Garden of E

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My Info

Austin, Texas
I've lived and gardened in urban Austin for the past 8 years, after retiring from the last of my several careers. BR (before retirement), most of my life was spent in colder places like Michigan, Missouri, Oregon, Montana, Alaska, and Boston MA. Best thing I've done AR-- becoming a Master Gardener. Other passions-- Austin Farmers' Market, grandchildren, and travel.

photo by Elsa, age 7

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

What Happens in January When Your Back is Turned

I spent a week in Michigan freezing my butt off, and another week of general busy-ness.  Then two days ago I finally made the rounds in the back garden--it's amazing what exuberance the rain and whacky weather have created.

Such as... 25 square feet of tightly packed lettuces, 6 different kinds:

Giant leaves of chard just waiting to be thrown into chicken soup:


A six-by-six bed of carrots grown twice as large as they were two weeks ago:


Self-sown larkspur crowd into a corner by the back fence:


And oops, looks like I threw down an awful lot of poppy seeds:


A Supertunia I've had since April 2010 has risen again:


And finally, what a surprise to see the loropetalum 'rubrum' covered in bloom!

What will happen if we get a prolonged sub-freezing spell like last February's? Anyone willing to wager how many days below freezing we'll get between now and March 1?
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14 comments:

  1. Steph@RamblingWrenJanuary 24, 2012 at 7:22 PM

    Your Veggie garden is amazing!! I'm craving a salad after looking at your lovely assortment of lettuce. The chard looks wonderful as well. Love your loropetalum 'rubrum'. I'm looking to add this to my garden.

    I might need your secret on how to plant a Veggie garden.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. HibiscusJanuary 25, 2012 at 12:06 AM

      Thanks. A little compost worked in before seeding, cool nights to get them going, and 7" of rain spread out between November and January have worked wonders. Planting lettuces close together prevents weeds and the soil from drying out, and whole heads can be harvested to give others room as they grow bigger.

      Delete
  2. AnonymousJanuary 24, 2012 at 8:27 PM

    oooh, that chinese Fringe Flower looks great! I have several, but they aren't in full sun so they never bloom like that. I love it. Your lettuce and chard looks good enough to..., well, eat.

    ReplyDelete
  3. HibiscusJanuary 25, 2012 at 12:12 AM

    Yes, this one is in a full sun bed. Bloom hasn't been this spectacular for a couple of years--it's the magical rains! BTW, you're welcome to come pick some lettuce.

    ReplyDelete
  4. ConsciousGardenerFebruary 17, 2012 at 6:51 AM

    Things are looking great! My greens garden is packed full this year as well. I need to get some poppy seeds from you when those babies nod off...I haven't had much luck. What variety are they?

    ReplyDelete
  5. Gardening shedsApril 4, 2012 at 1:45 PM

    I love those lettuce! They look really healthy. Nice garden.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Garden CentreMay 3, 2012 at 1:13 AM

    We can say this is green world of beautiful garden because in this post every thing is looking so nice and natural i am so inspired here.
    Thanks for sharing...




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    ReplyDelete
  7. RobertaAugust 8, 2012 at 9:55 PM

    I don't know where else to post this. I used to follow Eleanor on Twitter. Someone has hacked it and is using it to send spam.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Flower PotSeptember 10, 2012 at 4:56 PM

    I'm just now seeing your January post, but just had to say how pretty the loropetalum is...hope it is still thriving!

    ReplyDelete
  9. UnknownSeptember 24, 2012 at 9:56 AM

    Those plants looks gorgeous. I may be seeing this just now but still the impact is still the same. Its really a great photo.
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    ReplyDelete
  10. AustinNativeLandscaping.ComApril 8, 2013 at 11:23 AM

    Wow,
    That chard is looking super healthy. Would love munch on it raw!

    Beautiful pictures! Really enjoyed it!

    ReplyDelete
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