Austin garden writer, blogger, photographer, and designer,
Pam Penick made a brief visit to my prairie when she was in town this past
weekend to attend the great State Fair of Texas with her family.
Click the link to see Pam’s perspective of my prairie on her
blog, DIGGING. Her photos are great! I need to learn how to take photos like
that. The only bad photo in the bunch is the last one of me. She is much
better at taking pictures of plants or maybe it is the subject matter in this particular photo. Of course, my bad haircut from the day before did not help matters and she was knocking on my door at 8:00 AM on Sunday!
Pam always has inspiring garden photos and stories on
her blog. Until recently, she had a new post almost every day. She is not posting
as often now because she is busy working on a book tentatively titled “Lawn
Alternatives”. Search for her Lawn Alternatives page on facebook for more information
and ideas. I can’t wait to read the book.
I enjoyed the visit, Pam. It was a pleasure to meet you. Thanks for the squid agave pups too. If posting a screen shot of your blog infringes on your copyrights, let me know and I will take it down.
I have both of you on my garden favorites, so I did a double take when Plano Prarie showed up twice. Wow! A visit from Pam. That puts you waaay up there in the stratosphere of gardening and garden blogs. You deserve it and you have worked hard to inspire the greater Dallas area to see 'yards' in a different way! I wish there were a couple a thousand more Dallas area yards/meadows like yours.
ReplyDeleteI knew you when. I can't wait to go visit Digging tonight.
David/ :-)
Your garden is just amazing, really beautiful. I enjoy seeing as many photos as possible.
ReplyDeleteThree years is impressive work too.
Michael, thanks for the kind words about my photos, but really, the credit belongs to you as the gardener and that morning light just shining through your plants so beautifully. It totally made getting up to meet me at 8 am worth it, right? ;-) And hey, I thought the photo of you turned out great, especially since you got to see -- and were the good-natured victim of --- my hapless ritual of trying to place a person "just so" in the garden for a portrait.
ReplyDeleteAnd I don't mind the screen shot at all -- thanks for sharing my link! And thanks even more for the tour and for answering my readers' questions in the comments.
David, I have referred to Pam as the Queen of the Texas Garden Bloggers, but she refused to accept the title. Whether she accepts the title or not, we all know it is true.
ReplyDeleteThanks Shirley. It was interesting to see my garden through Pam's eyes.
Thanks Pam. Feel free to contact me the next time you are in town.
How very cool...I too was a tad confused to see you pop up twice in my blogroll today! Your garden has really recovered amazingly with the recent rains...it looks so vibrant and lush now...and I just love the crazy way the Liatris sprawl all over...it's almost like an art installation! I actually never knew they could bloom so late in the season...is it typical for them in your garden...or just a result of the drought this year? Either way, I think I might need to add some next year (oh, and the Pine Muhly...but that was already a given after seeing it in your past posts!).
ReplyDeleteScott, you have just stepped into the Twlight Zone and this is my moment of ubiquity. The Liatris you commonly see available with spring bulbs is Liatris spicata. It is native to the eastern half of the country (but comercially grown in Holland) and blooms in spring or early summer. I have some L. spicata in my rain garden because they like moisture. The Liatris that is blooming now is probably Liatris mucronata or punctata. I have yet to positively identify the plant. This Liatris prefers dry soil and blooms in the fall. It sounds like you are on your way to building your own Texas garden.
ReplyDeleteI too recently discovered Pam's blog, and was thrilled to see different images from your garden. She captured a really gorgeous light effect. Both blogs are so informative and a positive influence on Texas gardeners.
ReplyDeleteWhat compost and mulch do you use in your gardens?
Sorry, Donna, I overlooked your comment and question. I have compost piles, but I really do not use any in the garden, except the vegetable garden. The natives get the soil as is, but I do add in some lava sand and expanded shale on occasion. Mulch is on the thin side so annual seedlings can sprout. When I trim plants, I frequently trim them into small pieces and drop them on the ground as homemade mulch. When I have larger bare spots to cover, I get a bag of cedar mulch from the home improvement store.
ReplyDelete