Opening up the front

The Texas sage near the street was one of the few plants remaining from the landscape installed by the builder and original owner of our house.

Since the yard was quite a mess when we returned to San Antonio in 2008 we were happy to have a large plant that needed little or no attention right out front.  Over time we have improved the landscape to the point where we now want to show off what was behind this sage, no longer needing to hide it from the neighbors.  So the sage you see here in the front began to look a bit out of place.

The Twenty Dollar Orange

Back in the spring I headed out early one Saturday morning on a mission to be one of the first customers to buy a new variety of citrus tree named "Orange Frost" specifically developed for our South Texas climate.  The advance word as recommended by our local Extension Service was that not only will the plant survive our wild weather range swings, but the fruit is seedless and sweet.  So I put on my comfy shoes and headed out with my plant sale wagon.

The tree I brought home had a number of small fruits and all but two eventually dropped off.  The two remaining oranges grew and ripened until last week when I picked them a few days apart.

Devil of a Bloom!

 It's been a good year for cactus blooms with milder than usual weather the last few weeks.  On Tuesday this Devil's Tongue barrel cactus (Ferocactus latispinus) bloomed for the first time.  Bright purple and similar to a straw flower it waited through a string of cloudy days to burst into bloom when the sun appeared in the afternoon.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving week feast for the butterflies

Butterflies have flocked to the back yard, especially in my wheel garden where milkweed and other flowering plants have enticed them to a Thanksgiving week feast.  We don't see a lot of Monarchs even though they are migrating through Texas to their winter home in Mexico, but a few found their way here this past weekend.

The Gomphrena 'Fireworks' attracts plenty of butterflies like this Monarch.  That's a Red Admiral flitting in the background.

Foliage Follow-up: Gold Mound Duranta Brightens a Shady Corner

It's the 16th of November and time for Foliage Follow-up when bloggers highlight foliage in our gardens.

My pick for this month is the bright Gold Mound Duranta (Duranta Erecta 'Gold Mound') in the front yard.

Open Days Garden Tour Austin: Jeff Pavlat and Ray Clayton Garden

The final garden on the Garden Conservancy Open Days Tour is the garden of Jeff Pavlat and Ray Clayton. A very special finale it was.  Jeff is an avid collector of cactus and succulents and currently Vice President - Education for the Austin Cactus and Succulent Society where he has also served as president.

The impressive garden terraces designed and built by Jeff and Ray are the first feature to greet visitors, and lead down the hillside from the street to the house.