common sunflower
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A Mid November Look Around The Garden
It is already mid November, but even for central Texas we still have unusually high temperatures (daytime 80s F). Despite the warmth, the garden is clearly making seasonal changes so I thought it might be interesting to take a look around. I keep the area in front of the house fairly neat. For instance, I Continue reading
american beautyberry, beach sunflower, blackfoot daisy, bluebonnet, common sunflower, cowpen daisy, fall, flame acanthus, food, frogfruit, frostweed, habitat, indiangrass, leaf litter, meadow, mealy blue sage, mexican mint marigold, mexican plum, native grasses, rock rose, season, shelter, shrubby boneset, texas mountain laurel, white mistflower, yellow yucca -
New Blooms In The Back Garden
The past 2-3 weeks have seen an explosion of growth, color, and activity in the back garden. Here are some highlights. Firewheel aka Indian Blanket (Gaillardia pulchella). For some reason the Firewheels behind the house are much more vigorous and colorful than the ones in front of the house. They are the red and yellow Continue reading
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Clearing This Year’s Bumper Crop Of Sunflowers
In this first full year on the property, I let annual plants take the lead as I considered what more long-term plans could be for the garden. Annual plants fill space to capture water and reduce soil erosion, and encourage wildlife visitors (birds and insects). When they are finished and cut down, their decaying roots Continue reading
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A Spectrum Of Colors In The Pollinator Garden
Ideally in the pollinator garden in front of the house, there will be blooms from early spring until late fall, and in a variety of colors. Different insects and birds prefer different colors. Sorted by flower color, this is what is currently in the garden (blooming in late July unless stated otherwise). This list doesn’t Continue reading
beebalm, bluebonnet, cenizo, chile pequin, common sunflower, fall aster, flame acanthus, gregg salvia, gregg’s mistflower, gulf muhly, horseherb, lantana, lyreleaf sage, mealy blue sage, pink evening primrose, prairie verbena, scarlet sage, silver ponyfoot, skeleton-leaf goldeneye, sneezeweed, straggler daisy, texas sage, tickseed, yarrow -
Lady Beetles After Rain
I often walk around my garden just to see if there’s anything interesting going on. One of my favorite times to do that is just after a rainfall — the cooler air is refreshing and the plants look particularly perky. The photo above is of a Lady Beetle on an American Beautyberry (Callicarpa americana) and Continue reading
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A Sea Of Sunflowers
There are primarily two kinds of sunflower here, both volunteers: Beach Sunflower (Helianthus debilis) and Common Sunflower (Helianthus annuus). I have mostly allowed them to grow in the furthest part of the back garden, which was seeded with tall plants. Of the three types of seed that I dispersed in that area, only one grew Continue reading
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Clearing A Back Corner
In this second year of my “rewilding” project, I am using annual native flowers (seeded or volunteer) to cover most of the back yard. This “green mulch” approach allows me to capture water before it runs off, prevent soil erosion, improve soil health, and host wildlife visitors while I continue to make more long-term plans Continue reading
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The Tallest Plant In The Garden Is Not A Tree
There are several volunteer Common Sunflowers (Helianthus annuus) here. I have removed many of them because I don’t have room for them all, but there are probably about 20 still here. They are growing rapidly now, and the tallest is currently about 8 feet tall, towering over my biggest trees, which are 6 feet tall. 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 