Colorful DiscoveriesAt the San Antonio Botanical Garden

One of many highlights of our recent trip to San Antonio was visiting the San Antonio Botanical Garden with Jean at Dig, Grow, Compost, Blog. A resident of the area, Jean shared helpful gardening and historical information, and we had some fun discussions.



The botanical garden had some impressive edibles growing in beautiful displays.



The displays included information about the plants and required growing conditions.



In many cases, the edibles and ornamentals were interplanted, which is always fun to see and do.



Other highlights of the botanical garden included this former limestone quarry, which was transformed into a public waterworks system for the city in 1877. Now a beautiful sunken garden, it features a staggered seating area, climbing vines, and beautiful stonework.



Some of the displays were unique--for example, Pansies (Viola x wittrockiana), Swiss Chard (Beta vulgaris), and Prickly Pear Cacti (Opuntia spp.) growing in a display together.



We visited during the gardens' Orchid Celebration, which was fabulous. I took so many photos, but the only name plate I captured was this healthy Noble Rock Orchid (Dendrobium nobile).



The others were, of course, incredibly lovely and colorful, too.

An extra bonus was that the Texas Bluebonnets (Lupinus texensis) were just beginning to bloom--at the botanical garden and throughout the surrounding area.

It was one of many beautiful days in a beautiful part of the state and a lovely region of the country.

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Looking Back and Planning Ahead

I'm dreaming about the growing season ahead; are you? Some garden friends in warmer climates are beginning to see new growth, while others in even milder locations have year-round active gardens. Here in the Upper Midwest U.S., our growing season doesn't really get going until March. While, yes of course, changes are happening under the soil and under the snow and ice all winter, the growing party doesn't really start until spring.

So...I'm reflecting on some of the highlights of last year's garden as I plan ahead. In March, it started with the budding and blooming of Snowdrops (Galanthus spp.), shown above.



Other fabulous and reliable garden friends that made their appearances in March included the ornamental Alliums. (Though most actually bloom in late spring and early summer, it's fun to see the new growth poking above the soil and preparing for the season ahead.)

Crocuses (C. vernus) greeted late March and early April with bright color and tenacity, even as winter and spring duked it out with fluctuating temperatures and variable precipitation.

Some of the Hellebores (H. orientalis) began blooming in March, but their performance really got going in April.



The rabbits didn't eat/destroy the Virginia Bluebells (Mertensia virginica) last year because I provided adequate caging.





The Baltimore orioles and ruby-throated hummingbirds were right on schedule in early May. 







Alliums (A. giganteum), Salvias (S. nemerosa), and Dwarf Korean Lilacs (Syringa meyeri) took the stage in June, their cool pink and purple blooms great for floral arrangements.

Viceroy butterflies (shown here) seemed more plentiful last summer, while their look-alikes, monarchs, were lower in numbers in my part of the country than they have been in the past.



Wild Bergamot (Monarda fistulosa) offered cheery July blooms to pollinators and humans, alike.



In August, the garden flowers I'd planted from seeds, bulbs, and corms earlier in the growing season offered vases full of color.



A family of red-tailed hawks visited our backyard. That was a thrill!



Also a thrill: every monarch I saw, because there were so few.

In September, I found a patch of Downy Gentians (Gentiana puberulenta) during a hike, definitely a beautiful discovery.

The juvenile hummingbirds, as always in late summer/early fall, kept me entertained.



The Maples (Acer spp.) colored the front yard view in October.



At the same time, the garden was still full of plentiful blooms, since we didn't have a heavy frost until late in the month.



We had plenty of Tomatoes for BLTs late into the season.



The hanging Fuchsias even bloomed into early November.

And I saw monarch butterflies later in the season than I've ever seen them before, though I'd seen very few earlier in the year.

It was a beautiful growing season, and I'm looking forward to the one ahead in the coming months. Though these are all blooms and thrills from last year, I'm linking into Gail's Wildflower Wednesday over at Clay and Limestone. Happy memories and best wishes for the growing season ahead!

Magic Magnolia Buds

Magnolia stellata

The fluffy opening buds of Magnolias are so fascinating; I think I enjoy them almost (almost) more than the open flowers, themselves. Many of the Magnolia trees around here have suffered slight frost damage during the past week as we flirted for several nights with nighttime lows hovering slightly above and below 32F/0C. Now it's a little warmer, so they're bursting into bloom.

There's no denying the beauty and the magic of the buds AND the blooms.

Have You Seen the Angel Oak?

If you're ever traveling near Charleston, S.C., you really must make an effort to see the "Angel Oak." This 400-500-year-old Southern Live Oak tree (Quercus virginiana) covers about 17,200 square feet and is 65 feet tall. It's thought to be one of the oldest living things in the U.S.



There's no charge to visit Angel Oak Park, located on Johns Island, just a few miles southwest of Charleston. It's quite an expansive property, with plenty of space to view, walk near, and explore below and among the branches of this amazing tree.

The day we were there, in March, the weather was misty, but comfortable. We were on our way between Charleston and Savanna, Ga. As always, I wish I'd had more time to explore, and of course pictures can't do it justice. But believe me, it was wonderful!



While looking through my photos to decide which ones to post, I noticed the people in this photo were leaning in! This was very flat ground; not a hill. I find their posture with the tree fascinating.



Zooming in: Was it empathy and respect for this incredibly long-lived and stunningly beautiful tree that caused them to lean toward it?



Some of the tree's branches are so large they're like separate trees, themselves. Many are so big and heavy that they rest on the ground, which only happens with the very oldest Live Oaks.



The main trunk has a circumference of 28 feet.



There are so many awesome features of this tree, but what really hit me and amazed me on observing it was that it's obviously a complex ecosystem unto itself--a community of living and nonliving things that work together. The knots, the bark, the branches, and the tree holes support insects, birds, mammals, fungi, mosses, lichens, bromeliads, and other life forms. I could have spent hours studying all the nooks and crannies and secret treasures.







Love the Spanish Moss (Tillandsia usneoides)!



Good memories; amazing tree! Have you seen it?

A Few Fleshy Fruits of Autumn

Garden blooms are gone and foliage is fading in my neighborhood, but a few fruits remain here and there. Some will last through the winter, while others offer happy feasts for birds and critters as winter's cold, icy claw will soon grip the landscape.

As I glance around the garden, the berries, drupes, pomes and other fruits catch my eye amidst the brown and gray of "once lush" trees, shrubs, and forbs. I'll refer you to a list of types of fruits for proper identification.

Can you identify what types of fruits (berries, drupes, pomes, hesperidia, other) are shown here?:



Cranberrybush Viburnum (V. trilobum)



Staghorn Sumac (Rhus typhina)



Pachysandra (P. terminalis)



Yew (Taxis canadensis)



Crabapples (unknown Malus cultivar)



Lily of the Valley (Convallaria majalis)

Those are a few of the outdoor fruits; here are two I overwinter in the sunroom:



Developing Fuchsia fruit (F. 'Marinka')



Meyer Lemon (Citrus x meyeri)

Can you correctly classify these fruits? What fruits are growing and ripening in your garden?

[Disclaimer: Not all of the fruits shown here are edible to humans! Research before you consume the parts of any unfamiliar plant!]