A Tree for my Grandson November 23, 2023

 This is a Texas Red Oak.  

Pretty Green Spider with Babies November 25, 2023

 This spider was on one of my rose bushes.  She was sitting on top of a little webbed area, and underneath the web were zillions of tiny, tiny babies in a clump.  They looked like specs, I didn't see any legs.  When I touched them they zipped away in all directions.

Thanksgiving at the Farm November 23 - 26, 2023

 

This is pretty Perl d'Or rose.

Thanksgiving with Bert and I, Mom, Dad, Nancy, Lisa, Will and family, Nathan and family, Max and family and Sarah and Burke.  Cool and cloudy, but that's okay.

Friday Mom, Dad, Nancy and Lisa and I drove to Madisonville for Phillips wedding but we had the wrong day!  It was Saturday!  Not sure how we could have made that mistake, but we laughed about it.  Visited with Sallie for a bit.  We did not return the next day for the wedding.  

Saturday.  I was by myself with Bailey and Sadie for my only company.  I did a bit of watering.  I dug the hole for Oliver's Texas Red Oak tree, but I didn't get it planted.  I poured many gallons of water into the hole.  It's a very big tree, and I will need some help.

I watered Zelda's tree and the Witch Hazels.

I gathered Velvet Leaf Senna seed and potted some up.  That will be a good native to give away to members.

I dug up a clump of cannas and moved them not too far away, in a spot that was not so close to the althea and path.

Sprayed herbicide on the tall grass that wants to grow in my Daffodil Border.  The daffodils have not begun to emerge yet, so now is the time despite the cold weather.

I dug up and discarded some more clumps of Henry Duehlberg salvia in the Star Garden. Too much of a good thing.

But for the most part the day was spent relaxing and enjoying the cool weather.  I took walks with the dogs, and I walked the gardens over and over.

Sunday.  Bert arrived from his hunting trip and stayed briefly to clean the pool.  He helped me plant a Texas Red Oak that I got at the plant swap.

I weeded in the Orchard.  I am very happy with the performance of the Wolfberry shrubs that I planted.  They have lots of red berries on them right now and seem to be thriving despite the terrible hot and dry conditions we had last summer.  I will plant more next spring. They have powerful anti-oxidents, vitamins C, K, and E as well as potassium, magnesium and iron.  So, they are pretty useful.  They aren't delicious, but they aren't terrible.

I sowed some native persimmon seeds that I got at the native plant swap.  I sowed them in the Rose Edge Border and the wild corner of the Rose Garden.

I pushed some Burr Oak acorns into the soil in the Medicine Garden.  I got them from Connie Gwyn.

Spread Frostweed seed all over the wild part of the Star Garden.

Headed home about 3:00.  What a great weekend.

Weekend at the Farm November 17 - 19, 2023

 

This is butterfly vine.  The seed pods look just like butterflies, and so different-looking from the flowers.

I arrived on Thursday evening.  Bert was already here.  He is busy doing some mowing in preparation for Thanksgiving.  And he is blowing leaves off the driveway and from around the pool area.  The complete leaf deluge is some weeks away, but it's better to keep up with it so that the blower works on it.  Once the leaf drop gets too heavy it must be raked.  That's harder, and that task usually fall to me.  That's okay because I use the leaves for mulch and compost.

Friday.  I have never done this before, but I decided to spread all my remaining Cosmos seed (I have a lot) throughout the Rose and Star Garden.  I'm betting that they won't germinate now because the weather is cool, and then in the spring I will have a good show.  That's basically what they do when they drop their seed, so I don't see this as any different.  Cosmos is confusing to me.  I've never had much luck with it, but everyone says that it's the easiest plant to grow from seed.  So I'm wondering if a more organic beginning next spring (meaning they have laid on the ground all winter) might give me better results.  

During lunch I weeded in the Orchard for a bit.  Sprayed herbicide. 

I spotted some leaf cutter ants in the Rose Garden.  I followed the trail through the woods until I found the entrance hole.  Spread poison across it and in various places along their trail.

Bert brought me a huge back of baking soda.  I sprinkled some in the Orchard and the Rose Garden on places where the Nostoc algae was particularly bad.

Butterflies on Blue Mist Flower November 17, 2023

 I look forward to the blue mist flower blooms each fall because the butterfly and bee activity is amazing and so entertaining.  Today I had Monarchs, Gulf Fritillaries, Queens, Painted Ladies, Buckeyes, Swallowtails and Skippers.

 

Milkweed Tussock Moth Caterpillar November 17, 2023

 I think this is the first time I have ever seen these milkweed moths on my milkweed.  I've seen a lot of things in nature over the years, and I've likely forgotten as many as I remember, though.  They have decimated the tropical milkweed which is okay because the current thinking is that tropical milkweed should be cut back in the fall so that Monarchs keep moving south.  

Angel Trumpet November 12, 2023

 I was thrilled to spot these flowers on my Angel Trumpet when I was passing by.  It either rarely blooms or I rarely notice when it's blooming.  

Gomphrena November 12, 2023

 This is a tidy little clump of gomphrena.  It can get so crazy sticking out everywhere and getting huge.  I started this one late in the season, so it hasn't gotten a chance to get ginormous yet.  Two years ago I had so many gomphrena that I didn't drop the seed heads on the ground, I gathered the seed heads and put them in a sack.  Then I forgot to sow them. so I had almost no plants last summer.  And whenever they would get a few inches tall the rabbits would eat them.  So this plant is one of the lucky survivors.

Four O'Clocks November 12, 2023

 As uninterested now as I am in the Four O'Clocks that persist around here, they did look pretty today.  This large stand of Four O'Clocks is behind the Vegetable Garden.  It was the middle of the day when I snapped these pictures, and normally there would be no flowers, but the day was very cloudy and the flowers never closed from the night before.   

Weekend at the Farm November 10 - 12, 2023

 

True Sincerity rose.

I took Friday as vacation and arrived about 9:00.  The weather was cool and drizzly.  We had a pretty good rain the day before, so I am happy about that.  And also, I don't have to be desperately dragging around hoses to keep things alive.  Thank goodness for fall.  

Bert dragged a heavy scraper thing in several places around the Meadow.  It flattened and pulled up debris and roughed up the soil.  I sowed a pound each of bluebonnets, black eyed Susans, Mexican Hat and Red Wave Coreopsis.

I went by Debra and Rays to pick up my plants that I collected at the Native Plant swap several weekends ago.  I was one of the winners of the contest for having the most plastic pots (which were donated to a native plant grower), and I won a Texas Red Oak.  The tree was also at Ray and Debs, and Ray helped me get it over here to my place. It is a really big tree, very nice.  

I pulled up ageratum which was spent and doing nothing but distributing seed everywhere.  I dumped it at the low end of the Meadow where it tends to be a little more wet.  It is a native blue mist flower.  

I also dug up a lot of Henry Duelberg and dumped it in a low spot.  Still lots more to do on that.  It's one of those situations where I looked up one day and noticed that it was everywhere, taking over all my garden space.

Saturday.  No need to get out early since the weather is so cool. 

I planted a Roughleaf Dogwood in the Circle Drive beds.  And I planted a Mexican Bird of Paradise in the Hot Border.  I got both of those from the plant swap. 

Cooked, did a bit of weeding.

Sunday.  I spent the whole day in the Orchard.  It's a disaster down there.  So much clearing needs to be done. I pulled up weeds and crab grass, dead zinnias, a little white-seed-head grass that loves it in there,  I pulled up ageratum, put ant poison down, raked.  I spread Texas Orange Lantana seed in the Meadow.  Every effort is an improvement, but it still needs a lot of work in there.

I planted 3 parsley in the Kitchen Herb Garden. 

Headed home about 3:00. 

French Marigolds November 1, 2023

 The French marigolds in the Vegetable Garden looked very pretty this morning.  I sowed seed in every bed. I will take note of when I sowed the seed vs when they were in full bloom.  

Star Garden November 11, 2023