Zanthan Gardens
Weblog of a Central Austin Garden

Carol at May Dreams Gardens invites us to tell her what’s blooming in our gardens on the 15th of each month.

November 15, 2011

At 8:34 AM we were holding our breath with anticipation. It looked like the storm might dissipate before it reached Austin.

One thought was on our minds in Central Texas today. Rain. We’d been told that there was a good chance that we were going to get some but as we tracked the storm on radar it seemed like it might veer or dissipate before it reached Austin. When the storm arrived, it seemed like it couldn’t work itself up to more than a paltry drizzle. In the end, we got a pretty decent rain–more than an inch (depending on where you are). The last good rain was in October 9th–June 22nd before that. The heaviest rain did fall to the south and east of us, but we as we head into the second year of exceptional drought, we appreciate every drop. Austin’s total rainfall is a little more than 12 inches for the year…about one-third of our yearly average.

By 10:50 Austin had gotten some welcome rain but the heaviest downpours were south and east of us.

A Late Fall

Summer ends with the rain and this year Austin didn’t get any significant rainfall until October 9th. After that, the plants kicked into high gear. Wildflower seedlings began popping up. Unfortunately the same dry conditions that’s produced desert-like heat has also brought some clear, cold nights. Overnight temperatures dropped into the mid-30s on November 4th and 11th bringing freeze warning to some parts of the Hill Country. Daytime temperatures jump back quickly to the 80s. The cold temperatures brought out a deep russet leaf color of the one crape myrtle that still had leaves. (The other’s leaves had already turned brown and dropped off.) There’s some buttery yellow in the leaves of my neighbor’s chinese parasol tree, too. I even saw a hint of red in the red oak. Its leaves don’t usually drop until after Christmas.

Waiting on fall rains, the white mistflower (boneset) was very late to flower this year. Usually it’s covered with butterflies, too. I haven’t seen any this yet. Did they miss each other? Did the cold temperatures push the butterflies south before the mistflower could bloom?

2011-11-15. White mistflower. The branches are weighed down with wet flowers after the storm.

Fall Pinks

Pink just doesn’t seem like a fall color to me. However, these two impossible-to-kill vines don’t care about fashion.

2011-11-15. Pandorea ricasoliana, Port St. John’s Creeper

2011-11-15. Antigonon leptopus, coral vine

Some buds of the coral vine were wide open after the rain. I’ve never seen this happen before. Unfortunately it was so dark that all the photos I took of the fully open buds were out of focus. Looking around I see more pinks. At least the two roses, ‘New Dawn’ and ‘Blush Noisette’ sport a more delicate tint. The pigeonberry also has pale pink flower but then goes all out and clashes with bright red berries. The turks cap finishes off that part of the color spectrum.

2011-11-15. Malvaviscus arboreus, turks cap.

Fall Golds

The golden thryallis has pulled through summer and has been blooming well for more than a month. It would get all droopy in the heat but it always came back. As did the velvet leaf senna. The ‘New Gold’ lantana started blooming once the sun moved far enough south to shine on it again. I think that’s the oldest plant that I planted in my garden. The Salvia madrensis has been struggling but not giving up. It has very large leaves for a salvia and they droop piteously in the dry weather. But it keeps popping up new plants from the roots and today I saw some bud so close to opening that I decided to give them the benefit of the doubt and count them.

After the October rain, I cut back the zexmenia hard and it’s come back beautifully with lots of bright new leaves. It’s put a few flowers. They all looked pretty soggy. Soggy but happy. That’s us Austinites, today.

2011-11-15. Zexmenia hispida

Complete List for November 15, 2011

The list of all plants flowering today, November 15th 2011, at Zanthan Gardens. Comparing today’s list to last November’s is depressing. And to 2009? Don’t go there. I don’t really have a garden anymore. So this list represents just the few hardy survivors.

• Antigonon leptopus
• Aster ericoides. These little white wild asters bloomed very late this year. Most of the plants are brown and dead. But a few hardy sprung back after October’s rain.
• Datura inoxia
• Eupatorium wrightii
• Galphimia glauca. golden thryalis
• Lantana montevidensis
• Lantana ‘New Gold’
• Malvaviscus arboreus
• Pandorea ricasoliana. The plant that won’t die.
• Salvia madrensis. Well, there’s a bud that’s about to open. The rain should bring it into full bloom. It’s struggled but it keeps coming back.
• Senna lindheimeriana
• Rivina humilis pigeonberry
• Rose ‘Blush Noisette’. A couple of tiny, soggy blooms that probably shouldn’t count. I have to give her an A for effort.
• Rose ‘New Dawn’
• Rosmarinus officinalis
• Setcreasea
• Zexmenia hispida

Carol at May Dreams Gardens invites us to tell her what’s blooming in our gardens on the 15th of each month.

October 2009

What a difference rain makes! What a difference a year makes!

Last year, central Texas was a year into our drought and the season which usually brings a sense of renewal and hope to the garden had failed us. I was too discouraged to even write a post for GBBD last October. This year it began raining about a month ago and hasn’t let up. Yesterday was our first sunny day in almost a week. The garden is transformed. Everything that’s survived the drought and heat of summer is working overtime to put out new growth and flowers. The weeds (and mosquitoes) reign supreme. I don’t care about the weeds; I’d rather weed than water.

Unfortunately, many flowers are not camera-ready. The rain has left them a sodden, mud-spattered mess like the datura above (a passalong from Diana @ Sharing Nature’s Garden). This is why this post contains no rose photos, even though every rose except for ‘Madame Alfred Carriere’ is blooming today.

New for October

Bulbine started blooming this month and this is the first time I’ve had it in my garden. I received it as a passalong plant from VBDB @ Playin’ Outside during this spring’s Austin garden blogger get-together. I’ve always wanted it and I’m so glad to have it.

Another plant new to my garden is Mexican mint marigold, a passalong from Annie @ The Transplantable Rose. She gave it to me as a substitute for French tarragon which won’t grow in Texas.

Garlic chives is an old autumn faithful. It was here when I came and I bet it will still grow here when I’m gone. I like it best when it complements the oxblood lilies but most years it comes into bloom after they have finished. The garlic chives is just a little beyond its peak right now and beginning to go to seed. Like most alliums, it will take over the garden if you let it.

Fall Rebloom

Pam @ Digging gave me this zexmenia two years ago. The day I picked it up turned suddenly warm. I put it in the ground immediately but it looked like it had died straight off. It hasn’t had an easy time of it. I cut it back hard in August. Now it’s about four times bigger than it was a month ago and covered in flowers.

Lindheimer senna self-sowed all over the meadow and began blooming with the first rains in the latter part of September. It’s mostly gone to seed now but one flower held out for GBBD.

I was happy to see that the Dahlberg daisy I bought this spring survived and began flowering again. Jenny said it another profuse self-sower and I’m happy to report many new seedlings sprouting. I’m digging them up and tucking them in all over the garden. I love its clear yellow flowers and delicate foliage.

Summer Survivors

Not only the Port St. John’s creeper but every vine I grow has taken off running with all this rain. The morning glories, which I thought had died, came back from their roots. The potato vine, is conveniently covering the chain link fence next to the driveway.

Nothing attracts bees to my garden like coral vine. It struggled through this dry summer without any supplemental water but revived with the rains. It is currently trying to eat my husband’s car.

Once you grow cypress vine you will always have it. Every time it rains, more will sprout. In the rainy summer of 2007, it smothered my front yard. This year I kept transplanting self-sown seedlings next to my sweet pea trellis and now they are all blooming. Cypress vines is supposed to attract hummingbirds but I haven’t seen any yet. The little blue flowers behind it are the duranta–which has survived both winter and summer and never stopped blooming.

With all this rain and damp mulch, a variety of mushrooms continue to spring up. Although not technically a flower, I couldn’t resist including this one.

October 15, 2009

The list of all plants flowering today, October 15th 2009, at Zanthan Gardens.

• Abelia grandiflora (2007, 2009)
• Antigonon leptopus (2007, 2009)
• Allium tuberosum (2009): starting to go to seed
• Asclepias curassavica (2007, 2009)
• Bulbine frutescens (2009)
• Calytocarpus vialis (2009)
• Commelina communis (2009)
• Datura inoxia (2009)
• Duranta erecta (2007, 2009): overwintered and bloomed all summer
• Eupatorium wrightii (2007, 2009): just starting to bloom
• Hibiscus syriacus (2009)
• Hippeastrum x johnsonii (2009)
• Ipomoea quamoclit (2009)
• Ipomoea tricolor ‘Flying Saucers’ (2009)
• Lagerstroemia indica ‘Catawba’ (2009): full bloom two weeks ago; now almost all faded
• Lobularia maritima ‘Tiny Tim’ (2009) survived the summer
• Malvaviscus arboreus (2009)
• Mirabilis jalapa pink (2009)
• Nerium oleander ‘Turner’s Shari D.’ (2007, 2009): full bloom
• Oxalis crassipis
• Oxalis drummondii (2009)
• Oxalis triangularis, white (2009)
• Pavonia hastata (2009)
• Plumbago auriculata (2009)
• Podranea ricasoliana (2009)
• rose ‘Blush Noisette’ (2009)
• rose ‘Ducher’ (2009): so heavy with new growth and flowers that it’s sprawling
• rose ‘Mermaid’ (2009)
• rose ‘New Dawn’ (2009): both plants
• rose ‘Prosperity’ (2009)
• rose ‘Red Cascade’ (2009)
• rose ‘Souvenir de la Malmaison’ (2009)
• rosemary (2009)
• Ruellia (passalong) (2009)
• Ruellia viney type but not woody type (2009)
• Senna lindheimeriana (2009): full bloom three weeks ago; now almost all faded
• Solanum jasminoides (2009)
• Tagetes lucida (2009)
• Thymophylla tenuiloba (2009)
• Zexmenia hispida (2009)