The Sweetness daffodils in the Daffodil Border are on the wane, but they were so pretty for about a month. Once they have completely stopped blooming I will cover the area with leaves I've been raking up into a pile behind the Vegetable Garden to suppress the weeds.
The Johnson Amaryllis are in full bloom in the Rose Garden, so pretty. I remember very well the amaryllis blooming in my mother's garden in Houston. She had a big group of them in one of the front beds, and in the spring they made a big show. I have Johnsons planted in several other beds, and although their stalks have come up the blooms have not yet opened. I've always found it interesting how the same plants can act so differently depending on where they are sited, water differences, etc. Lycoris bulbs that I dug up from an old house in Pasadena bloom much earlier than bulbs that were sourced from my zone 8b area. I've read that eventually that timing difference fades.
Several months ago I started some seeds in flats, two of the varieties were Catmint and Nicotiana. I got them mixed up and thought the Catmint was what survived. But I can see now that the Nicotiana survived (they look completely different, I'm not sure what took me so long to realize!) which I'm thrilled about. I love Nicotiana. Naturally, thinking it was Catmint, I planted it in the wrong place, but I will happily enjoy the inconvenience of walking around it all summer just to smell that wonderful scent. I also sowed some directly in the ground in the Medicine Garden, and it has sprouted. In Texas, because we have such a long growing season, sowing seeds directly in the ground rather than starting them indoors is preferable, but I enjoy having something to do during the winter months.
The Rose Garden is ablaze with flowers - the purples of Clyde Redmond iris, moss verbena, Homestead Purple Verbena, penstemon, and Verbena on a Stick, roses of pink, yellow, and red, bright yellow coreopsis, red amaryllis, yellow daffodils, red phlox, white Ox Eye daisies, and bluebonnets. It's something to see right now!
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