Weekend at the Farm September 16, 2017

We babysat Wes and Oliver for the weekend.  We played pirate ship and rocket ship, we swam, we drove around in the cadet, we played in the fort, I threw them into piles of pillows, we played with squirt guns, and other amusements.  Their folks picked them up about 3:30.

• I didn't do much around the place because of my boys.  But I managed to sow a package of Blue Lake green beans in the Vegetable Garden - it's cutting it close to the first freeze, but I will hope for the best.  The beans I sowed last weekend have all popped up.
• Jeff and Amy stopped by in their tractor to pick up their bales of prairie hay.  The man that sold them to us left their bales with me because they were stuck out of town due to the Houston flooding related to hurricane Harvey.
• I had Bert mow a large area of my prairie before the seed in the crab grass was ripe.  Bert and I unwrapped both of the bales I bought and rolled them down the hill.  He took the boys inside and I spread hay for about an hour - a drop in the ocean of what needs to be done.  The crab grass has taken over - the land was cleared so late in the summer that nothing else was going to sprout except crab grass.  It will be many years before I have it under control, unfortunately.  After the boys left I went back outside and sprayed herbicide over some large areas of the tall crab grass that Bert had not mowed.  That's not an ideal plan of attack, but if all that crab grass seed matures I will never get it under control  So whatever I had growing amongst the crab grass, it's a goner as well. 
• Sprayed the Vegetable Garden paths with herbicide.
• I have lots and lots of Painted Lady butterflies in the garden right now.  They love the ageratum.  And there are several Monarchs that are in the garden.  I have a lot of butterfly weed growing just for them, so it's gratifying to see the pretty Monarch butterflies.
• Bert left about 5:00 and went home to Houston since Cosmo was home alone.  I stayed and drove in to work on Monday morning.

A Few More Pictures of Buttercup Turnera September 16, 2017

Fireworks Gomphrena September 16, 2017

This gomphrena gets big and shoots out all over the place, although that is not the reason it is called "Fireworks" gomphrena.  Below, this is one plant, and it is about four feet by four feet wide and tall.  It's name comes from the little golden tips on each floret.  As with all thistle-type flowers, butterflies love them.  This plant gives off a smell that reminds me of hamburgers cooking - just a random personal observation.  At the end of the season let the flowers dry on the plant (they will still retain their color like all "everlastings").  Collect all the flower heads and put them in a sack.  Sow them in the spring and you will have lots of little plants.

Indigo Spires Salvia September 16, 2017

I am being rewarded with a new flush of flowers on my Indigo Spires salvia after cutting them back by half about a month ago.  So pretty, the spikes are about two feet long.  They are loved by the big bumble bees (several varieties buzz around mine).  Those giants of the bee world are always all over my Indigo Spires.  This is one of the tallest varieties of salvia, and, for me, they require staking or they will get pretty floppy.  But they bloom all spring, summer, and fall, so the effort is worth it in my opinion.

Candida Rain Lilies September 16, 2017

The Candida rain lilies are in full bloom.  September is their time.  They multiply so rapidly that I have them planted all over the place.  One of my very favorites.

 Below, these Candidas are in a bed with Butterpat chrysanthemums that haven't yet started their big growth spurt in preparation for their fall bloom time.  They get about 3 feet tall, and they will flop over if they are not staked.

Below, spider lilies are blooming alongside Candida rain lilies and moss verbena.  These spider lilies bloom about three weeks earlier than my others because I dug them up out of an abandoned garden in Pasadena.  The difference in climate is still affecting these bulbs even though I planted them about four years ago.

Cassia Tree September 10, 2017

This is a cassia variety, not sure which one.  Cassias are fall bloomers, and they are so pretty when they are in  bloom.  They grow really fast, I started this little tree / shrub from a seed two years ago.  They make long seed pods after they bloom, and the seeds germinate easily.  You will have seedlings all around the mother plant, but they aren't invasive.  This is a larval plant for the sulphur butterflies.

Beautiful Canna September 10, 2017

I love the leaves of this canna.  When the sun shines just right the leaves glow.

Yard Art September 10, 2017

This old door was in Josh and Amy's back yard when they bought the house.  I've had my eye on it, and I asked if I could have it.  Bert attached it to a tree with some hinges.

Banana Shrub September 10, 2017

The Banana Shrub is in bloom and I could smell the ripe banana scent all day long as I worked in the Star Garden.

The Rose Garden September 10, 2017

There were lots of pretty flowers blooming in the Roe Garden today.  My Johnson amaryllis, ox blood lilies, homestead purple verbena, Candida rain lilies, Fireworks Gomphrena, zinnias, moss verbena and of course roses.

Mexican Bush Sage September 10, 2017

Mexican Bush Sage (Salvia Leucantha) is a fall bloomer with a silvery cast to the foliage.  I've become partial to Indigo Spires preferring it to Mexican Sage because Indigo Spires blooms all summer and fall and the spikes of flowers are just as showy.   But it looked pretty this weekend. 

 The flowers have a velvety texture which is unusual.