The garden looks about the same right now and I did stop and smell the bluebonnets yesterday. The fragrance was overwhelming. It took me a couple of minutes to realize where it was coming from.
Today, 04-13-14, the garden is receiving some rain to help those flowers grow. There is a chance of storms too, but this is Texas and that chance is there almost anytime it rains.
I always forget that bluebonnet flowers have a fragrant
scent. They are not a flower that comes to mind, like roses or gardenias, as
having a fragrance, but their sweet scent has been apparent for the last few weeks.
The neighbors have noticed the bluebonnets too. Almost
everyone that walks by comments on how much they like/love the bluebonnets. I
think the presence of this familiar and beloved flower has helped to build
broader acceptance of my lawn-less front garden, at least while the bluebonnets are in bloom.
I have been so busy trying to finish projects lately that I have
not had much time to just enjoy the garden and smell the bluebonnets.
I am trying hard to finish my ongoing projects before the heat and mosquitoes
limit my outdoor time. One of this year’s unplanned projects is visible in the
top photo. I emptied and moved the stock tank (galvanized planter as I refer to
it around my neighbors) to the other side of the garden where it would be more
visible and balance out the red yucca on the opposite side of the sidewalk.
I will have more photos of my completed projects soon. I
think I will actually finish my existing projects in the front garden this weekend! Time will tell how long I can go before I start new projects. I hope it is a long time
because I need a rest.
So happy to see your post! Wish you'd been my neighbor in Plano 1975-1983 when I was there!!
ReplyDeleteThe house next door is for sale if you want to move back to Plano.
DeleteWell do I remember the bluebonnets on my regular family trips over the last few decades to West Texas and down to the Hill country in April...enchanting and yes the fragrance! We can grow these in the frozen north (Colorado) and I should try again, although we have our own suite of perennial lupines worth struggling over too, they can be tamed. But there is a certain tone the bluebonnets have no other lupine quite matches. Thanks for the glimpse of your awesome garden (so much nicer than sterile "lawn")...
ReplyDeleteThere are some pretty flowers in the lupine family. Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment.
DeleteYes the bluebonnets have a wonderful fragrance especially on a warm afternoon. The blackfoot daisies too. Sometimes if I am sitting outside the smell of these two together is quite intoxicating, I almost fall asleep! Then I remember I need to get back to work. I'll bet your neighbors would just like to come over and sit and enjoy.
ReplyDeleteIs it the smell of the flowers that almost puts you to sleep or exhaustion from garden upkeep? I have heard that blackfoot daisies smell like honey in the warm sunshine. I have never picked up much of a scent from them. Mine are just now beginning to bloom.
DeleteGood to hear from you! The bluebonnets and your garden are beautiful as always. Now I know I'll have to stop by and see your new projects next time we're in town.
ReplyDeleteSurely, Shirley, some of those bluebonnets are from your garden because I scattered the seeds you shared last year across the garden. I have scattered seeds from several different sources over the last few years in hopes of developing a super hybrid bluebonnet. Thanks again for sharing. I really do not have much in the way of new projects. I was mostly finishing up the ones that have dragged on for a while. You are still welcome to stop by.
DeleteIndeed - this post really made me realize, I need to do the same! Go, go, go, around here too. I think this is the weekend to get out and take some family wildflower pictures. Thanks for that, Michael. :)
ReplyDeleteEnjoy your time with your family, Heather. I will be shoveling decomposed granite and then I will relax.
DeleteI wish I could get some DG here in Kansas, will have to stick to crushed limestone. When I lived in Wyoming they had cool Lupines in the Mountains. I tried bluebonnets in Colorado once, they didn't make it through the winter. Garden looks great, glad to see you posting again.
ReplyDeleteI like the look of decomposed granite, greggo. My only complaints are that it can be tracked indoors in the treads of shoes and my dealer keeps getting it from different sources so the colors vary. I have four distinct colors of DG in the garden now and I plan to top them off with the current color for some consistency.
ReplyDeleteNow THAT is a thing of beauty!
ReplyDeleteThanks Scott. Now if I could get the bluebonnets to grow as well in the main part of the garden as they do in the pathways...
DeleteI noticed in some of your photos that your spineless prickly pear had read fruits on it. Mine must be a variety bred for forage. The fruits are small and stay green or yellow. Any idea where I could get a fruiting variety? I'm inspired by your garden, by the way. I'm in the process of doing the same thing to my yard here in Fort Worth.
DeleteGlenn, I got that cactus at Rohdes in Garland 4-5 years ago. Orand Nursery in FW specializes in cactus and succulents. I have never been there, but I have heard they have a nice selection of plants. They have a spineless on their website. I have also seen them posted on Craigs List. They root easily too. Last year I found a pile of pads on a curbside after someone had trimmed their plant. I picked up a couple of pads and rooted them. No blooms yet so I don't know how the fruit will do. Good luck finding one that produces fruit.
DeleteLove the deep blue color of your blue bonnets. I suppose there must be a fair bit of variation between plants and their offspring. There are about eleventy billion growing in a field nearby but they are a much paler blue.
DeleteIn that same field I can see lots of fruit on the prickly pears. The idea of a spineless prickly pear kind of makes me laugh; bit of an oxymoron there. hahaha
According to the Wildflower Center, there are six species of Lupinus that are designated as the state wildflower. Have you seen the white, pink, and maroon bluebonnets? Don't let the name spineless fool you. That cactus my not have long spines, but it has little tiny ones that you can't see and they are a pain to try to get out of your skin.
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