June 11, 2011

Missing Y'all

I caught a glimpse of these two characters outside my kitchen window.  I'm not sure if the squirrel would have eaten the anole if it had the chance...luckily, the anole was too quick for the squirrel.  It made for an interesting few minutes at the window though.


A resident of the french drain in the front flower bed.  This drain used to be covered by yaupon bushes that were transplanted to another bed this spring.  This toad is huge!  There is no telling how long he has lived there.  The other night my husband and I enjoyed his company as he ate a June bug I caught and tossed his way.  His tongue is huge too!


These cosmos were added to the front bed a couple of weeks ago.  I was inspired by Amy over at Go Away, I'm Gardening to add more annuals to my garden after reading her late summer posts last year.  She uses a lot of colorful zinnias and cosmos that add gorgeous pops of color through our long season of intense summer heat.

We're in such an extreme drought here in Central Texas that all the fireworks shows have been cancelled for the 4th of July.  I've lived here close to 30 years and this is a first.  


In the next week or so the black-eyed Susan's will be bursting forth with bright yellow flowers.   I love these carefree, cheerful wildflowers and look forward to their happy countenance every summer. 



And finally, here is a better shot of the pavonia as promised. The front of the flower is pretty as well but I am especially drawn to the peppermint like quality of the back.  This photo is so refreshing and really contradicts the conditions of most of the garden right now.  That's the beauty of a garden.  There are little micro-climates within where even in the most extreme conditions, you may find a reprieve on a morning stroll.

The last couple of weeks have been a whirlwind of activity and I'm looking forward to catching up with all your blogs.  I miss connecting with you and sharing our love of gardening...I'll be visiting this week to see how your gardens are growing.  Have a wonderful weekend!

28 comments:

  1. As always, your photos are spectacular. The squirrel and lizard must've been a quick catch on your part. LOVE the toad eye.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I really like the unopened black eyed susan against the dark background. Keep that shot for a future photo contest. I like its promise, leaning forward into the light. Nice.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Love the shot of the Pavonia. Great perspective. The shot of your french drain resident is really incredible. The detail and the angle. Great shot.

    ReplyDelete
  4. What marvelous wildlife shots! I love the bright cosmos too. Hard to imagine heat as it's wet and cold in Maine. I hear you on this being a busy time of year.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I just love cosmos, especially the orange and red types. Just lovely. Too bad about the fireworks - I have never heard of that either! Hope some wet weather comes your way soon. I have been out of touch lately too - glad to be back and checking in.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I have five days to go until summer break!!! woo-hoo!!! Give your gomphrena a drink and it will perk up. I love your cosmos! I wish they came in shorter cultivars. The squirrel and anole and toad pix are my favorites! The toad pix is amazing!! We have a toad that only comes out at night and hops around my patio. :o)

    ReplyDelete
  7. Your toad is an amazing shot. So close and clear. I like the drama with the squirrel too.

    ReplyDelete
  8. The squirrel seems to be staring at the anole. Wondered if you had noticed my butterfly staring at the praying mantis.

    I like that toad shot with such clear, big eye.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Cat... we are having a lot of rain these days... good for my potager... our black eye susan is at a similar stage, and I am very excited as this will be the first ever black eye susans in our garden... great shots!

    ReplyDelete
  10. I just love that beautiful scenery from your kitchen window, lovely garden and wild creatures too! Ive just sown some zinnias and cosmos in a new flower bed this morning, with the hot sun and some rain now locally, hope they will show some beautiful colours soon! Your photos are superb!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Love, LOVE, L-O-V-E the toad shot!!

    I've missed your posts and photos too. :-)

    ReplyDelete
  12. Hi Cat, beautiful photos! Your garden looks very pretty and it has a lot of activity. It has been so hot and dry...:/ I will send you an email and we will have to get together for lunch.
    Thanks for the link, too.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Looks like the wildlife doesn't mind the drought. My son in San Antonio said they are down to once every two weeks irrigation practices. Sounds severe. My Rudebeckia hirta is in full bloom with goldstrum to follow. Some gardeners do not appreciate yellow. I take what I can get. I just like daisy type flowers also.

    I must say however the R. goldstrum is way aggressive this year, have had to shovel prune.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Cat, it seems many of us took a little time away to catch up on gardening this spring. The weather has been a huge contributing factor for me. It was so wet here up north that nothing could be done for weeks on end and when it finally cleared there was only a short window to get things up and going. Sorry to hear about your drought conditions but really like the idea of planting annuals. Looking forward to more bursts of colour.

    ReplyDelete
  15. I love the photo of the squirrel and the anole - it's nice to see some of the bigger picture of your garden, too. It's beautiful, despite the drought!

    ReplyDelete
  16. Love the toad! How nice he has found the perfect place. And room service, too! ;) Didn't realize they're already canceling 4th of July plans. Last year we got 3" of rain from Hurricane Alex on the 3rd - saved our plans that year! I'm hoping for a repeat!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Thank you, thank you, thank you! I have a plant sold to me as a 'perennial hibiscus', but the leaves are all wrong for the common hibiscus I am familiar with. I have spent a lot of time searching on the internet, but I couldn't come up with it, and I haven't seen it for sale locally since I originally bought mine. Then, today, I see my plant on your post, and I am certain it is Pavonia! A quick internet search confirms it is Pavonia hastata, to be exact. I love it! It can be a bit weedy, but it is worth the effort to pull up unwanted seedlings.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Cat, that first photo of the squrrel and anole is fantastic! What a moment you caught on camera. Love it! Your garden is, as always, looking fabulous.

    ReplyDelete
  19. all amazing photos, as usual, but that bull frog rules!!

    ReplyDelete
  20. From the first picture it is hard to imaging there drought, your grass is still green:) Our front yard grass is burned to yellow but I hope rains for this week. I don't want to waste tap water to the grass just for flowers if I must.. The HUGE frog looks little angry but he is quite "manly".
    The cosmos flower looks beautiful and perfect color.And the last shot, wow that is beautiful and water drops makes it even more beautiful.
    Your garden lover Henrietta:)

    ReplyDelete
  21. Lovely photos, Cat, as always. However, my favorite is the one with the least lovely subject. I really like your frog picture.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Hi Cat,
    like always you provided us with some really nice shots again.
    The squirrel and lizard picture and the gorgeous picture of the toad are my favorites. There aren't many times someone would be able to take a picture like that.
    If the squirrel would eat the lizard - I really doubt that. I have never seen the squirrels around here eating any other kind of wildlife.
    Paula Jo

    ReplyDelete
  23. I sure hope you all get some rain soon. It is awful all these droughts we are having. Your flowers seem to shrug it off and look beautiful.

    ReplyDelete
  24. Thanks for the glimpses of your garden!

    Julie

    ReplyDelete
  25. Last year you had some great photos of the anole as well. Last year I didn't know what an anole was. The toad is superb, what detail on his face.

    ReplyDelete
  26. I love that toad! I would love to attract a resident toad. I've put out a couple of toad houses - time will tell.
    I love cosmos and zinnias and have both growing from seed this year. The zinnias should be blooming soon.
    Hope you get some rain soon. It has been very dry here - and hot- but we've had thunderstorms three nights running to give us a little relief.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Thank for the lovely pictures, your blog always has such superb photography. It is a wonder you got a sharp image of that squirrel chasing the anole, you must have a fast lens :). Your pavonia is wonderful, cool and refreshing. I am sorry about the drought, we Californians know very well what it is like... I hope you get rain soon.

    ReplyDelete
  28. You have such a good eye to capture the right angle. Beautiful!

    ReplyDelete