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Bees Feed On Grasses, Too
This little episode was a lot more fun to watch than photograph. There was a small bee collecting pollen at a patch of native grasses and with all of the bee and grass motion in the wind, I was having a hard time capturing everything in focus. Here’s my best attempt. Back in May I… Continue reading
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A Weary Clouded Skipper
This rather battered Clouded Skipper butterfly was resting on my Desert Willow tree in the morning sun. I didn’t see it feeding, although apparently its favorite flower colors are pink, purple, and white. The open blooms on this tree are a dark pink. Continue reading
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Texas Lantana
Seguin and Houston, although only 160 miles apart, represent different ecological environments. When selecting plants for Seguin, I need to be mindful of what is native or adapted here and not just assume that something that did well in Houston will thrive here. One resource that is helpful for this research is the plant database… Continue reading
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Wasp Nests
Now that the wasps here have finished raising their young, I’ve removed any nest that I could find. There were a couple in the front porch, one on the back patio, and several inside the garage near the door opening. I found two kinds of nest: one for Paper Wasps and several for Mud Dauber… Continue reading
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Hummingbird!
It is absolutely my goal to have Hummingbirds visit this garden without enticing them with feeders. I thought I’d have to wait a year or two for that, but I was delightfully astonished this week to see a Hummingbird feed at my Desert Willow tree for a minute or so. The photos aren’t great, but… Continue reading
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Giving The Live Oak Trees More Space
In general, I use the estimation that the critical part of a tree’s root system corresponds to the area defined by its drip line (the outer circumference of its branches). If I can, when a tree is situated within a lawn, I like to define a mulched non-turf circle that extends at least to the… Continue reading
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“State Of The Garden” After Six Months
In February 2023 we moved to a new developer lot in Seguin, Texas, USA. The front yard had Bermudagrass sod, two Live Oak trees, and a bed in front of the house with fairly standard landscaper plants. The back yard was empty except for Bermudagrass sod. My overall goals here are to develop a balanced… Continue reading
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Ants Are Not My Friends, But I Share My Garden With Them Anyway
Even though it is very hot outside at the moment, I do my gardening work in closed shoes, long socks, long trousers, a long-sleeved shirt, two pairs of gloves, a bandana, and a brimmed hat. Part of that is for sun protection, but it’s also because I got tired of being bitten by ants inside… Continue reading
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How Am I Using Water In This Drought?
Anything that I have planted here was put in the ground between February and May 2023. Builder-supplied landscaping, Bermudagrass sod, and two Live Oak trees were probably installed in December 2022 or January 2023. Therefore, every plant here was seeded or transplanted less than a year ago, and we are in the midst of a… 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.
Rewilding My Lot 