Psych, now that I look at Pistil's pics, I'm pretty sure that what I have ARE lamb's ear. I was just misled by people who said they didn't bloom. They just must not bloom their first season.
I'm not too sure how much I like those blooms, though. They're a little...weird?? LOL. I'll keep watching them and decide later. (
That's always my gardening move. Watch them and decide later. It pays off more than you might expect. My Mother-in-Law says "Caitlin just lets her weeds grow until they turn out to be flowers!" LOL
Bare Dirt to Cottage Garden (in Pictures)
"Weeds are just flowers that haven't learned to grow in rows"
Brene Brown calls them "flowers with grit!!" =)
However, there is one weed I won't abide, and I've just discovered it all over my front and backyard, right below the swing set. I give you...THE FACE OF EVIL.
Puncture vine! All over my yard!
Like most evil, it starts out pretty, and then gets nasty once you've let it take over. It starts out such a lush, pretty green, looking like four leaf clovers. But once it gets hot, the plant dies, and its soft little seeds harden into prickly horrors, with a sharp barb that sticks straight up into your foot. EVIL!
Yep, that's an evil face. Evil can sometimes start out looking quite attractive...
I have pretty much banished all spiny plants from my yard. They are just too much of a pain. I avoid weeding under them so it quickly becomes a problem. I took out an Oregon Grape shrub, a native that the birds liked, because the dropped leaves would dry, and each had horrid spines that lasted about two years. I couldn't go barefoot on the lawn, and my cats walked Veeeerrry slooowwwly and gingerly, never frisked about. I always felt bad about it though, because the birds liked the berries. So last year I found a new non-spiny variety called Soft Caress. It is very attractive.
In general I avoid poisons in the yard, but I do put down "Preen", a plant hormone that keeps seeds from sprouting. It might keep those puncture vine seeds from sprouting all over the place (too late this year I guess).
Yeah, I've heard of Preen, although I've never used it. The problem I have with it is that it would stop volunteer flowers from sprouting too, and I just love serendipity...like my new bed of Black Eyed Susans coming up in the former lawn, and my comically placed Hollyhock, which was planted by birds last year, and I couldn't bring myself to pull it!
I understand. I had a 7 foot tall Foxglove volunteer in exactly the wrong spot. I let it stay there a few years because I liked it.
See Pistil? This is why we're friends. =)
ya, scares me to move something I do NOT want to lose. And a 7 foot foxglove is a thing of wonder and beauty!
It was indeed.
So guess what just bloomed and it's NOT Lamb's Ear...? Ha!
I have a few poppies popping up here and there. =)
Life is better when viewed through a tree filter. =)
Here's a pic of the current status, plus my Photoshopped dream picture of what I'd like to do.
In the dream pic:
- Tree on the left is Chinese Pistache
- Tree on the right is a Pink Crepe Myrtle
- Pink in the back against the wall is a Bougainvillea
- Growing up the wall by the garage is a Joseph's Coat rose. I'm going to grow another up the other side, and hopefully train them across the top of the garage.
Well your photo shop picture sure makes it look possible!
It it Rose Campion? Had you planted one or sprinkle seeds, or did it blow in from the neighbors/ Anyway it sure fits the spot.
I like the photoshop idea. Have you planted the Bougainvillea yet?
Yes, Rose Campion looks right! Thanks, Pistil!
It must have blown in from the neighbors. I had never seen it before and thought it was Lamb's Ear this whole time. It just sat there in little clumps all last season, then this year it shot up and bloomed! =)
I haven't planted the Bougainvillea yet. I might have to order it online. My local nursery doesn't sell it because our zone isn't ideal for it - they say it's "too heartbreaking" because often they don't survive through our freezes. But I know a couple of houses that have them up against the home in a protected spot like this one, so I want to try it out.
This message was edited Apr 24, 2016 4:06 PM
Sounds like you "must" get one!
Holy cow. I just did an itty bitty google search, to see what your options are, this place in FL has 80 varieties. I would have agony/ecstasy trying to choose!
http://bougainvilleas.us/bougainvilleas/
80 choices would be too mind boggling for me! LOL
Omigosh Pistil! Scarlett-O-Hara!!! I want... =D
Would look absolutely perfect on your house. I think this is the one for you, too.
Yay! I need to get more loud, big, impact flowers/colors in my garden. I tend to lean toward tiny, cute little flowers a-la-Johnny Jump-ups, which are great as you are meandering up to my door, but have small street impact.
I was looking at their order form and getting completely confused, though. I wonder if they sell to normal shmucks like me, or only do bulk orders? Do I seriously have to fax it? LOL. I may just have to call them.
My favorite view, of the wheelbarrow over the Mexican Primrose. =) The wind brought down a huge branch of my tree because I had let it get so heavy, so I had to give it a haircut. =)
The random non-Elephant Ears sure are working out! My zinnias really haven't taken off this year, even though I scattered more seed than other years. I think I didn't break up the soil enough for them to get a foothold. Lesson learned.
I had the gardeners cut a new line, delineating where the "lawn" will be kept short, and the Black Eyed Susan patch will be allowed to grow.
This message was edited May 5, 2016 6:41 AM
I love the wheelbarrow too. And the Mexican Primroses. The tree is getting to be a nice size, the shade is starting to get substantial. How big will it get?
Hmm, the grass is unhappy. Do people in Fresno have a more drought-tolerant low groundcovery plant that would give a lawn effect? Also at some point grass won't want to grow in the shade under the tree anyway, are you going to do mulch or another kind of plant there?
MORE pictures please!
Sorry for the delay in pics. I'm not doing so hot garden-wise this year. =/
Here's a current status. It's just not that pretty. =(
The Hollyhocks have given up the ghost. I'm deciding whether to just give up on them, or to try to do the systemic fungicide for next year. All of the sprouts coming up are diseased at this point.
I've also run into a problem with the Black Eyed Susans - they are pointing in the wrong direction! They apparently get the strongest sun from above and behind us, so from the street you can't see their yellow faces!
It's super weedy, the grass is dead, and the heat is starting to come on. I have dreams and plans (laying down stepping stones, adding ground cover, weeding the grass out of the Black Eyed Susan area), but time, energy, and money are getting in the way!
My hubby is very dissatisfied with the front this year. He said "either you are looking directly at a beautiful flower, or at a weed." He's starting to regret letting me kill the grass, so I've gotta get my act together. Sorry for the downer post, but that's where I'm at right now!
Oh dear, yes I see what you mean. And now the spring planting season is done, so probably you need to wait until fall.
Well I guess this shows how hard it is to come up with something nice in such a difficult climate.
I wonder if you should just mow it all, including the Blackeyesusan area, this would neaten it up for now.
One hint I got from a garden book, with an essay by a Canadian landscaper: If the edges of flowerbeds are neat, people usually do not notice the bed has weeds. I tried this and it does help a lot.
You didn't ask for advice about this, but I guess if it was me I would walk around the neighborhood and see what has worked in other yards. Do they actually have grass or some groundcover or gravel? I suspect watering restrictions apply in Fresno, so it must be taken into account. Does Fresno have a website with recommended plants? Do you have to include wildfire-proofing?
Good ideas! I agree, look around and take pictures. Using more chemical killer on the yard to eliminate the stragglers would help, mowing it to the GROUND so there is no green would neaten the former grass area. Here, if you are diligent about checking craigslist, you can find free rock to bring home. .
Change is afoot!
Have you taken out all your flowers too?? I see the gravel and red mulch but what is the first pile? sand? or???
This is going to be fun, watching the change!
p.s. The tree looks really good, and healthy.
Very nice, Wifey. Your hard work has certainly paid off. If I lived near you, I'd be happy to share some divisions and seed!
Yes, I have torn out almost everything except a couple of foundation plants that are part of my overall plan. I'm starting fresh!!
I have many problems that I am going to address in this redo:
1. Lack of structural, foundation plantings (bushes, trees, evergreen plants) that provide a backdrop for annuals and perennials. Solution: Focus on structural plantings FIRST, then fill in with annuals and perennials once the backdrop is esablished.
2. Lack of structural hardscape (paths, retaining walls, trellises). Solution: I'm going to add one major path on the right, and another wandering path on the left.
3. Lack of all-season interest. Building a garden on annuals/perennials only means that it is UGLY during the fall and winter months.
4. Too much weeding needed. By planting everything so interspersed, with no plan, it means that weeds come up with real plants all over the whole garden, and I just can't keep up. Solutions: Plant things farther apart with mulch coverings in between, so that the gardener can help me weed. Use pre-emergent to keep down weeds.
5. Too much hand watering. Once we stopped watering the lawn, many of the plants lost a major water source in the overspray. Solution: Drip system, with a special drip line for each new plant.
6. Too much work for me to keep up with, in general. Solution: Choose designated annual areas, mainly containers around the entryway, that will change annually and will allow me to have fun and experiment in a less time-intensive way.
The three piles are red humus, a small pea gravel, and foundation sand. In addition to mulching the front, we are doing a back yard makeover. Before and after pics to come!
WOW a lady with a PLAN!!! Add some garden art in there. That will help the winter interest. Some of mine cannot be seen except for winter and early spring.
Backyard before and after photos!!
That is REALLY looking nice, you must be so excited!
I just bought a new stepping stone mold and I'm anxious to get some made. I'm going to need about 12 or 13 to link from my back door to the bench that I want to highlight. The back door would be to the left in picture #3, while the 1 & 2 are different pictures looking out from back door. Right now you see 2 round stepping stones. My new mold is BIG leaf (16 x 19) that I will paint/highlight with green and everything that is bare dirt now will be either gravel or bark. http://www.ebay.ca/itm/400986155507?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT We get sooo much hard wind I just don't think bark would last!
Some new garden art at my house... that is at the edge next to my arch into the patio
Wifeygirl, I sure like what you have done, and it looks practical in such a hot and dry place. The tree is big enough now to really make the place look settled, so you don't need so much else anyway at this point.
The back yard arbor is inspired. It will really make it more comfortable out there. Are you going to try any vines on it?
Also in the back yard-is that a stepping stone or the base for yard art in the bark?
I agree with a little area for bright annuals near the front door, just ONE place to hand water. I always look at the desert plants at Annie's Annuals and High Country Gardens with some envy-I bet you can have enough pretty stuff there to make it look great.
I have noticed with my house even one plant with bright orange or hot pink in the front yard is really enough to make it "pop".
psychw2- The leaf stepping stones look great (make sure we get photos when done), and your froggie is enjoying the geraniums, He looks good next to the bright flowers.
OutsidePlaying - Thanks so much for the compliments. As you can see, I'm starting over a little bit. But I think it'll be good!
Pistil - So glad you like it! Yes, I am going to try to do honeysuckle on the back pergola. My husband has always loved the smell of honeysuckle, so it was his special request! It turns out that there are millions of them, so it's a matter of deciding which to choose. My plan at this point is to plant at least two varieties, an early blooming and late blooming. I've found two different places recommending the combination of early Dutch honeysuckle (Lonicera periclymenum ‘Belgica’) and late Dutch honeysuckle (Lonicera periclymenum ‘Serotina’), which would mean sweet-smelling blooms from May to September!
In the backyard, that is a stepping stone. I'm planning to plant a Gingko tree in the circle there (and hope I luck out with a male!), and put a fountain in the planter on the right. Then the large gravel circle will be our firepit. Then string globe lights under the pergola and across the backyard. It's going to be so magical!!
I really like Ginkgos. I know that one can buy grafted male clones, but I would worry about doing that, in your spot it seems you want the most vigorous plant possible, and seed grown should be better. Is there any way to buy a sapling of known male sex? (I bet you are researching this!)
Honeysuckle sounds good. Have you thought about trying a native one? I would guess the ones that are native to California, like L. hispidula, might be extra drought resistant?
I love Ginkgos, too! Our landlord had one in the back of a house we were renting, and the fall show was just magical. That yellow carpet of leaves was gorgeous! However, it was a female, so it also had the stinky fruit. It was a stunning tree, so I didn't mind the fruit, however the landlord was the one cleaning it up and he ended up taking the tree down right before we moved out. I was so sad! He said he was mad because the nursery had assured him that it was a male, only for him to discover it was female years later.
I've done some research, and from what I can tell, there is around an 18% failure rate for "guaranteed" male Ginkgos. The problem is that many don't fruit till 7-20 years after planting, so there is no way to know if you've hit the jackpot or not. The problem is that you can't sex a Ginkgo sprouting from seed - the only way that they can "guarantee" that a tree is male is through grafting a known male onto the roots. They think that the 18% failure rate comes from human error - the graft dies and the female roots send up their own sprout that the nursery employee fails to notice, and that becomes a female tree.
My hubby and I are willing to take the risk. If in 7-20 years it starts fruiting, we'll clean up the fruit. We didn't care that much about it before, and by then our kiddos will be mostly grown and not playing outside as much, so I imagine the fruit won't get stepped on as much in the meantime. We will buy a graft though - I'd like to TRY for the no fruit option! 82% isn't that bad - I like those odds.
I didn't even know that native honeysuckle was an option!!! GREAT idea! I might be planting three varieties now! Thanks for the recommendation. Time for a new slew of research. As long as the natives are fragrant, I'm in!