New Bed Plantings

Last weekend, Central Texas had a major cold front come in causing our temperatures to go from the high 90's down to a high of 66 on Saturday and a high of 75 on Sunday.  Perfect gardening weather.  And having just completed my new garden beds, I had a lot of planting to do!  Well, first a lot of plant shopping, and then a lot of planting.  The Natural Gardener, Round Rock Garden Center, and McIntire's Garden Center were some of the local nurseries that got plenty of business from me last weekend!  It was a very successful gardening weekend in my book - getting over 80 new plants in the beds!

Let's start the tour with the front fence bed.

Since this bed is outside the fenceline, it requires deer-resistant varieties.  I wanted to stick to mostly native, or at least drought-tolerant plants.  In the front bed, I ended up with:

• 2 Blackfoot Daisies - Melampodium leucanthum
• 1 Thryallis - Galphimia glauca
• 2 Blue Plumbago - Plumbago auriculata
• 1 Coral Honeysuckle - Lonicera sempervirens
• 3 Purple Fountain Grass 'Rubrum' - Pennisetum setaceum
• 1 Mystic Spires Blue Salvia - Salvia longispicata x farinacea
• 1 Copper Canyon Daisy - Tagetes lemmonnii
• 1 Black Knight Butterfly Bush - Buddleja davidii

I know that the purple fountaingrass are pretty cold-sensitive, so I have to treat them as annuals and not expect them to come back next year, but that won't keep me from trying.  I'll plan to give them ample mulch this fall to try to combat the below-freezing temperatures this winter.  I have a little space open yet for a couple more plants.  I'm really hoping to get some apricot globemallow in there, but couldn't find it at any of the nurseries I went to last weekend, so the spot stays open, for now.

Moving onto the center or peach tree garden beds (they surround my Florida Prince peach):

I haven't planted too much in these beds yet, as I plan to do a lot of seed-sowing of perennials or self-seeding annuals in these beds.  But, I had to get started with a few plants, so in Bed #1 (closest) I planted:

• 2 Gregg's Blue Mistflower - Conoclinium greggii
• 2 Butterfly Weed - Asclepias tuberosa
• 2 Fall Aster - Aster oblongifolius
• 1 Purple Coneflower - Echinacea purpurea

In Bed #2 I planted:

• 3 Fall Aster - Aster oblongifolius
• 2 Tropical Milkweed - Asclepias curassivica
• 4 Purple Coneflower -  Echinacea purpurea
• 1 Artic Frost Hardy Satsuma fruit tree - Citrus reticulata 'Gremoy79'

Center peach bed #3 remains open and waiting for some fall-sowing seeds.

Along the neighbor fence line bed, I haven't planted much, as I'm waiting to purchase some specific antique roses.  

So far, I've planted:

• 1 Duranta 'Sapphire Showers' - Duranta erecta
• 1 Belinda's Dream rose 
• 2 Gardenia - Rubiaceae
• 1 Garnet Sash Pomegranate

The deck bed will mainly be an herb bed, but I'll throw some flower seeds in for some pop of color.

In the herb bed, I've planted:

• 2 French Thyme - Thymus vulgaris
• 1 Lemon Balm - Melissa officinalis
• 1 Garden Sage - Salvia officinalis
• 1 Italian Parsley - Petroselinum crispum
• 1 Triple Curled Parsley - Petroselium hortensis
• 1 Bouquet Dill - Anethum graveolens
• 1 Fernleaf Dill - Anethum graveolens
• 1 Garlic Chive - Allium tuberosum
• 2 Onion Chive - Allium schoenoprasum
• 1 Peppermint - Mentha Piperita
• 1 Spearmint - Mentha Spicata
• 2 Tavor Artichoke - Cynara scolymus
• 2 Society Garlic - Tulbaghia violacea

Finally, onto the shade tree bed, which got most of the planting:

Eventually, there will be a hammock that will be tied between the two trees.  I'm looking forward to spending afternoons under the shade trees, admiring all the wonderful plants that surround me.  So far, I've planted:

• 6 Red Turk's Cap - Malvaviscus arboreus
• 3 Pam's Pink Turk's Cap - Malvaviscus x 'Pam Puryear'
• 1 Shrimp Plant - Justicia brandegeeana
• 3 'Big Blue' Lithrope - Lithrope muscari
• 3 Hostas hybrids
• 5 Pigeonberry - Rivina humilis
• 1 Purple Heart - Setcreasea pallida
• 5 Texas Gold Columbine - Aquilegia chrysantha hinkleyana
• 1 Red Columbine - Aquilegia canadensis
• 2 American Beautyberries - Callicarpa americana

That's all - for now!