In today’s post, I’d like to share with you a very special day that we spent with our youngest daughter, Gracie.
For those of you who have followed me for a while, you will have read about Gracie’s story and how we adopted her from China back in 2003.
She was one and a half years old when she was adopted and had a sweet smile and a club foot.
Gracie brought instant joy into our lives and despite having a clunky cast on her foot and leg as her foot was being straightened, she always had a smile ready for us. She rejoiced at belonging to a family for the very first time her short little life.
Three months after flying home from China, Gracie underwent surgery to repair her club foot.
While her foot healed quickly, we soon came to realize that Gracie was suffering some delays in her development. At first, we thought it was from her time spent in an orphanage. However, later we learned that she had autism, or more specifically, Asperger’s, which is a high-functioning form of autism.
Gracie is now 14 years old and as you can imagine, life hasn’t always been easy for Gracie (or us), but on most days, she brings us joy and a smile.
This past weekend, we were able to take part in a special event in Gracie’s life.
Gracie participate in Special Olympics event representing her school.
She was set to participate in a Special Olympics event representing her school.
The day was set to be a hot one with record-breaking temperatures, but it was still lovely outside while sitting in the stands waiting for the events to begin.
Only in Arizona are you equally as likely to bring an umbrella for a hot, sunny day as you are for a wet and rainy one 😉
The kids were all gathered off to the side of the field, enjoying the shade of the trees while awaiting their turn. Gracie’s teachers were there along with other classmates who were to participate in the event.
There were also ‘typical’ kids who were there representing their teams as well and we waited while they competed until it was time for the Special Olympics portion of the event to take place.
Of course, waiting can also make you more nervous and Gracie wasn’t sure if she could do it. Her events were scheduled to be the 100-meter dash and the long jump. The problem was, she didn’t want to do the long jump.
Those of you who are parents of teenagers know that it can be hard to reason with your teen, but when they have autism, it is even harder as the regular arguments and persuasions don’t work.
I wish that her dad and I could take credit for figuring out a way to inspire her to do the long jump but Gracie figured out a way for us to motivate her – promise to buy her a box of ‘Cookie Crisp’ cereal afterward.
At this point, I should mention that we rarely give our kids what we call ‘sugar cereals’, which are filled with empty calories and don’t fill you up. But, I happily promised to drive to the store and buy her a box right after the race if she was brave enough to do the long jump – her school team was depending on her.
She also wanted a medal very badly. So, I said that if she didn’t get a medal, I would make her one, to which Gracie said, “But you’ll have to buy spray paint, a circle-piece of wood and ribbon.” At this point, I told her that I would be happy to make her the coolest medal I was capable of for her to wear.
Our son, Kai, also came to cheer Gracie on. I love this photo that I was able to get of them – they rarely stand this close to teach other – ha, ha.
If you’ve ever spent time with people with autism, you may have noticed the blunt and honest ways they phrase things. One of Gracie’s classmates noticed Kai standing next to Gracie and exclaimed excitedly, “Gracie, your brother, Kai, is here.” To which Gracie replied, “Uh, I know…. he’s standing right next to me.”
The first event that Gracie was to participate in wasn’t the 100-meter dash as previously scheduled. That event was cancelled and her team needed her to fill in the space of a missing team member for the 400-meter relay race. Since that would entail Gracie running 100-meters, that would work.
She was nervous about dropping the baton, but she grabbed it and began running.
So far, so good.
Gracie in Special Olympics event
Go, Gracie!
Almost ready for the hand-off!
The hand-off went off without a hitch except that Gracie got a stomachache from all the excitement and running as she walked with her math teacher and coach to toward the rest of her team.
After the race was over, the teams were asked to gather around the medal podium.
Guess who got a medal for helping her team come in second place?
Yeah! That’s my girl!
All the kids who participated in the Special Olympics relay race received medals, but Gracie’s team did get second place, which made her feel extra special.
I guess I won’t have to make her a wooden medal now.
Next, it was off to the long jump, and hopefully, a box of ‘Cookie Crisp’ cereal afterward.
Gracie waited patiently for her turn and then pumped her arms very fast (for extra energy, she said) before taking off running.
And she takes off…
Gracie’s long jump in Special Olympics event
This is Gracie’s favorite photo since it looks like she is flying.
Nice landing!
As you can see, this was a very memorable day for both Gracie and us. Being a teenager is hard enough without having autism. When you pair that with the challenges that they face everyday trying to fit into a world whose rules and social norms don’t make sense, then you get an idea of what a momentous occasion this was for her.
Gracie wore her medal to church yesterday and it warmed my heart to see members of our congregation come up to hug and congratulate her.
**Thank you for taking a few minutes out of your day to read Gracie’s story. It is an honor being her mom and sharing her story with you!
If you would like to read Gracie’s adoption story, you can do so here.
Drought Tolerant and Beautiful: Anacacho Orchid
ArizonaDo you have a list of favorite plants? I do. Mine is made up of about 12 plants, and they change from time to time.
One of my recent additions to my favorites list is anacacho orchid (Bauhinia lunarioides).
This lovely plant can be trained as a small tree or a large shrub.
Fragrant white flowers appear in spring, and the foliage adds beauty throughout the year.
While I don’t have this plant in my landscape, yet – I have been using it in a few of my latest designs.
If you would like to learn more about this beautiful plant, I invite you to read my latest plant profile for Houzz.
How about you? Have you ever seen or grown an anacacho orchid?
10 Things To Know Before Buying Plants
Cactus Flowers Color the Desert Landscape
desertI love springtime in the desert when it comes alive in shades of yellow, orange and pink.
Cactus Flowers, Beavertail prickly pear (Opuntia basilaris)
Last week, while I was driving through a residential area nestled in the desert mountains, I could hardly keep my eyes on the road.
Everywhere I turned, there were brightly colored cactus blooming. It’s a small miracle that I didn’t crash into the curb as I drove closer.
Even though this is my 31st spring in the desert Southwest, watching prickly cactus transform into colorful accents never ceases to amaze me.
Claret Cup Cactus
Cactus Flowers, Strawberry Hedgehog
I like to see smaller cacti such as claret cup and strawberry hedgehog planted alongside boulders for a mix of textures. The cactus also like the opportunity for their roots to be shaded by the boulder.
The colors of flowering cacti range from shades of orange, pink, red and yellow.
There are so many different types of flowers that it can be hard to identify them all. But, that doesn’t stop you from enjoying their pretty flowers.
The flower petals are somewhat waxy and sturdy. Bees flock to the open blooms.
Prickly pear cacti are particularly spectacular this time of year, and their flower color varies depending on the species.
I can hardly wait to see all the blossoms begin to open.
Pincushion cactus (Mammillaria)
I must confess that I don’t have a lot of cactus in my garden – I am more of a flowering shrub and perennial gal. But, I do have a few cactus tucked in here and there that I have obtained over the years.
My favorite it a small pincushion cactus, which produces rings of pink flowers off and on throughout spring and summer. The small, native bees just love the flowers.
How about you? Do you have a favorite flowering cactus?
Celebrating “Second Spring” in the Southwest Garden
Timely Pruning Produces Second Round of Flowers
PerennialThere are many flowering perennials that I can think of that only flower once a year and many people think that the lovely blooms of penstemon count among them.
Photo: Parry’s Penstemon
But, did you know that if you prune the flowers just as they begin to fade that you can stimulate another flush of colorful blooms?
Photo: Gopher Plant (Euphorbia rigida), Parry’s Penstemon (Penstemon parryi) and Parry’s Agave (Agave parryi)
I’ve grown penstemon for years and recently planted a Parry’s penstemon in my front yard. I enjoyed seeing its pink blossoms waving in the breeze and the hummingbirds who stopped by for a drink of nectar.
The individual flowers began to fall, leaving only a few behind, which is the best time to prune the flowering stalks back.
If you wait too long, the chances are that you will lose your window of stimulating your penstemon to produce more flowers. It’s best to do this when there are a couple of blossoms left on the plant.
young penstemon
This is what my young penstemon looks like right now, but within a couple of weeks, new flowering spikes will begin growing.
The reason that pruning off the first set of flowers stimulates a second bloom period is that the penstemon’s goal is to produce seeds. To do that, they produce flowers to attract pollinators and once pollinated, the flowers drop and the seed develops. However, when by pruning off the flowering spikes when there are a few flowers left, we disrupt the cycle and the plant will produce another set of flowers for the purpose of producing seeds.
Photo: Firecracker Penstemon (Penstemon eatonii)
Doing so will promote a second bloom for several penstemon species, including firecracker penstemon (Penstemon eatonii) and Parry’s penstemon (Penstemon parryi).
Pruning and Blooms in the Spring Garden
Long Jumps, Medals and Cookie Crisp Cereal
az plant lady family, azplantladyIn today’s post, I’d like to share with you a very special day that we spent with our youngest daughter, Gracie.
For those of you who have followed me for a while, you will have read about Gracie’s story and how we adopted her from China back in 2003.
She was one and a half years old when she was adopted and had a sweet smile and a club foot.
Gracie brought instant joy into our lives and despite having a clunky cast on her foot and leg as her foot was being straightened, she always had a smile ready for us. She rejoiced at belonging to a family for the very first time her short little life.
Three months after flying home from China, Gracie underwent surgery to repair her club foot.
While her foot healed quickly, we soon came to realize that Gracie was suffering some delays in her development. At first, we thought it was from her time spent in an orphanage. However, later we learned that she had autism, or more specifically, Asperger’s, which is a high-functioning form of autism.
Gracie is now 14 years old and as you can imagine, life hasn’t always been easy for Gracie (or us), but on most days, she brings us joy and a smile.
This past weekend, we were able to take part in a special event in Gracie’s life.
Gracie participate in Special Olympics event representing her school.
She was set to participate in a Special Olympics event representing her school.
The day was set to be a hot one with record-breaking temperatures, but it was still lovely outside while sitting in the stands waiting for the events to begin.
Only in Arizona are you equally as likely to bring an umbrella for a hot, sunny day as you are for a wet and rainy one 😉
The kids were all gathered off to the side of the field, enjoying the shade of the trees while awaiting their turn. Gracie’s teachers were there along with other classmates who were to participate in the event.
There were also ‘typical’ kids who were there representing their teams as well and we waited while they competed until it was time for the Special Olympics portion of the event to take place.
Of course, waiting can also make you more nervous and Gracie wasn’t sure if she could do it. Her events were scheduled to be the 100-meter dash and the long jump. The problem was, she didn’t want to do the long jump.
Those of you who are parents of teenagers know that it can be hard to reason with your teen, but when they have autism, it is even harder as the regular arguments and persuasions don’t work.
I wish that her dad and I could take credit for figuring out a way to inspire her to do the long jump but Gracie figured out a way for us to motivate her – promise to buy her a box of ‘Cookie Crisp’ cereal afterward.
At this point, I should mention that we rarely give our kids what we call ‘sugar cereals’, which are filled with empty calories and don’t fill you up. But, I happily promised to drive to the store and buy her a box right after the race if she was brave enough to do the long jump – her school team was depending on her.
She also wanted a medal very badly. So, I said that if she didn’t get a medal, I would make her one, to which Gracie said, “But you’ll have to buy spray paint, a circle-piece of wood and ribbon.” At this point, I told her that I would be happy to make her the coolest medal I was capable of for her to wear.
Our son, Kai, also came to cheer Gracie on. I love this photo that I was able to get of them – they rarely stand this close to teach other – ha, ha.
If you’ve ever spent time with people with autism, you may have noticed the blunt and honest ways they phrase things. One of Gracie’s classmates noticed Kai standing next to Gracie and exclaimed excitedly, “Gracie, your brother, Kai, is here.” To which Gracie replied, “Uh, I know…. he’s standing right next to me.”
The first event that Gracie was to participate in wasn’t the 100-meter dash as previously scheduled. That event was cancelled and her team needed her to fill in the space of a missing team member for the 400-meter relay race. Since that would entail Gracie running 100-meters, that would work.
She was nervous about dropping the baton, but she grabbed it and began running.
So far, so good.
Gracie in Special Olympics event
Go, Gracie!
Almost ready for the hand-off!
The hand-off went off without a hitch except that Gracie got a stomachache from all the excitement and running as she walked with her math teacher and coach to toward the rest of her team.
After the race was over, the teams were asked to gather around the medal podium.
Guess who got a medal for helping her team come in second place?
Yeah! That’s my girl!
All the kids who participated in the Special Olympics relay race received medals, but Gracie’s team did get second place, which made her feel extra special.
I guess I won’t have to make her a wooden medal now.
Next, it was off to the long jump, and hopefully, a box of ‘Cookie Crisp’ cereal afterward.
Gracie waited patiently for her turn and then pumped her arms very fast (for extra energy, she said) before taking off running.
And she takes off…
Gracie’s long jump in Special Olympics event
This is Gracie’s favorite photo since it looks like she is flying.
Nice landing!
As you can see, this was a very memorable day for both Gracie and us. Being a teenager is hard enough without having autism. When you pair that with the challenges that they face everyday trying to fit into a world whose rules and social norms don’t make sense, then you get an idea of what a momentous occasion this was for her.
Gracie wore her medal to church yesterday and it warmed my heart to see members of our congregation come up to hug and congratulate her.
**Thank you for taking a few minutes out of your day to read Gracie’s story. It is an honor being her mom and sharing her story with you!
If you would like to read Gracie’s adoption story, you can do so here.
Mystery Flower in the Vegetable Garden
Vegetable GardeningWhile strolling through the vegetable garden the other morning, pulling out weeds, I spotted a pretty white mystery flower growing on top of a weedy-looking stalk.
I stepped over to take a closer look and scratched my head for a few seconds trying to figure out where this mystery flower came from.
The flower was quite attractive and dainty in appearance.
While the green part of the plant resembled a weed, I noticed that the lower leaves looked much like a type of vegetable I had grown in my garden.
That is when I remembered where I had seen the flower before.
Mystery Flower in the Vegetable Garden
A few weeks ago, I had asked my daughter to pull out any large radishes, which were too tough to eat. It looked like she missed one.
If I let the radish flower remain, it will go to seed and new radishes will come up in its place. However, because the end of radish season is at hand, I will probably collect the seeds to plant in the fall.
For now, I will enjoy the lovely, little flower.
Have you ever seen a mystery flower in your garden? What was it?
Unexpected Discoveries In A Small Garden
Stomach Flu and Spring Flowers
Southwest gardenIt never ceases to amaze me how that despite how busy your calendar, everything grinds to a halt when you get sick. Oh, I realize that there are certain types of sickness that you can press on through like a cold or even a small fever. But, when the stomach flu hits, you are powerless to do anything.
What makes it worse is when everyone in your household gets it as well. So, we have been spending quality time together nursing our sore stomachs and anxiously awaiting the time until our appetites return.
In the meantime, the garden is undergoing some contruction.
Irrigation trenches are criss-crossing our landscape as we are having new drip irrigation installed. Our current system was first installed when we built our home 18 years ago and was having problems with numerous leaks. Considering that the typical lifespan of a drip irrigation system is 10 – 15 years, we were long overdue to have ours replaced.
While it may not seem very exciting, I am looking forward to having separate drip lines for my fruit trees, shrubs/perennials and vegetable garden.
Many plants in my garden are beginning to bloom adn I thought I would give you a peek.
colorful spring flowers
I spread a variety of flowers seeds in my side garden and some have already begun to bloom.
I planted toadflax seeds, which came in a variety of different colors.
white, pink and purple, spring flowers
I have white, pink and purple varieties adding welcome color to this area of the garden.
The seeds are from Botanical Interests and are called ‘Fairy Bouquet’ toadflax.
Another plant that has started blooming is from Renee’s Garden seed company and is called ‘Vanilla Berry’.
So far, these are the only two types of plants flowering in this garden, but the California poppies are getting ready to burst forth in different colors including white, purple, pink and of course, orange.
Citrus trees are also in full bloom perfuming the air with their intoxicating fragrance. I am hopeful that my young Meyer’s lemon tree will produce its first lemons.
The peach trees bloomed earlier this year and are now filled with immature peach fruit – I can almost taste the peach jam that I will make from them this May.
Spring Flowers, Lobelia
The cool-season annuals that I planted in the fall are still going strong. Even though they look great right now, I will replace them later this month with warm-season annuals in order to allow them time to grow a good root system before the heat of sumemr arrives.
Late winter and spring is also when my autumn sage (Salvia greggii) is also in flower. I received several different varieties, straight from the grower, to try out in my garden, which were planted last fall. They are doing great in their current location where they receive morning sun and afternoon shade.
On another note, we have been anxiously awaiting the re-emergence of our desert tortoise, Aesop.
We last saw him in late October before he went into his hole to hibernate. Since then, we’ve periodically checked on him and today, we moved slightly. So, I can’t wait to see him begin to walking out in the garden.
I’ll be sure to keep you updated.
How is your garden looking? Is anything blooming yet?
Flowers, Work and Cowboy Boots
HorticulturistAfter a record-setting February, I think that it’s safe to say that spring has officially arrived. Plants are waking up a bit early with flower buds bursting forth with glorious blooms.
Photo: ‘Sierra Star’ Fairy Duster (Calliandra ‘Sierra Star’)
Of course, an early spring means that people are anxious to get out in the garden. I always say that spring for horticulturists is like tax season for accountants as we get very busy helping others with their gardens.
This has certainly been true for me the past couple of weeks. Staying up until 1 a.m. in the morning and then up early the next morning for the next appointment and afternoons spent designing landscapes and writing articles – I can hardly see straight at the end of the day.
I thought that I would give you a snapshot of the past 10 days.
It all started with an early morning meeting with a landscape committee regarding adding come color to the entry areas of a community. An hour later, I was standing in the middle of a busy street, dodging traffic while taking multiple photographs of sixteen different corner landscapes.
Photo: Cereus peruvianus with golden barrel cactus (Echinocactus grusonii)
Later that morning, I met with some clients who had a lovely home and a landscape with ‘good bones’, but that needed some more color according to the clients.
Photo: Ironwood tree (Olneya tesota)
The property was situated along a golf course and had lovely specimen trees that offered welcome filtered shade.
Photo: Fragrant flowers of Texas mountain laurel (Sophora secundiflora)
As I walked around the landscape taking photographs for my report, I took some time to stop and smell the fragrant blossoms of their Texas mountain laurel, which smelled like grape candy.
Photo: Pink bower vine (Pandorea jasminoides)
The next day, I visited a family who needed help redesigning their backyard. However, as I approached the front door, my attention was caught by the beautiful pink bower vine that was blooming in the courtyard.
I spent that Wednesday working on designs and reports.
The next day, I visited a lovely ranch style home. The backyard was wall-to-wall grass and the homeowner wanted to create a border around the entire yard filled with flowering shrubs and perennials.
Photo: ‘Heavenly Cloud’ sage (Leucophyllum langmaniae ‘Heavenly Cloud’), yellow bells (Tecoma stans stans) and bougainvillea in my backyard.
As a flower type of girl myself, this was a fun design to get to work on. I created a plant palette that included white and pink gaura (Gaura lindheimeri), purple lilac vine (Hardenbergia violaceae), tufted evening primrose (Oenothera caespitosa), firecracker penstemon (Penstemon eatonii), pink trumpet vine (Podranea ricasoliana), andangelita daisy (Tetraneuris acaulis) among others to ensure year round blooms.
Friday found me at a beautiful home in the foothills where the client had recently moved in. She wanted help adding more color as well as symmetry to the landscape. This was a large project that was split up into four separate designs/reports.
Saturday morning was spent attending the SRP Water Expo, where I bought my discounted Smart Irrigation Controller.
There were numerous displays, each with a focus on saving water in the landscape.
I saw many people I knew and walked away with my new irrigation controller, which will save water in my landscape. You can learn more about this controller and the Expo here.
After such a busy week, I indulged myself with getting a pedicure 🙂
This week was spent working on creating designs and reports for all of my consults the week before. I did have a few appointments, one of which, involved issues with problems with the turf areas in HOA common areas during which, I spotted more suspected cases of oleander leaf scorch.
This area of Phoenix is seeing a lot of cases of this bacterial disease for which there is no known cure. Affected oleanders typically die within 3 – 4 years from when they first show symptoms.
Photo: Gopher plant (Euphorbia rigida) and Parry’s penstemon (Penstemon parryi) in my front garden.
At home, my own landscape is having some work done. Our 15-year-old drip irrigation system is being replaced. The typical life span of a drip irrigation system is typically 10 – 15 years, so when ours started developing leaks and the valves also began to leak, we knew it was time. So, my garden currently has trenches running through it with PVC pipe everywhere. It will be nice to have it finished and working soon.
On another note, my little grandson, Eric, is now 13 months old. He is a bright ray of sunshine in my life and helps me to keep life in perspective when the busyness of life threatens to overwhelm me.
I am so blessed to have a front row seat as he is learning and discovering the world around him.
I think he would like his own pair of cowboy boots, don’t you?
Drought Tolerant and Beautiful: Whale’s Tongue Agave
CaliforniaAgave are my favorite succulent of mine in my own garden and also finds itself a prominent addition to many of my landscape designs.
There is so much to love about agave, from the unique, rosette pattern of their succulent leaves to the dramatic flowering stalk that they send up toward the end of their lives.
whale’s tongue agave
While I have several species of agave, whale’s tongue is one of my favorites.
This agave first drew my attention when my friend and fellow blogger, Pam Penick, wrote about the one growing in her garden, where it takes center stage in her backyard.
Since then, I have seen several throughout the greater Phoenix landscape as well.
There is so much to like about this agave including how its blue-green color adds great color contrast to the landscape.
I also happen to like the unique shape of its leaves, that really do resemble a whale’s tongue.
Do you think this lovely agave deserves a place in your landscape?
Learn more about how and where to plant this agave as well as what plants to pair it with for maximum impact in my latest Houzz plant profile.
Have you ever seen this agave in the landscape? What would you plant alongside it?
A Welcome Gift From an Agave and a Friend
Revisiting a Newly-Designed Landscape Two Years Later
ArizonaOne of the most rewarding things about my job is having the opportunity to revisit areas that I have designed. Despite designing landscapes for over 17 years, I never tire of having the opportunity to explore them again to see how the landscape has matured. When touring the landscapes, I take time to look at what worked and sometimes what didn’t. I take these lessons with me and implement them in future designs.
Blue Bells (Eremophila hygrophana) and feathery cassia (Senna artemisoides)
Today, I’d like to take you on a tour of a landscape that I designed for a church two years ago.
I was asked by the landscape committee to create a landscape that would be filled with color during the cool season since that is when the majority of the members are attending.
BEFORE:
The landscape was filled with over-pruned shrubs, many of which flowered in summer. In addition, there were a large number of frost tender plants in the landscape that were unsightly when much of the residents were in town.
AFTER:
Newly-Designed Landscape
After removing the shrubs, I added feathery cassia (Senna artemisoides), which blooms in late winter and spring, along with the newer Blue Bells (Eremophila hygrophana) which flowers all year long while staying at a rather compact 3 feet tall and wide size.
BEFORE:
When working with an existing landscape, I always try to keep mature plants that are healthy and fulfill the design criteria. In this case, a Mexican (Yellow) Bird-of-Paradise (Caesalpinia mexicana), that had been trained into a tree, which has evergreen foliage and flowers in spring and fall.
Blue Bell shrubs and golden barrel cacti (Echinocactus grusonii) completed this planting area.
BEFORE:
In this area, a few shrubs, a barrel cactus and a lonely red yucca hang on from the previously designed landscape, all of which add little interest to the landscape.
AFTER:
Valentine Bush (Eremophila maculata ‘Valentine) and desert spoon (Dasylirion wheeleri)
Contrasting textures and color add interest to the landscape throughout the entire year. Seasonal blooming creates an entirely different look to the landscape as well.
BEFORE:
As landscapes age, plants can become overgrown and to some, unattractive as was the case with this old desert spoon. The lysiloma tree was in good shape and the decision was made to keep it.
AFTER:
Angelita daisy (Tetraneuris acaulis syn. Hymenoxys acaulis)
Angelita daisy (Tetraneuris acaulis) is one of my favorite small perennials as its bright, sunny flowers appear throughout the entire year.
Valentine bush and feathery cassia serve as foundation planting.
BEFORE:
Pink fairy duster (Calliandra eriophylla) had been used to create a hedge. However, while pink fairy duster does flower in winter and spring, it isn’t a suitable choice as a formal hedge. Rather, it belongs in a natural desert landscape and untouched by hedge trimmers.
AFTER:
Pink Muhly (Muhlenbergia capillaris) in winter.
Pink muhly was added for welcome fall color when its plumes turn a vibrant burgundy color, which fade to an attractive wheat color in winter. After being pruned in early spring, bright green growth quickly fills back in.
BEFORE:
This is a high-profile corner as it is one of the entries into the church parking lot. As you can see, there was little to attract the attention of passersby.
Newly-Designed Landscape
Adding a combination of plants that will ensure year round interest no matter whether it’s spring, summer, fall or winter.
Even though the purple trailing lantana (Lantana montevidensis) can die back to the ground in winter, the bright colors of the Valentine bush and feathery cassia will draw attention away from it.
BEFORE:
Three Agave americana were all that sat in this area, which offered little color and virtually no interest.
Newly-Designed Landscape
I took the existing agave and spread them throughout the landscape, where they can create both texture and color contrast when paired with the softer shapes and darker colors of shrubs.
One thing that I wish I had done differently was to space the shrubs in this area a little further apart. This can cause landscapers to excessively prune shrubs into poodle shapes in an attempt to keep them from touching. Pruning them severely once a year can keep them from outgrowing their space OR removing every other shrub once they become too large can take care of the problem.
I hope that you enjoyed seeing the transformation of this landscape to one filled with cool season color.
Plant Palette For New Landscape: Perennials and Succulents
How to Get Kids to Eat and Love Kale
Vegetable Gardening, vegetablesDo your kids beg you to feed them kale or other dark green, leafy vegetables?
Probably not.
I confess that I don’t particularly like to eat kale when it is in large pieces. But, after planting it for the first time in my vegetable garden this year, I was determined to learn to enjoy eating this vegetable along with my kids. The question was how?
I decided to take my freshly picked kale and cut it into narrow strips, about 1/3 of an inch wide.
I did the same with radishes from the garden since some of my kids don’t like them either
My idea was to make their individual size smaller and then mix them with other leafy greens, hoping that they could blend in with the rest of the salad.
Salads in our house consist of leaf lettuce from the garden, a little iceberg lettuce (the kid’s favorite), diced cucumbers and finely chopped kale and radishes.
Once mixed together, the kale, along with the radishes, blends in rather nicely as do their flavors.
So, did it work? Do my kids now like kale?
Well, earlier this week, I overheard them discussing what we were going to have for dinner and my two youngest kids said, “I love kale and radishes”.
You know what? So do I.
**Have you ever found a way to get your kids to eat certain foods? If so, please share your experiences with me 🙂
Winter Garden Harvest: I Never Thought I Would Love Kale!