April 2012 – variegatagal

A week’s worth of gardening in one post

Yikes, gone a week without posting but not without gardening. A brief summary of what transpired in the garden in the past several days:

Various succulents cuttings including the Lemon Coral sedum planted in the rosemary bed
Added dahlberg daisies to the petunia planter
Cuban Gold duranta planted in front yard shade bed
Transplanted Victoria Blue salvias to the ends of the front yard flower bed
Hard pruned the Hot Lips Salvias in the front yard bed down to 1/3 height
Installed Magic Carpet spirea in front yard bed
Removed catmint from herb bed, replanted in 3″ pots
Transplanted golden sage, tricolor sage and dwarf mini curry plant into the herb bed
Removed yarrow from lily bed, installed red lantana in its place
Installed Tasmanian Tiger euphorbia and Nuevo Leon salvia in blue bed
Sowed Summer Jewel Red salvia and Cosmic Red cosmos in the tree ring
Transplanted rooted cuttings of variegated lemon thyme in the tree ring
Returned coleus and snapdragon seedlings to the greenhouse
Moved some seedlings and cuttings outdoors, including the zinnia starts (which aren’t doing very well)
Purchased another Magic Carpet spirea from Grow It nursery

Did I mention something ate my onion chives and decapitated my Genovese basil? Pictures forthcoming!

Storm aftermath and seed sowing

North Texas was battered by a series of tornadic storms and hail yesterday that disrupted work, power and traffic in many urban areas. I came home to a debris-littered yard, but thankfully no visible or structural damage to the house. Lots of leaves and branches on the ground which I attribute to a fierce hailstorm. Plenty of videos circulating on the net this morning of twisters tearing through railyards and truck depots, tossing trailers into the air like toys. DFW airport canceled hundreds of flights while it assessed hail damage on all airplanes. At one point the sky was as black as night during the fiercest weather conditions. Hardest hit: Arlington, Forney, and Mansfield were known touch-down spots for tornadoes…hope my fellow garden bloggers are safe.

Pictures below of the beaten and flattened plants in my garden. I barely got to see the new marigold blooms that appeared in the front yard tree ring before the petals got stripped by the fierce weather.

I planted 2 packets of Alaska Variegated Nasturtiums (tropaeolum maius) and Blue Boy Bachelor Buttons (centaurea cyanus) today. Crossing my fingers that we won’t get any more severe weather and wash away the seeds.

April Fool’s Day in the garden

No joke, I bought 4 more plants at Grow It yesterday (Saturday). I actually was looking for lobelias to add to my petunia planter bowl, but didn’t find any at the nursery. Instead I got: Magic Carpet spirea, white verbena, dahlberg daisies, and a Tasmanian Tiger euphorbia (spurge). The euphorbia is especially striking with its blue-green and creamy-white variegation.

The azaleas in the front yard bed are busting out in blooms. I’ve noticed that the Tulip clusianas are also in bloom. Checkout some of the weird color variations in verbena and Hot Lips salvia. Meanwhile, Midnight Blue is bud- and bloom-crazy.