front yard transformation: 2001-2009

True confessions. I wasn't too interested in gardening until about 10 years ago. But once husband Kurt and I decided we WERE interested, especially because we had a blank slate front lawn with which to work, we were motivated. Methodical and slow, but motivated. We vowed not to buy a lawn mower, although we did pay a guy to mow parts of the lawn for several years. Not the most thrifty move but a matter of principle for us at the time.

Our mission was to transform our flat, plain, grass-and-weed-covered front/side yards (we're on a corner lot) to a xeriscaped, lawn-free front yard garden without pesticides. Our side yards are still a work in progress. It's taken eight years, but here are the before and after photos (with no photos of the years of plastic-covered grass-killing).


fall 2001


spring 2002


late fall 2009

more holiday cheer (not gin this time)

In person, I'd seen Christmas balls hanging from large agaves and liked the look but didn't feel good about piercing my plants with those hooks. Then I stumbled across this idea online somewhere and did my own version. Cheers again, y'all!




I had a few leftovers, so I added them to the light pole/fire hydrant corner agave.

foliage follow-up to bloom day

our huge old sycamore

Pam at Digging now invites us to start celebrating our foliage the day after Carol's monthly garden bloggers' bloom day. I agree that blooms shouldn't get all the spotlight!


my neighbors' huge old sycamores


gray santolina and rosemary


potted olive tree with rosemary and Mexican feathergrass


lavender


Like the olive tree, santolina, and lavender, softleaf yucca is in the gray/blue spectrum of greens, but those cool tones don't seem to make me feel colder on gray chilly days like today.


Although the purple fountaingrass has faded for winter, it's still a nice contrast to some of the cooler toned evergreens.

garden bloggers' bloom day

Austin's had two freezes in the past few weeks (!), so many salvias and other perennials look rather brown and mushy at the moment. Mine are all fairly established and should bounce back fine in the the Spring. That said, I only have a few things currently blooming and some of them are repeats from last month. I'm still happy to have any blooms right now. Be sure to check out other gardeners' bloom day posts on Carol's May Dreams Gardens. Thanks for hosting, Carol!


miniature rose 'Red Cascade'


paperwhite narcissus blooming early


trailing lantana


lavender


blackfoot daisies and silver ponyfoot--a little ragged but hanging in there


pansy 'Black Prince'


lettuces and parsley: colorful enough to count as blooms?

Also blooming now are a few marigolds, more pansies, a snapdragon, a bit of Turks Cap, a bit of verbena, and phlox.

holiday cheer: favorite gins

I try not to stray from gardening, house, or trial topics here, but my gardener/landscaper friend Jackie and I were comparing cocktail notes yesterday and she thought my gin comparison information was blog-worthy, so here goes.

Husband Kurt is actually the bigger gin fan, but recently he put me to a blind taste test and it turned out my favorites were the same as his. Junipero, from Anchor Distilling, a small batch distillery in San Francisco, is our favorite. Junipero is a very strong, yet traditional dry gin with complex herbal/botanical/citrus notes.

Number two is the "earthy" gin, Plymouth (England), but I don't have any to photograph. Plymouth is best for a Bloody Mary and, for some, the Paez. There is also Plymouth Navy Strength for those who need to light gunpowder.

Number three is Miller's (England/Iceland), which is similar to Junipero but less complex and maybe better for mixed drinks.

Number four is Hendricks (Scotland), which is lighter, with cucumber and lots more floral notes--a little "girly." Citadelle (France) is probably our number four (very similar to Hendricks but less cucumber), but I don't have a photograph of that either.



Kurt really enjoys a good martini after a day at work, so the choice of dry vermouth is particularly important. Vya (Quady Winery, Madera, California) vermouth is so tasty and smooth that we occasionally drink it straight on ice or mixed half and half with Vya's sweet vermouth. Really, it's that good!

I know many people think Bombay Sapphire is the bomb, but I think it's rot gut. I know, tell us how you really feel, Iris. Cheers!

Disclaimer: I have no affiliation with any of these gin or vermouth companies and have not received anything from any of them for free. I have bought all of the products listed on my own.

first season's freeze preparations

I was skeptical yesterday when the weather people said we might get two inches of snow tomorrow, and now they've revised their forecasts to "up to a half inch" of snow tomorrow. Sounds like MAYBE a few flurries to me. I'm much more concerned about tomorrow night's predicted low of 25 degrees (F)! It took me almost two hours today to cover the vegetable beds and a bunch of assorted other plants.



One especially good thing to come out of the freeze preparation is that I was forced to harvest some chard and kale and finally thin some of the baby carrots because I was running out of row cover (not true farmers' row cover, but the stuff I got at Breed and Co.) Stay warm, ya'll!

vegetable garden update

romaine (Parris Island Cos in front, Freckles in back)

Except for my broccoli, whose leaves are being eaten by some worm I can never catch, my fall vegetables are doing well. My lettuces are particularly happy. I still have jalapenos and anaheims producing, too. I already harvested a bunch of my basil and froze it, but I still have plenty going strong, at least until tomorrow night when it is supposed to get down to the low 40s. Today's weird weather is perfect for harvesting lots of those lettuces: heading out!


leaf lettuces (Red Sails, Oak Leaf Blend)


butterhead lettuces (Speckles, Marvel of Four Seasons); leaf lettuce (Tango)



chard (Five Color Silverbeet, Bright Lights) and kale (Italian Lacinato Nero Toscana)


cauliflower (Chef's Choice Blend)


carrots (Scarlet Nantes, Purple Haze, Carnival Blend) that I need to thin


beets (Early Wonder, Gourmet Blend, Detroit Dark Red)

experiment in cuttings

I'm brand new at propagating plants from stem cuttings, but I'm game. Several days ago, I gently stuck some cuttings from my potted Persian Shield (Strobilanthes dyerianus) and Pineapple Coleus (Solenostemon scutellarioides 'pineapple') in seed starter soil mix and placed them in a mostly shaded spot (above photo). They got some rain Friday, so I decided today was the time to put baggies over them to keep them moister and warmer.



I brought one inside to see if it fares better or worse than the outside group. If they root and survive, I'll transplant them into pots and bring them inside for the winter. With luck, they'll survive, and I'll put them back outside in the spring. Maybe I'll be daring and even plant some in the ground!


tented cuttings with their parent plants below

garden bloggers' bloom day

Silverado sage, Mealycup Sage (Salvia farinacea 'Victoria Blue'), silver ponyfoot and blackfoot daisies, Mexican Bush Sage (Salvia leucantha)

The weather here has been beautiful lately. Two months ago, I couldn't have imagined we'd finally get moderate temperatures and enough rain again to bring our front yard garden back to life. And positively lush, too! Thanks to Carol at May Dreams Gardens for hosting bloom day on the 15th of every month.


phlox


Forsythia Sage (salvia madrensis) from Renee at Renee's Roots


paperwhite narcissus blooming two months early


miniature rose 'Red Cascade'


ornamental pepper 'black pearl'


Persian shield and pineapple coleus: I know they're not blooms, but the colors and combination are so cool, I had to include them.


loropetalum and plumbago

Also blooming today are indigo spires salvia, Mexican heather, Turk's cap, lantana, marigolds, pansies, rosemary, ruellia, and black dalea.

unusual blooming timing

paperwhite narcissus

I don't know if it's the combination of our drought and recent rain, but several of my plants are blooming when they normally don't.


This paperwhite narcissus (fighting the lantana) didn't bloom until mid-January last year.


Red Cascade miniature rose (currently my only rose because it seems foolproof) usually blooms in the Spring.





This Provence lavender sometimes blooms in November but not this profusely.


The black dalea has bloomed this time of year before, but like the lavender, not as profusely as this year.


Bees are all over the black dalea.

I would like to thank the academy

I am not worthy, but THANK YOU to The Curious Holts of wabi-sabihomeandgarden for including me as a recipient of bloggers' Honest Scrap Awards.



There are more than two dozen fantastic Austin-area garden blogs, but here are three of my more offbeat favorites: Hungersauce, The Bearded Gourmand, and Austin Agrodolce.

And, in the spirit of the award's requests, here are some honest things about me:
-I'm six years older than my husband.
-I've snorkeled the Great Barrier Reef and did NOT enjoy the water.
-I was an extra in Billy Idol's "Don't Need a Gun" music video.
-I have one near-sighted eye and one far-sighted eye.

Thanks again and cheers, y'all!

veggie beds: rage against the weeds

"Speckles" butterhead lettuce

In this case, horseherb was the main culprit. I like horseherb as a groundcover in other parts of the yard, but I most definitely did not like it smothering my veggie seedlings. It was my fault for letting it get so out of control. Aargh.

Usually I do my weeding quietly with a big glass of iced green tea, content to focus on the task and listen to the sounds of the neighborhood, but this time I needed extra encouragement. So, armed with a bloody mary and my iPod, I cranked up my favorite Rage Against the Machine tunes and got to work.


lettuce beds, before


lettuce beds, after


other veggie beds, after

identification of mystery trees

EDITED Wed., 11-4-09: Treefolks called and confirmed what Caroline and Pam suspected: they're both Mexican Plum trees!

While I was out voting today, the people from Treefolks' Neighborwoods free tree program delivered our two "small stature" trees. Unfortunately, they left no identification on the trees. (I've left them a phone message.)

The choices (none of which I have any experience) were American Smoketree, Flameleaf Sumac, Mexican Plum, and Texas Mountain Laurel. I'm looking on the Lady Bird Wildflower Center database but haven't figured them out yet. Does someone recognize these?




left tree



right tree

happy 10th anniversary to us and happy halloween to all

we put up a few decorations last week

Husband Kurt and I kicked off our tenth wedding anniversary last night with an incredible meal at Wink restaurant, known for its inventive use of lots of local and organic ingredients. I run into chef Eric at the Boggy Creek Farm stand allot, and he's really cool.

But today is our actual anniversary. We got married in Seattle, shortly before we moved back to Austin. The weather was as beautiful that day as it is today. Happy Halloween everyone!


bouquets of blue-maroon hydrangeas ( how I WISH I could grow those here), gardenias, and I can't remember what else because I wasn't much of a gardener then


clear, cool day at our wedding venue, the DAR house on East Roy street in Seattle

Yogurt Shop Murders: charges dismissed today, part 2

Before I continue with today's observations, let me explain that the charges were dismissed "without prejudice", which means the charges against Robert Springsteen and Michael Scott may be refiled at any time--there's no statute of limitations for murder--but the state would still have to return to a grand jury if they refiled. The state maintains its position that Springsteen and Scott "are responsible for these murders..." More about the state's press conference in a minute.

Today's courtroom was packed--usually only one television camera is allowed inside and today there were many--and also included elected head District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg, assistant DA John Neal, and police chief Art Acevedo. Bob Ayers, father of youngest victim Amy Ayers, was also there. I haven't seen any of the victims' family members attending any of these two years of pretrial hearings until today.

What led up to today's dramatic dismissals? In August, state District Judge Mike Lynch granted the state a continuance to continue its Y-STR DNA testing to try to identify newly discovered male DNA recovered from vaginal swabs taken from youngest victim Amy Ayers.

At that time, Lynch also issued an order designating today's hearing as the deadline for the state to give a "good faith determination" as to whether they'd be ready for a jury trial roughly set for January. Lynch told the state that he would not grant any more continuances for them based on the same basis of continuing its DNA testing.

Today, assistant DA Efrain De La Fuente announced that the state is not ready for trial, is still conducting its Y-STR testing, and has not yet identified the DNA's source. Therefore, De La Fuente said, "we have no other choice but to file an order for dismissal." The defense had no objection, of course, and even waived reading the state's motion before it was given to Judge Lynch.

Lynch signed the order, granting the dismissal motion "as to each indictment, as to each of the two defendants" and said that as soon as the order was filed with the clerk, Scott and Springsteen would be free from all their current bond obligations. And then we were in recess.

Defense attorneys briefly spoke to the press, encouraging everyone to have sympathy for the victims' families because they have suffered the most in this whole ordeal and expressing hope that continued DNA testing will identify the unknown male, that the killer "is still out there."

Robert Springsteen didn't stick around to speak to the press, but Mike Scott and his wife Jeannine answered a few questions. Scott said he was "glad to be where I'm at today" and when asked if or how he could not feel resentment, he simply said, "move forward." The couple said they couldn't comment now on whether they'd stay in Austin.

At the press conference in the DA's office, head DA Rosemary Lehmberg read from a written statement before taking some questions. In her statement, she said, "Make no mistake, this is a difficult decision for me and one I would rather not have to make. I believe it is the best legal and strategic course to take and is the one that leaves us in the best possible posture to ultimately retry both Springsteen and Scott."

Then police chief Art Acevedo spoke about the importance of DNA for properly convicting or exonerating, especially "in a state that leads the country in wrongful convictions." While saying that the state's focus is still on these suspects (Springsteen and Scott), Acevedo also said, "they are probably the right suspects."

When asked if Springsteen and Scott could now move to another state if they wished, Lehmberg said, "They're free to do whatever they want."