Navigating the Garden

This page is continuously updated with information and observations.

Bed 1

These plants can tolerate occasions of slow water drainage.

Winecup or Purple Poppy Mallow - Callirhoe involucrata
Southern Wax Myrtle - Morella cerifera
Blue False Indigo - Baptisia australis
Standing Cypress - Ipomopsis rubra
Coralbean - Erythrina herbacea
Buttonbush - Cephalanthus occidentalis

flagstones recycled from a recent plant installation
Arizona Sunset and Blue Limestone River Rocks purchased to use in our beds so clients may see the different varieties available.

Protecting the Winecups with Chicken Wire Cloche Plant Covers and boldworks Garden Cloches allowing them to mature. Growth allows the development of a rough, hairy leaf texture that deer will find less palatable. While this doesn't guarantee protection from a hungry deer, we're testing this method to see if Winecups can thrive in areas with deer access.
When designing with river rock, ensure there is open space around the trunk of the plant. This will allow the plant to grow and for water to seep down into the soil around the plant with less run-off.

Bed 2

This bed includes drought and heat tolerant plants that are great for rock gardens:

Blackfoot Daisy - Melampodium leucanthum
Dwarf Yaupon Holly - Ilex vomitoria 'Dwarf'
Twistleaf Yucca - Yucca rupicola (varieties in green or blue)
Lindheimer Muhly - Muhlenbergia lindheimeri
Texas Sedge - Carex texensis
Coreopsis - Coreopsis grandiflora 'Early Sunrise'

Blue Limestone River Rock

The Texas Sedge did much better with some water until it was better rooted, especially in the summer heat and surrounded by the blue limestone river rock.
The Blackfoot Daisy grew profusely with no water from us. It was dependent on only rain water. It absolutely makes sense as this Texas native grows best in rocky soil. We lightly pruned it so that the Dwarf Yaupon Holly could have some space to grow.
We planted the 'Dwarf' Yaupon Holly in Bed 2 and a Yaupon Holly in Bed 7. Our goal was for the public and clients to note the difference in the varieties. Whereas the 'Dwarf' variety may not bear the red berries, the standard Yaupon Holly will. Most nurseries carry the female standard Yaupon Holly. Yaupon Holly may be grown as a shrub or can be pruned and the canopy raised to form a tree.

Bed 3

Bed 3 is an experiment with ground cover and Bermuda Grass

Frog Fruit - Phyla nodiflora
Flame Acanthus - Anisacanthus quadnifidis
Fragrant Mistflower - Ageratina havanensis
Chile Pequin - Capsicum annuum
Fall Aster - Symphyotrichum oblongifolium
Tropical/Scarlet Sage - Salvia coccinea
Possumhaw Holly - Ilex decidua
Agarita - Magonia trifoliolata
Copper Canyon Daisy - Tagetes lemmonii

Yay for Frog Fruit! These beds, as you can see in Beds 4-8, are full of Bermuda Grass. We are experimenting with ground covers, river rock, and just an abundance of plants to see what prevents Bermuda from growing and taking over. The Frog Fruit in Bed 3 is crowding and shading out the Bermuda! Virtually no Bermuda is visible. Frog Fruit spreads through rhizomes under the soil and nodes on top of the soil so it is in direct competition with Bermuda which spreads by rhizomes.
Texas Frog Fruit should do well with the other plants in this bed, but we are watching it to make sure. We have cut some of the trailing foliage that grew over some of the lower Copper Canyon Daisy and Fall Aster stems. We are also clearing space around the Chile Pequin until it can grow larger.
A deciduous Possumhaw Holly is planted in the middle of the bed. Compare it to the evergreen Yaupon Holly in Bed 7 as they mature. We are hoping that, if needed, the bees attracted to the Frog Fruit will assist in pollinating the Possumhaw Holly. We are learning, so let's see!

Bed 4

Bed 4 is a xeriscape experiment with another ground cover, Silver Ponyfoot.

Silver Ponyfoot - Dichondra argentea
Mexican Feather Grass - Nassella tenuissima
Texas Sage 'Green Cloud' - Leucophyllum frutescens
Blackfoot Daisy - Melaampodium leucanthum
Saliva (white) - Salvia Greggii
Catmint - Nepeta
Red Yucca - Hesperaloe parviflora
Arizona Sunset River Rock

Our goal here is to grow Silver Ponyfoot as a ground cover over the rock to create a flowing effect. However, as we somewhat expected, the deer are pulling the plants out. My experiment: Determine if aromatic plants, such as a Catmint herb, can deter their interest.
- How close does the Catmint need to be to the Silver ponyfoot?
- Should the Silver Ponyfoot base be protected under the Catmint or Blackfoot Daisy to get established and mature?
- I noticed the Silver Ponyfoot was growing very well under the Blackfoot Daisy and looked amazing! I pulled it out to get more sun. That particular plant was gone a day or so later. Oops! Back to the drawing board! It's fortunate a couple of other Silver Ponyfoot are closer to the Catmint and seem to be establishing doing well for now.
Compare the Texas Sage 'Green Cloud' in Bed 4 with the Texas Sage 'Compact' in Bed 6. The Texas Sage 'Green Cloud' is a variation with more green than silver foliage. It will grow 5'-8' H x 5'-8' W. The Texas Sage 'Compact' displays the silver foliage and will grow 3'-5' H x 3'-5' W.

Bed 5

This bed includes Woolly Stemodia as a ground cover. It also has larger self-seeding, colorful plants.

Rosemary - Rosmarinus officinalis
Lavender - Lavandula spp.
Dwarf Barbados Cherry - Malpighia glabra
Woolly Stemodia - Stemodia lanata
Wrights Skullcap - Scutellaria wrightii
American Beautyberry - Callicarpa americana
Rock Rose - Pavonia lasiopetala
Heartleaf Rosemallow - Hibiscus martianus
Turks Cap - Malvaviscus arboreus
Esperanza - Tecoma stans

One of our favorite beds and one of the easiest so far! We are allowing the mallows here (Heartleaf Rosemallow, Rock Rose, and Turks Cap) to reseed at will. Next year, we'll see what comes up.
The Woolly Stemodia is growing beautifully. We expect when it is more robust, it will take over the Bermuda and cascade over the bed border similar to the Frog Fruit.
Bed 5 has larger plants we envision will grow together, intermingling to create a colorful display of beautiful green, red, pink, purple, and yellow. Some of these plants such as the Beautyberry will grow large, so a little pruning will be needed. An additional benefit will be that the Bermuda grass will be shaded out.

Bed 6

Stars in Bed 6 are Zexmenia and the Woolly Butterflybush.

Texas Sage 'compact' - Leucophyllum frutescens 'compactum'
Salvia (red) - Salvia Greggii
Mealy Blue Sage - Salvia farinaceae
Zizotes Milkweed - Asclepias oenotheroides
Zexmenia - Wedelia acapulcensis
Woolly Butterflybush - Buddleja marrubifolia
Black Dalea - Dalea frutescens
Gray Goldenrod - Solidago nemoralis
Purple Coneflower - Echinacea purperea
Mexican Oregano - Poliomintha longiflora
Flame Acanthus - Anisacanthus quadnifidis
Cedar Sage - Salvia roemeriana

The Zizotes Milkweed has been so easy to grow here. I usually have difficulty at home. I'm assuming the full sun is the difference as well as only rain water March 31 - July 27. We have added some supplemental water since the end of July.
One issue we had is an overabundance of aphids in the summer. Normally, I have no problem with aphids, but these were stressing the plant--creating the sooty mold of death and paled coloring. Our Solution? Spray with the water hose to clean off aphids and gooey sap. The Zizotes milkweed is now beautiful, full, and blooming.
In late November, we noticed Monarch and Queen caterpillars on the Zizotes and Zexmenia. Our butterfly caterpillars were growing and moving on to create their individual chrysalises. These caterpillars are unfortunately in a late stage of the migration season. We have left them to continue their stages knowing that they will be too late to migrate. We know, however, that we have the right plants to assist butterflies and their caterpillars next year! That's exciting and encouraging to us.

Bed 7

Bed 7 includes a Yaupon Holly and smaller plants to which we are getting accustomed and monitoring.

Gregg's Mistflower - Conoclinium greggii
Ivyleaf Thoroughwort - Chromolaena ivifolia
Lindheimer Muhly - Muhlenbergia lindheimeri
Twistleaf Yucca (blue) - Yucca rupicola
Prairie Vervain - Glandularia bipinnatifida
Texas Lantana - Lantana urticoides
Four-Nerve Daisy - Tetraneuris scaposa
Zizotes Milkweed - Asclepias oenotheroides
Skeletonleaf Goldeneye - Viguiera stenloba
Hyssopleaf Thoroughwort - Eupatorium hyssopifolium
Blue Grama Grass - Bouteloua gracilis
Yaupon Holly - Ilex vomitoria
Pink Skullcap - Scutterllaria suffrutescens
Brazos Penstemon - Penstemon tenuis

We are definitely watching some plants that are new to the garden such as the Thoroughworts. The Four-Nerve Daisy took some time to establish and now looks great. Supplemental watering when it was dry helped it along.
We ran into an unexpected issue with our usually resilient Texas Lantana. From my experience, it's a super easy grower, but lately, it's been suffering from Lantana Flower Gall Mites (right). These tiny pests are trouble and supposedly affect only our Texas Lantana, but not completely convinced! They cause the flowers to develop galls, making them look like tiny broccoli clusters instead of the vibrant blooms we expect. Definitely not the look we want in the garden!
I've actually seen this same issue on Texas Lantana at two client properties. For one client, we opted to replace the affected plants. For the other, and at our Learning Garden, we tried a different route: removing the galls and treating with a miticide. Unfortunately, the client's treated lantana quickly developed new galls. Our Learning Garden plants look promising so far, but we'll be watching closely over the next few weeks to confirm they've made a full recovery. Stay tuned for updates!
If you decide to take them on, cut off the infected clusters and perhaps a bit more to the next healthy node. Bag the cuttings right away and sterilize your pruners. You might use Neam Oil or another organic solution. Rainbow Gardens on Bandera was very helpful if you make sure they know what you are addressing. Show them photos! They will lead you in the right direction!

Bed 8

Bed 8 includes a rescued Texas Red Bud sapling and more grasses.

Little Bluestem - Conoclinium greggii
Gulf Muhly - Chromolaena ivifolia
Coreopsis - Coreopsis lanceolata
Coreopsis - Coreopsis grandiflora 'Early Sunrise'
Salvia (pink and purple)- Salvia greggii
Salvia 'Indigo Spires' - Salva farinaceae x longpipes
Mealy Blue Sage - Salvia farinaceae
Coneflower - Echinacea angustifolia
Clammyweed - Polanisia dodecandra
Butterfly Weed - Ascelpias tuberosa
Baja Fairyduster - Calliandra x californica Mexicali Rose
Jimson Weed - Datura stramonium
Texas Redbud - Cercis canadensis var. texensis

The Clammyweed was a newcomer powerhouse this summer. This is our first interaction with this unique wild-looking native. We love this plant! It was a huge bee and butterfly magnet this summer. I'm excited to introduce it to clients in future landscape designs mixed in perennial beds. The Texas Butterfly Ranch states that Clammyweed is a host plant to the Cabbage White, Checkered White and Great Southern White butterflies. Win!
Our experience and suggestions: The Clammyweed grew very quickly and became top-heavy in its first summer. A key recommendation is to pinch or cut it back earlier in the season to encourage a bushier, more stable growth habit. If you choose not to prune, or if you are growing it in intense summer heat like we experienced, be prepared to plan for support or bracing to prevent the stems from snapping. Finally, since we would love more of these beautiful plants, we recommend actively allowing the plant to set seed at the end of its cycle, or even deliberately laying broken stems on the soil nearby, as we did, to increase the likelihood of natural spread.