Friday a week ago, I was feeling rather frazzled and just needed to get out of the house. I sought solace in the Zilker Botanical Garden. It’s just down the street from my house and I can’t think why I don’t visit it more often. The crowds, probably. But last Friday was a rainy day in a week of rainy days. The gardens were almost empty.
I wended my way through the butterfly garden and slipped in the back way to the Hartman Prehistoric Garden. I’ve never seen it look so lush. The waterfall was flowing well and it looked like I had walked onto the set of some jungle movie…complete with surprises lurking around the bend.
I went back and snapped this photo today which was sunny and hot. It’s much more mysterious and evocative in mist and rain. I regret not carrying my camera with me always.
What attracted my attention most was this large white flower with an intoxicating scent. I couldn’t get enough of it. Whatever it was I wanted it for the bog garden-to-be next to my new pond.
I grew up in the desert and don’t have any experience with tropical or pond plants. A week passed and I stopped in at Emerald Garden to see if I could find it. I think I saw the plant but it wasn’t in flower so I couldn’t be sure. I couldn’t find a label or anyone to help me, so I left.
Then yesterday, I visited Annie in Austin because her new Adirondack chair has inspired me to paint our outdoor table the same bright yellow…and I wanted to see what the color looked like in real life. Of course, the first thing we did was sniff around her garden. Everything is in bloom and looks lovely. And there it was. The mystery flower. It’s a ginger. And she gave me one! I’m so excited.
We also had a lovely conversation which ended up lasting all afternoon long. Both Annie and Pam/Digging have graciously acted as sounding boards this week for a decision I’ve been toying with. They allowed me to toss ideas around and provided tons of encouragement. I hope they know how much I appreciate it.
