Love of Gardening Even In The Heat

You know that one is a die hard gardener when the actual temperature outside is 109 degrees and you still have the desire to be outside and garden.  I feel very couped up inside, like in the dead of winter when I cant get out and do some type of gardening.  So I have decided to not stay in completely but be smart about when I do get outside.  In this heat we really need to remember to stay hydrated, and in the shade as much as possible, taking breaks every 15 minutes.  Also getting out very early or late in the evening seems to good times.

It is time to think about the Fall garden in Texas.  Some plants like pumpkins, gourds etc... need to have their seeds already in the ground so by the time the first frost arrives you have gathered your crop.  The Texas Extension Agency has a wonderful pdf. one can download for Spring and Fall planting times.  So start carefully working on getting your Fall plant beds ready for the yummy cooler weather crops.

Summer Survival

It is so hot here I read that you definately could fry an egg or maybe a chicken or two.  My poor birds are trying to keep cool.  This one I caught dusting herself, 

 Others I have seen seeking shelter under my covered porch.  Bless their hearts they still are laying eggs, though not as many as usual.

One of my cats I caught napping under a chair on the same back porch.  She's got the right idea.

Animals aren't the only things that need some shade in the extreme summer heat.

My plants need help too.  I just placed a thick layer of organic hay on top of the soil.  With French Intensive gardening the ground should always be covered either with plants growing or some type of mulch.  It keeps the nutrients in the soil for the plants and also moisture.  The great thing about this is as it deteriorates it is composting right in the garden.  One thing to remember, grass on top of the soil.  Never mix it into the soil because instead of adding nutrients the nitrogen in the grass will rob the plants of nutrients.  Always lay it on top.

The strawberries need some extra help.  These Sequoia varieties were planted last October 2009.  I really need them in a bed with more shade, so for now I am trying to keep them alive with hay and a shade cloth.  I even have a landscape cloth around the roots of the plants, but this heat is almost too much for them.  If they survive I will move them to the front bed in October.  Strawberries should be planted in the same bed each year, dont have to rotate them out like other crops. 

Plants that handle the heat and butterflies love

ZinniasTithonia or Mexican SunflowerRed Sage

These are all plants that survive even our most brutal summer temperatures and another bright surprise is the beautiful butterflies that visit them throughout the day.  Especially in the morning hours when the temperatures are much cooler, swarms of these beautiful insects visit my garden.  So nice of a treat when everything else is struggling including myself this time of year.

Been Much Too Long Between Visits

I know that it has been much too long between visits on this blog.  I have been busy in the garden and in my artwork, therefore have been dedicating my time to my other blog, "Inside the Studio with Onetallartist."  Today I have decided to finish what I have slowly been doing, eradicating plants from the garden.  Some of them have done all they could to serve me with fresh vegetables or fruit, others were still trying to hang on, but now I cannot.  I am too hot and tired to enjoy the garden right now.  So I just pulled up most all of my vegetable plants with the exception of a few cantaloupe and tomato vines. 

That is one of the things I hear the most out of myself and my family members, it is too hot in Texas during the summer.  As I age, I tend to agree more and more with them and their desire to move to a more moderate climate.

Deer Resistant Plants

There are really no tried and true plants that will completely banish deer from your garden, but there are many that are least bothered by them.
SHRUBS:
Agrarita, Boxleaf Euonymus, Bush Germander, Ceniza/Texas Sage, Silverberry, Esperanza, Evergreen Sumac, Firebush, Goldcup, Gray Cotoneaster, Japanese Boxwood, Japanese Yew, Nandina, Oleander, Pineapple Guava, Pomegrante, Primrose Jasmine, Reeve's Spirea, Soft Leaf Yucca, Sotol, Texas Mountain Laurel, Upright Rosemary, Viburnum, Yaupon Holly, Yucca, Thryallis
GROUND COVERS:
Prostrate Rosemary, Germander, Gray Santolina or Lavender Cotton, Green Santolina, Thyme, Wedelia, Frog Fruit, Pigeonberry
PERENNIALS:
Ageratum, Amaryllis, Angel Trumpet, Bouncing Bet/Soapwort, Silver King Artemisia, Autumn Sage, Bearded Iris, Blue Plumbago, Candytuft, Copper Canyon Daisy, Dusty Miller, Elephant Ears, Garlic Chives, Goldmoss Sedum, Gray Santolina or Lavender Cotton, Green Santolina, Hummingbird Bush, Indigo Spires Salvia, Jerusalem Sage, Lantana, Mallow Hibiscus, Marguerite, Mealy Cup Sage, Mexican Bush Sage, Mexican Hat, Mexican Honeysuckle, Mexican Mint Marigold, Mexican Oregano, Oxeye Daisy, Rock Rose, Rosemary, Spined Prickly Pear Cactus, Split Leaf Philodrendron, Texas Betony, Wedelia, Wormwood, yarrow, American Beautyberry, Cape Honeyscuckle, Evergreen Pavonia, Jerusalem Cherry, Shiso, Russian Sage, Society Garlic
ORNAMENTAL GRASSES:
Inland sea oats, Maiden Grass, Gulf Muhley, Linheimer's Muhley, Pampas Grass, Purple Fountain Grass
FLOWERS:
Indigo Spires, Larkspurs, Marigolds, Mealy Cup Sage, Periwinkles, Zinnias, Spider Flower

Plants To Naturally Attract Hummingbirds

One way to enjoy the company of hummingbirds is to use natural plants in the yard and garden. All of us know how laborious it can be to continually fill, clean and hang conventional feeder, especially when the birds are migrating. Sometimes I have had to do this chore up to 3 times in one day to keep up with the hungry fellas; especially when using the birds favorite treat - add 3 drops of pure organic orange extract to every 4 cups of sugar water.)

You can still keep your feeders if you want and place these plants nearby or replace them altogether. Remember never use pesticides near the plants that these birds visit to feed from it could sicken or kill them. Garden pests can be killed that would eliminate small insects that they rely upon for protein in their diet. If you wouldn't eat it yourself, don't feed it to the hummingbirds.

Since hummers, like most birds, have virtually no sense of smell, the flowers that attract them tend to have little or no fragrance, apparently directing their resources instead toward high visibility and nectar production.

Plants to Attract & Feed Hummingbirds

Trees & Shrubs

Azalea, Butterfly Bush, Cape Honeysuckle, Flame Acanthus, Flowering Quince, Lantana, Manzanita, Mimosa, Red Buckeye, Tree Tobacco, Turk's Cap, Weigela

Vines:

Coral Honeysuckle, Cypress Vine, Morning Glory, Scarlet Runner Bean, Trumpet Creeper

Flowers;

Perennials: Bee Balm, Canna, Cardinal Flower, Columbine, Coral Bells, Four O'Clocks, Foxglove, Hosta, Hummingbird Mint, Little Cigar, Lupine, Penstemon, Yucca

Annuals: Beard Tongue, Firespike, Fushia, Impatens, Jacobiana, Jewelweed, Petunia, Salvia, Shrimp Plant

Butterfly Garden Plant List

NECTAR PLANTS

Trees:

Chinaberry, Chaste Tree (Vitex), Black Cherry, Mesquite, Mexican Plum and Redbud

Vines:

Coral Vine, Honeysuckle, Sweet Pea, Wisteria, Passionflower, Bouganvillea

Shrubs:

Butterfly Bush, Red Buckeye, White Honeysuckle, Mist Flower, Lantana, Agarita, Yellow Bells, Mexican Buckeye, Buttonbush, Hop Tree, Hibiscus, Flame Acanthus, Bird of Paradise, Turks Cap

Herbaceous:

Globe Amaranth, Calendula, Purple Coneflower, Geranium, Marigold, Plumbago, Mexican Sunflower, Bergamot, Brown-eyed Susan, Indian Blanket, Texas Paintbrush, Yarrow, Aster, Chrysanthemum, Cosmos, Goldenrod, Pansy, Mexican Bush Sage, thistle, Blackfoot Daisy, Cardinal Flower, Gayfeather, Salvia, Coreopsis, Butterfly Weed, Cigar Plant, Day Lilly, Impatiens, Pentas, Speedwell, Zinnia, Bluebonnet, Columbine, Mexican Hat, Sunflower, Phlox.