots. Plant en masse in the farther reaches of your garden along with other grasses for a colorful, native grassland design. Easily grown in average to lean, well-drained soil. Water regularly in first growing season to establish root system. Once established, reduce frequency; tolerates moderate dry spells, but prefers periodic water. Feed in early spring. Remove spent bloom stalks for a neat appearance. Protect young, tender plants from rabbits and deer. Compare with similar items
Gardenia (Cape jasmine ) is a genus of flowering plants in the coffee family, Rubiaceae, native to the tropical and subtropical regions.
Read our guide to Corn Plants for everything you will ever need to know! Tips for planting & caring for “Dracaena Fragrans”
Salvia 'Pink Preference', a superb selection of the durable, deer-resistant, hummingbird-attracting Salvia greggii, came to us from the late Logan Calhoun, after being grown for decades throughout central Texas. The 2' tall x 3' wide, woody clump is topped with dark, vivid purplish red (RHS 57A) flowers highlighted by a nearly black floral calyx. For us, the heaviest flowering is during spring and fall months, although it still puts on a good show during summer. As with all Salvia greggii, a dry, well-drained site is best. This is also one of the most winter hardy of all the Salvia greggii varieties. Maintenance: Salvia greggii and its close cousin Salvia microphylla and hybrids between the two, Salvia x jamensis, are woody shrubs. They bloom for about six months but are not self-cleaning and the spent flower stalks are retained until a tidy minded gardener comes along and trims them off. The peak time to do this is late winter. At this time the shrubs are cut back by a half to two thirds to remove the dead tops of the plant. This does not require precision. It is a method meant to allow quick clean up of these woody salvias. Of course, any totally dead stems should also be removed. The health of the plant will not be compromised if it is not cleaned up but one will be viewing the current year's flowers amongst last year's dead flower stalks. This is the only routine maintenance that these salvias need. The selections of Salvia greggii, Salvia microphylla and Salvia x jamensis vary in their vigor. The most vigorous individuals might occasionally need to reined in where they have spread too far if space is limited. But these are the exception to the rule in these normally stationary plants. Excess plants can be dug out and replanted elsewhere if desired. Growing Conditions: Salvia greggii, Salvia microphylla and Salvia x jamensis are sun lovers; more sun the better. They are also drought tolerant but also tolerate wet spells if provided with adequate drainage:not excessive drainage, just any soil where water doesn't pool after a rain. They are often called "Autumn Sage" for their peak bloom is late summer into fall, though in the humid eastern US they tend to bloom continuously from spring into fall. Extended dry spells in summer can decrease blooming as is typical in their native range of Texas and Mexico. Nomenclature: The genus Salvia consists of about one thousand species. A few are annuals, most are perennial. The perennial species can be either herbaceous or woody. The woody perennial species are most often shrubs though there are some salvias that are trees. Gardeners from cold climates are often surprised to learn that some salvias are shrubs. Natural Impact: Salvia greggii, Salvia microphylla and Salvia x jamensis can be counted on for nearly six months of bloom in a wide range of color. They are the type of long blooming plant that are good foils for the show stoppers that come and go such as lilies that are in bloom for a few weeks. They are also highly favored by hummingbirds and other pollinators. These features and their low-maintenance make them very valuable part of a sunny garden, including a xeric garden.
Low Carb, Sugar Free Texas Sheet Cake Cupcakes
Society garlic (Tulbaghia violacea) growing, care, seeds, benefits, uses and facts. How to properly care for and plant society garlic in ponds.
herbs, Texas landscapes, basics, EHT-094, Joseph Masabni, Ann Wheeler, Mengmeng
If you are here for the first time because of the story about my prairie in the Dallas Morning News, thanks for the visit. Feel free to look through my posts and photos from the last year and a half. Check back again in the future. I usually have one or two new posts a month. If you are a return visitor to the Plano Prairie Garden, check out the story with the link above. Backyard 08-10-10 I started this blog in January of 2009 as a journal of my prairie garden. I never intended for it to be public, but, of course, everything on the internet ends up becoming public. That is how Curtis Ippolito, the writer of the story, found out about my garden. My yard is not typical for Plano or for most suburban neighborhoods. A couple of years ago, I started removing all the St. Augustine and Bermuda grass from my yard and began planting plants that are native to Texas. Most of the plants in my garden grew in this area before cattlemen, farmers, and developers changed the landscape. The majority of plants most people grow in their yards now come from Asia, Africa, and other foreign lands. Unfortunately, many of these plants are escaping captivity and invading our native, wild areas. By planting a variety of native plant species in my garden, I created a mini-ecosystem around my home. My garden attracts more songbirds, hummingbirds, butterflies, dragonflies, and lizards than marigolds, begonias, and St. Augustine ever could. I know my garden is not to everyone’s tastes and that is OK. But before you totally dismiss it, take a look at some of the plants. You do not have to convert your entire yard like I did. You can use native plants in a formal landscape of lawn and flowerbeds. The advantage to the natives is that many do not require as much water and care as most of the common landscape plants that you pick up at the home center. Eryngium leavenworthii from seeds collected by a railroad track on Waterview Parkway in Richardson. Keep in mind, Texas is a big state with vastly different climates. Just because a plant is native to Texas does not mean it will grow well in your garden. A plant that is native to Houston or El Paso may not grow well in the DFW area, but then again, it might. You need to know your plants. Go to the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center for more information about native plant species. By the way, the DMN story says I do not water my garden. I actually do water when the soil is really dry. In fact, the sprinklers are coming on in the morning. This streak of 100+ degree days makes a prairie a little crispy. Backyard 08-10-10
Looking for houseplants that are hard to kill and cat friendly? Here are 21 of the top low maintenance plants that are safe for cats.
The century plant (Agave americana) is hardy within U.S. Department of Agriculture plant...
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Catmint (Nepeta) make a great addition to your garden. Our guide to planting, growing, and caring for these flowering perennials.
