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Strike Three and the Crape Myrtle is out!
‘Strike two!” says the umpire. Our favorite batter is at the plate, faithfully doing his best. But the pitcher seems to be in control of the situation. No balls. Two strikes. Ugh! The horticultural nemesis of the crape myrtle is on the mound and seems to have the situation well in hand. Fastballs, curve balls,…
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Harbingers of Spring
Up North, they look to large rodents (the nefarious groundhog) to predict the weather, but we in the civilized South have some very elegant trees that serve the purpose. Have you seen the ‘saucer’ magnolias blooming around town? The Saucer magnolia (M. x soulangiana) will often predict a change of weather. In the near term,…
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The Hibiscus Tribe
Last week we talked a bit about the Confederate Rose, which is not a rose at all but rather a hibiscus. There are several plants of the hibiscus genus that are wonderful plants for the Texas Gardener who is on the lookout for showy yet easy-to-grow plants . I must mention another hibiscus that Texan gardeners…
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The Bluebonnet and the Fair Ladies of Texas
When politicians come into conflict with the members of a women’s lineage society, you know that they will lose. It happened in March 1901. According to the Texas Handbook, the 27th Texas Legislature was considering what would be named as the Texas State Flower. You and I, today, have become quite comfortable with the bluebonnet…
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Darth Vader’s Heavy Breathing
The bloom of Japanese flowering apricot (Prunus mume). is a sure herald of warm days to come! News headlines have been repeating themselves of late, and on about every level the news is bad. It is as if Darth Vader’s musical theme is playing over and over in our sub conscience. ( You know,…
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Romance is Sure to Follow
Spring is in the air and Valentine’s Day is coming up next weekend. When the rest of the world’s thoughts turn to romance, a gardener’s thoughts turns, not to romance, but to pruning roses. For Southerners, the Valentine’s season is the perfect time to prune America’s favorite flower. Everybody loves a rose. They are the…
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Winter’s Sweet Sometimes Smiles
Haven’t we been having a wonderful winter? The cold has kept the botanical world in a deep slumber. Nothing stirs in our gardens except little flocks of songbirds. Our gardens are mostly monochrome grey with only the darkest of greens providing any variation. There is little for the gardener to do outdoors, so when…
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A Winter Walk
It was a fine day last week when my four year old granddaughter and I set out on a walk to explore the byways of old Nacogdoches. The air was cool, the sky was blue, and in the trees, little flocks of chickadees and titmice followed us down Price Street discussing our progress towards…
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Senior Portraits …the Genre is changing rapidly!
