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Standing Cypress
When I was new to Seguin, whenever I met a native plant gardener or naturalist, I would ask what was their favorite plant or tree and several of those suggestions are now in my garden here. One of those early recommendations was Standing Cypress (Ipomopsis rubra). Not only is this a beautiful drought-tolerant plant that… Continue reading
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Short-Term Effects Of The Freeze
In the past week we have had five nights of below freezing temperatures, with the lowest recorded here of 16.0 F. I expected to see some wilting, blackness, or loss of leaves and we certainly had that. With native plants, that is almost never a concern, and it’s just a part of nature cleaning up.… Continue reading
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Preparing For A Freeze
Technically, the first frost of this winter season was early morning 12/11/2023. I didn’t have a thermometer here then, but I think the lowest temperature was maybe 30-32 degrees F. There was no precipitation overnight, just a light coating of frozen condensation. The plants here showed no noticeable reaction to that light frost. However, a… Continue reading
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Burclovers
Black Medick (Medicago lupulina) is an invasive weed, although it can improve soil quality because of its nitrogen fixing properties, and most livestock will eat it. Plants of the genus Medicago are otherwise known as burclovers because they are related to other clovers and their seeds are highly barbed. Surely everyone at some point has collected… Continue reading
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To Pull Or Not To Pull
As new plants start to grow here for the spring season, I need to identify them as soon as possible so that I can decide what to do with them. Plants will generally fall into one of three categories: Plants that I introduced and that I want to keep Volunteer plants that I want to… Continue reading
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Tree & Shrub Growth Report, January 2024
I think that about once a year I will take approximate measurements of the trees and shrubs that I have here. Like children, when you see them every day, sometimes you don’t appreciate how much they’re growing (or not). The measurements were recorded on January 6, 2024 and the photos were taken a day or… Continue reading
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More Logs
I wasn’t planning to add more logs to the garden, but an opportunity presented itself that I chose to take. Four heavy Pecan logs were delivered to me from San Antonio and for now I’ve put them in a place that is currently unplanted and was already covered with mulch. Unlike the logs in my… Continue reading
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The Swale Doing Its Swale-ing
An important part of a healthy nature ecosystem, which is what I am trying to construct here, is some sort of reliable water source for wildlife. That could be as simple as shallow water containers elevated and on the ground for birds and other critters, or a more complex pond system. I don’t know which… Continue reading
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Fall Seed Germination
For economy and to cover ground quickly next spring, I dispersed a lot of native flower seeds in the fall. Most of them are in the back yard, but there are also some in the front. I have no idea which of those seeds will germinate most readily and successfully, so what the garden does… Continue reading
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Skippers On The Gregg’s Mistflower
Gregg’s Mistflower (Conoclinium greggii) grows equally well in Seguin and Houston, and I was already familiar with it when I planted it here. The flowering season is very long, and it is a major butterfly attractor. On this particular lunch-time visit to my pollinator garden, there were at least three butterflies that I could see… Continue reading
About Me
Nature Lover.
Inquisitive Observer.
Student Gardener.
I invite you to join me on my journey to convert my sterile (from a nature point of view) new house lot to a healthy and diverse ecosystem, as I make discoveries, mistakes, and hopefully progress. I am not an expert or professional. The project started in February 2023 and the location is Seguin, Texas, USA.
