mexican plum
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Three Trees That Are Growing Like Crazy
An adage often heard about native perennial plants is that in their first three years they will “sleep, creep, and leap.” In other words, the first year is spent building a strong root system without much happening above ground. The second year perhaps sees a little visible progress, and in year three the plant is… Continue reading
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A May View Of The Garden
I did a walk-through of the garden on the morning of May 16, 2026. Here are some things that caught my eye. In the areas where there are massed annual wildflowers, such as the meadow in front of the house, the predominant bloom at the moment is Firewheel aka Indian Blanket (Gaillardia pulchella). Most of… Continue reading
american beautyberry, beebalm, bluebonnet, cenizo, desert willow, firewheel, frogfruit, horsemint, indian blanket, indian paintbrush, kidneywood, lindheimer’s senna, live oak, maximilian sunflower, mealy blue sage, mexican buckeye, mexican plum, prickly pear cactus, rock rose, rue, skeleton-leaf goldeneye, texas sage, turk’s cap, woolly stemodia, zizotes milkweed -
Some Very Welcome April Rain
In the days between April 18-22, 2026 we received 5.39 inches rain, which is more than we have had in the previous four months combined. This was a soaking that the ground sorely needed and fortunately was not as damaging as the 8.6 inches that fell in four hours last July 5. For the most… Continue reading
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Is This The First Mexican Plum?
The Mexican Plum (Prunus mexicana) tree was planted in 2023. The following year there were leaves but no blooms. Last year there were leaves and blooms, but no fruit. This year, in addition to leaves and blooms, I think there may be one fruit developing! In its time here, the tree hasn’t grown any taller… Continue reading
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More Perennials With Spring Growth
Now in mid-March, several more perennial plants are waking up for the new year. Here are some highlights: The Mexican Plum (Prunus mexicana) tree hasn’t grown much in height in its three seasons here, but its branches are a little thicker and this is now its second year to bloom. This is an early blooming… Continue reading
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How Did The Garden Handle A (Wet) Freeze?
Since the garden here is primarily made up of native plants, I generally don’t need to worry about winter freezes — the plants have evolved to handle those situations. However, there are a few protective things that I do before, during, and after freezes to take extra care. Here’s a summary. Until January 2026, the… Continue reading
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Tree Growth Report, January 2026
Each January I take note of how my trees and shrubs are doing. Like children, when you see them every day, sometimes you don’t appreciate how much they’re growing. This post addresses trees. There will a separate one to describe the shrubs that I have (here). The measurements and photos were recorded on January 11,… Continue reading
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Pruning: Mexican Plum
My time in Seguin, starting in 2023, has been the first experience for me to learn about choosing, planting, and managing trees. Thanks to some knowledgeable Master Naturalist colleagues, I have been receiving some good education in that department! Until now, any pruning of trees here has been minimal, usually addressing some immediate problem (e.g.,… Continue reading
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Trees And Their Schedules
I have a small collection of trees here (I’m limited by space!). There is one evergreen tree (Texas Mountain Laurel), which will retain its leaves through the winter. The two Live Oaks are semi-evergreen, meaning that old leaves drop when they are pushed out by the new ones growing in spring. The transition only takes… Continue reading
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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
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 