Summer's Fading Light

Summer's last hurrah in the stock tank pond.  The petite Helvola water lily. 

Coneflower at Twilight

In the Garden Today

Hey, There! It's Been A While...

You know it's been a while since your last post when you can't remember the password to get into your blog account.

After nearly 17 years in our home, we moved last fall to a home one mile away.  It's a beautiful lot with tons of potential and an older home...read that to mean it's been a lot of work.  There are lots of projects in the works and lots of dreams that will hopefully come to fruition in time.

This cypress vine was a volunteer that hitched a ride in a 4" pot from the nursery this spring.  I found it languishing in the undergrowth as a tiny seedling and moved it to a larger pot in the heat of summer.  It started flowering this week and I was instantly reminded of how much hope can be held in one tiny flower.  This sweet little vine reminds me that this garden will be beautiful.  No, IS beautiful, yes, is beautiful, right now.  The move has made me step back and appreciate the small steps and victories of growing a new garden.

I'm not sure how often I will post here so if you're on Instagram, please find me there @cat_jones_atx.  The ease and instant gratification of Instagram has lured me in and I frequent the app and post updates there regularly.  You'll get glimpses of my new garden and snippets of whatever happens to catch my eye.  I hope to see you there!

Cat

Who Says Foliage is Boring?

Because You Can Never Have Too Many Black-eyed Susans

These are my happy flowers; they remind me of my momma so I planted gobs of them.  Oh yes, they're in the backyard too.   Happy Friday, friends.

Moody and Broody

Livin' Easy awaiting the arrival of tropical storm Bill.  

Impulsivity

1. Impulsivity :: a predisposition toward rapid, unplanned reactions to internal or external stimuli without regard to the negative consequences of these ...
2. Annual moonflower vine wants sun; my garden has little, reseeds readily; we're short on space and I've yet to find a home for her but all that aside, I'd say the acquisition was nothing short of brilliant. 
3. A camera and a penchant for fragrant, hand-sized flowers can make an impulsive purchase appear as if it were a perfectly rational plan...  
4. 
   

Seasonal Shift

S U M M E R

F A L L

Thinking Outside the Drive-Way

There's nothing like a long, pleasant spring and a bunch of garden tours to motivate and inspire.  These tours always cause me to come home and look at my garden with fresh eyes.  After gardening in the same spot for fifteen years, I can easily become narrow-viewed to the potential for new ideas.

While touring with my friend Pam, I mentioned not having much space left to garden and she simply replied, "oh, there's always more space."   Such a matter-of-fact statement that she probably doesn't even recall saying caused me to scrutinize any available spaces. 

So I came home and started ripping out grass in a skinny little strip at the drive-way's edge.  The soil is beautiful after years of decomposing leaf litter.  It gets morning sun and is shaded by the house during the heat of the day.  In other words, this is prime gardening real estate!

Then I went in and shopped the house.  This old iron piece was perfect for vertical gardening.  It probably comes as no surprise that I happened to have a few plants on hand.  Gulf Coast penstemon, a red passion flower vine, red salvia coccinea and fall aster (not shown) were among my choices.  The name of the plant to the left rear escapes me...anyone know?  **Edit: Many thanks to Steph at Rambling Wren for her id which led me in the right direction; the plant is called Persicaria microcephala 'Red Dragon'**

The passion vine is tender here in zone 8 so I will either grow it as an annual or if it's just too happy and I love it, I'll take a cutting this fall.

So far it's happy and I love it ♥

The best part of this new found little bed is that it sits right outside the laundry room window.  The transformed view is so much more inviting than the plain, worn fence ever was!
 

Siblings :: I Sought My Soul...

I sought my soul, but my soul I could not see.  I sought my God, but my God eluded me. 

 I sought my brother and I found all three.  

                                                                                                              ~Author Unknown

Bliss Floating Above the Milkweed

                  

         Happiness is a butterfly, which when pursued, is always just beyond your grasp, 

but which, if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you. 

 Nathaniel Hawthorne  

This is Where I Would Bee Too :: Sweet Almond Verbena

Sweet almond verbena (Aloysia virgata) beckons from across the garden.  The scent of this sweetly flowering shrub compels pollinators and gardeners alike to seek out the wispy blooms.  So small and seemingly insignificant, they throw off the most amazing amount of luscious scent. 

Impossible to resist ...

A Suggestion for Summer Sunshine

Let us dance in the sun, wearing wild flowers in our hair...

I've Been Keeping a Secret...

The suspense has been killing me...

This project has been in the works since the beginning of June.  It's a project that I've been begging  asking my husband to build for a while as I'm not so handy with razor sharp blades.  Honestly, they scare the bejeebies out of me. 

I've pinned multiple styles for inspiration.  Dreamed about one, visualized one on my porch.  Imagined all the ways our family would love this.  I've obsessed actually. 

One perfect day my husband came home and said he was ready to build it.  I was beside myself GIDDY!

Now, it's not completely finished yet.  Which is my fault.  My husband finished up his part long ago and we've been using and loving  it for well over a month. 

But I wanted it to have a kind of grand introduction, you know?  I wanted it to be all fluffed and dressed pretty before I had the big reveal.

Then in one moment it happened and I just couldn't stand it any longer.  I had to share with you because you, dear readers and fellow gardeners, understand the joy when a garden dream becomes reality.

My youngest {who is now 6'1"} was in NYC for the week on a mission trip and he returned exhausted.

My husband and I were on our way out the back door when I saw this...

I grabbed a quick shot with my phone camera {he would kill me if he knew; fortunately 16 year old boys don't read their mom's gardening blogs}.  In that little moment my heart swelled.  We did it.  We created a sleeping porch!  And everyone in the family loves  it.  All the imagining and daydreaming and obsessing about this bed swing is now a reality.

This post isn't quite the big reveal I had hoped for.  The pillows aren't made and it's not quite dressed the way I see it in my mind's eye but the most important part is finished.  It's a porch that draws you in and welcomes you comfortably.  It's a porch where we will find respite.  A place to daydream, read, laugh, sleep, chat.  It's a place where memories will be made.

It's everything I imagined and more.  ♥ Thank you DJ ♥

It's Friday! What Are Y'all Doing This Weekend?

I'm gonna try to sneak in a little early morning gardening between viewing the Olympics and celebrating a dear aunt's birthday. 

What are y'all doing?  Whatever it is, I hope you get some good garden time!

Great Writing: A Few Blogs For You to Check Out

 

 {afternoon reflection of a single zinnia bloom in the kitchen window}

Lee of A Guide To Northeastern Gardening has graciously awarded me the One Lovely Blog award.  Thank you, Lee for the honor of such sweet recognition.  Gardening in Long Island, New York, Lee shares her knowledge and love of design and horticulture with her readers.

The rules for the One Lovely Blog Award are:

Thank the person who nominated you for the award and link back to their blog.
List seven things about yourself.
Nominate up to ten blogs for the award.

• fritos and bean dip are not safe in my presence
• i can type nearly 100 words per minute
• reading the dictionary fascinates me
• it's all about the hunt:  flea markets, estate sales, and consignment shops rock 
• i marvel daily at God's unwavering grace
• my best friend tells me my nose crinkles when I laugh
• there can never be too much football...high school, college, pro - it's all good

Honestly, all who take the time and make the effort to create quality posts are worthy of recognition for this award.  I'm constantly in awe of the quality information and images I find in the blogosphere.

Lately I've been really inspired by a few bloggers whose writing has captured my imagination and I'd like to nominate them for this award.  I hope you'll visit their blogs.

Austin Agrodolce
Deb is a fellow Austinite whose writing is quirky, authentic and intelligent.  She weaves stories that transport and entertain.

Foxglove Lane
Catherine writes from Ireland and has a keen sense of observation.  She captures life's moments both with her eloquent words and her beautiful photography.

Mulish & Co.
Roberta also hails from right here in Central Texas.  She says "This blog is not my first rodeo, as they are wont to say in Texas. It may be, however, my first true blog, the first blog I've kept that resonates with me. I keep it to track my path to a writing life. A life in which, creativity, and writing in particular, come first."

Two Sharp Pencils and a Broken Crayon
My friend Julie writes on creativity with razor sharp wit and deep insight.  She will have you thinking about creativity in a whole new way and will inspire you to pursue your creative dreams.

Happy reading,
Cat

A Bit of Fragrance

A bit of fragrance always clings to the hand that gives you flowers...

A small gesture presented in the tiniest of packages.   A cherished bouquet gifted to me by my girl.  Whether two or twenty years old, it doesn't matter.  What mother can resist the delight of a child as she proudly surrenders her carefully selected posies chosen just for you?   Sweet moments. Simple joys.

One Day. One Garden. Four Seasons.

Have you noticed some season shifting shenanigans in your summer garden?  Not that I'm complaining.  

This summer has been a dream compared to last.  We're at nine days of 100+ degree temps compared to thirty-nine during the same period last year.  You might recall we had ninety 100+ degree days in 2011.   Shudder.

The typically spring blooming abelia is looking lovely with small clusters of white flowers.  This dwarf variety shrub was a near casualty of last year's exceptional drought.  Taking encouragement from the winter rains, it rallied and is growing into a nicely shaped plant.

In even stranger news, daylily and purple oxalis are also blooming.  Purple oxalis in my garden is usually lush and pretty during the late winter and early spring.  The daylily is planted in the hottest part of my garden and I rarely see a bloom after May.  So many plants in confusion...

Ruby crystals grass is catching the morning light and my attention daily with its soft, feathery inflorescence.  This grass is new to my garden and I honestly expected it to be more of a spring/fall bloomer.  I'm thrilled to see it in bloom now though.  It's gorgeous and if it should decide to reseed throughout this bed, I wouldn't be disappointed!

Even the Japanese maple is holding on to a bit of its rich color.  These leaves usually go completely green by this time of year. The fringe texture of the maple leaves against the silver ponyfoot ground cover is so pretty.  Purple heart, in the top right corner, adds nice contrast to the silvery green of the ponyfoot. 

I've lived in Austin way too long to be fooled.  There is still plenty of summer ahead for sure.

Cicadas sing nightly and almost, but not quite, are able to drown out the summer sound of our Texas white noise (a/c units).   There is a harmonious chorus between the many cicadas and toads.

A sweet black-eyed Susan plays a game of peek a boo...probably with the bunnies that visit daily.

A true harbinger of fall, the American beautyberry is beginning to put on its brightly hued fruit.  And while I'm not one to wish a beautiful, relatively easy (so far) summer away, this latest development tells me that fall will soon be nipping at our heels. 

61 days soon to be exact.

How about you?  Are you seeing any unusual bloom timing in your own garden? 

What You Do Matters...Really.

Keep doing what you're doing.  It matters.

This is what I tell myself when I'm feeling run over by the garden.

Keep doing what you're doing.  It matters.

When another plant up and dies.  Or when the rabbits continue to chomp through all that lovely new growth brought by the recent rains.  When your sweet, excited, 80 pound dog tromps through the perennials trying to get at said rabbits.  When you walk out the front door and discover two never-seen-before insects and wonder if they are friend or foe.

Keep doing what you're doing.  It matters.

Did you know that you don't really know a plant until you've killed at least three of them?

That's what a gracious gardening friend tells me when I explain to her that I can't grow something she has growing beautifully in her garden.  I tell her, "Oh, I've tried that and it died."  She says, "Oh, you don't really know a plant until you've killed it three times!"

Thank you, Lord, for friends like her.  There is nothing like genuine encouragement to lift you up. 

Keep doing what you're doing.  It matters.

And although we can tell ourselves this, it is often nice to hear it from someone else.

So I'm here today telling you that what you do matters.  And to encourage you to keep on doing what you do.

Don't give up.  Don't be discouraged for long.  Gardening and creativity (yes, really, gardeners are creatives) are skills that need to be practiced.  And practiced.  And practiced.

Take a minute to listen to this sage advice...

Keep doing what you do.  It matters.

Really.  ♥