Miguel’s Imports- home to delightful sleeping Mexicans and more.

28 May 2012 3 Comments

by cyndik in Uncategorized Tags: , , ,

So in the spirit of shopping locally, here are photos from Miguel’s Imports  located in central Austin.  I bought my new tall raspberry pot at Miguel’s after shopping around at a few local nurseries; their prices were the best and their selection is impressive if not daunting.

An agave sun-dial shows the time…plus the weather forecast.

These green pots with their mottled pattern and the groovy hollowed tree planter were favorites of mine.

Giant hand-grenade planters, anyone?

Terra cotta is actually what I intended to buy, and they carry a wide selection, from classical to modern forms.  This photo shows only about a third of the terra cotta area.

Miguel’s nursery has mostly cacti and succulents that are also competitively priced.  I bought a trio of Agave parryi truncata.

These were large- maybe 3′ tall. What a great focal point for drama and ambiance.

This photo does not do these foot tall black clay bats justice.  They are cool.

BONUS:  Miguel’s has a healthy 50% off area….which is how I came to purchase a raspberry pot instead of terra cotta.

In the right setting….I love, love, love a classic “sleeping Mexican”….

….such as in the foyer of this Spanish Colonial home, the set for the Meg Ryan movie ”Hanging Up”; more on this fabulous house can be found at the Hooked on Houses blog.

From the Laguna Dirt blog- Sleeping Mexicans used as bookends…

But,  I digress….back to Miguel’s Imports~  my photos show a small sample of their stock located on Burnet Rd. near the North Loop cross street.   It’s huge, locally owned, and the staff was very friendly and helpful to me.

Bloom Day~ look, then look closer

16 Nov 2011 12 Comments

by cyndik in Garden Blooms, Uncategorized Tags: , , , , ,

An Indiana garden blogger, Carol of  May Dreams Gardens, hosts a “Bloom Day” each month and invites bloggers everywhere to share what’s blooming in their gardens; this is my first time to take part, and I’m a day late in posting. 

Taking time to look….then look closer…..was time well spent for me~  thank you, Carol, for the inspiration and invitation!

 

A look (above) at a mixed container with tall Russian Sage Mexican bush sage /Salvia leucantha.  I like the natural upright, leggy look of it - this container isn’t showy, but I appreciate its honesty.

A closer look at the fuzzy pods.

A look at the super hardy Red Yucca….actually in the Agave family I read recently at LaptopGardener.com 

A closer look at the forming bloom.

A look at the Heartleaf Ice Plant~ just again blooming in November after September’s serious chomping by a deer; a pointy agave now stands guard next to this pot to detere deer.

 I didn’t include all my blooms – like the 5′ and still showy Mexican Petunias or the still going strong Plumbago.  They’ll surely not be blooming for the next Bloom Day in December, but then again….around here one never knows. 

It’s fall and I’m freezing

11 Oct 2011 4 Comments

by cyndik in Uncategorized

I’m eager to plant and create and enjoy in my gardens, but it’s difficult to decide on what to actually plant and where.    I am frozen in indecision, annoyed with my lack of knowledge and newly dissatisfied with my home’s lot.  Oh, and I want to move half of the fourty plantings put in just a short month ago. 

When designing, it’s necessary to consider the task with a critical eye, right?  What are the issues and limitations?  I have this initial step down pat, I can see what is not working – lately this is ALL I see- the slopes, the hungry deer, the view of the neighbor’s driveway and on and on.   This is where I’m stuck; I don’t have the tools to solve the problem; such as (A) I don’t have an inventory of solutions to consider because I’m an utter novice at gardening (and dare I say, landscape design), and  (B)  I don’t have an inspiration or clear vision to drive the process. 

I fancy myself a problem solver, an idea person, and if NOTHING else- a girl with a vision….and definately a DIYer.    In my garden currently, I find myself tugging at a new collar of confusion and  scratching at this itchy cloak of cluelessness I wear.   Urrrhh!

On the other hand, I was driving through a neighborhood (which also has a lot of deer) looking for inspiration – and realized that I can increasingly identify the more common plants and shrubs.   So I have this going for me;  I’m picking up the language – I can essentially ask where the bathroom is and say hello in a stiff formal way.

I AM very grateful for the sunset view from my front garden. 

Gazing beyond my neighbor’s driveway…..

Oh, and this cyberspace  nugget grabbed my attention~

Fertilizing plants makes them more tempting to deer-  (“Like seasoning?” my hubby asked)  especially nitrogen I read.   Really?!

Oh Deer!

07 Oct 2011 2 Comments

by cyndik in Uncategorized

Not to be outdone by RockRose’s night vision cam~   I’m finding that my better images are actually taken by the “bunny cam”. The only credit I can take is that I figured out the contraption that enables the rabbit to comfortably move around the garden with the camera; it’s part hat and part tiny harness. As you can imagine, this frees up time for me- and as you can see, I think he’s quite enjoying the creative outlet.

The deer are expanding their diet.   I know it’s out of necessity.   They decided that the deer resistant plants are, after all, irresistible.    They ate any bloom and at least sampled most any type of leaf.    A couple of examples~ 

Turk’s cap before…..

and after. 

I was particularly hopeful about Thryallis.  I heard about it on a recent episode of Central Texas Gardner -   deciduous (but may not drop all its leaves they said); grows in a mounded shape (!); blooms a country-yellow hue summer through fall.  I was so excited! 

Thyallis before…. 

…and after. 

I stood out front last night pitching to my husband the idea of fencing in our front garden.  With our small lot, a courtyard front garden could be a good fit.  I have considerable space that is empty with just mulch, and I’ve been watering these areas in anticipation of adding about thirty plants in the next few weeks, but I’m putting it on hold while we consider the fence.  I need to get a bid and consider how the fence will affect my sunlight.    So my next google image search will be for “xeric courtyard entry gardens”.