Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Bloomers on the hill

One of our most unusual natives is the death camas
(Zigadenus Nuttallii) - yes, it's poisonous.
We have exactly six of these that I've seen.
Unfortunately, I weed-whacked one the other day.  Arghh!

This post is dedicated to wildflowers and trees blooming today on the hill. The wildflowers seem to be getting off to a slow start this year, probably due to a lack of rainfall. We had 5.3" of rain in January, .5" of snow and .15" of rain in February, and no moisture at all so far in March. But our wildflowers are tough! They will survive!



These cheerful fellows are Texas stars
or Lindheimer daisies (Lindheimera texana). 
Lots of these grow in our yard.

Hurrah, bluebonnets are starting to bloom!
The Texas bluebonnet (Lupinus texensis) is our state flower.
We have a few little colonies in sunny locations.




One of our Texas mountain laurels (Sophora secundiflora) has begun blooming. This one is about 8 feet tall and is in full sun. We have others growing along the driveway and in the woods. 

The prairie fleabane (Erigeron modestus) is the predominant wildflower right now. It is a sweet little plant that is spread extravagantly through grassy areas. My book says it likes dry, calcareous soils - I guess it does!

The Texas redbuds in the woods still have some blooms.

Favorite spot in the garden:  

My favorite plant today is the bridal wreath (Spiraea prunifolia). I love this one so much, I planted a matching one at the other end of this bed. Can't wait for it to catch up! This one has been in the ground about five years.

7 comments:

  1. I really like redbuds, but they are particular about location up here. I would really like those Texas bluebonnets. Blue is my fave in the garden. Nice selection.

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  2. Never seen the death camas before. They are pretty. Love the fleabane! They look so cheerful. Your spirea looks very nice. I can see why you wanted another one.

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  3. I love spirea but never thought of growing it here. Who knew! You've inspired me to plant one.

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  4. @Donna - the bluebonnets are spectacular en masse. Unfortunately, it's been dry and not much is happening on the roadsides yet.

    @HG - death camas does have a grim name for such a pretty thing! And you're right, the fleabanes are very cheerful (funny name, though).

    @Anon - go for it! These are planted in a raised bed, however, with imported garden soil. Not sure how they would do in our rocky, limey ground.

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  5. Blue bonnets... I can't think of Texas without envisioning fields of blue bonnets and have meadow envy.

    I congratulate you on having so many indigenous plants blooming in your yard!

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  6. It all looks wonderful. You wrote on my blog about the nandinas. I've heard they are a real problem in some of the more southern climes. Sorry though. They work so well here.~~Dee

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  7. @LH - well, our meadows are a bit barren at this point. We are technically in a drought. And thanks!

    @Dee - I like them a lot, and have one out front a prior resident planted - I need to cut it down, but haven't made myself do it, yet.

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