Tag Archives: perennial

Daylilies

I love daylilies!  They have got to be one of the easiest flowers to grow in Texas.  The daylily (Hemerocallis) is a tuberous root perennial.  The leaves look sort of like grass and the flowers bloom from late spring until fall.  Daylilies are incredibly disease resistant and they are drought tolerant, but they will multiply […]

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Strawberries

Strawberries increase each year by runner and the Dallas Planting Manual recommends eight plants for a good start.    They require rich, well drained soil, but too much nitrogen will make the berries too soft.  You also have to keep the berries from direct contact with the soil by using mulch.  I like straw that I […]

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Elderberry

Who knew that the elderberry was such a pretty plant?  The bush is about 12 feet tall and has gorgeous blossoms on it.  It is actually considered to be an herb  with numerous superstitions surrounding it. In the Middle Ages, legend says that the tree was home to witches, and that cutting down one would […]

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Quickberry, Quackberry. Pick me a Blackberry!

That is one of the lines of one of Samantha’s favorite books – “Jamberry” by Bruce Degan. We LOVE our blackberries.  I’m not sure exactly which variety they are, but they are big and gorgeous and taste incredible.  And the very best part –  they are thornless!  These particular blackberry vines came from my mother’s […]

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More Perrennials!

Perennials are so easy to multiply!  Most can be started with a stem cutting. Plants can either reproduce sexually (by seed) or asexually (by cutting).  With asexual reproduction, you are always going to get exactly the same plant from the cutting as the parent plant.  That doesn’t always happen with sexual production where cross-pollination can […]

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Fragrant Prairie Phlox

Fragrance, beauty and drought tolerance… what more could you want in a flower? Prairie phlox (Phlox pilosa) is a native Texas perenial that does well in part sun or bright shade.  The smell is intoxicating and it is a butterfly manget!  It has a heady bloom in the late spring and then goes partiallyl dormant […]

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Louisiana Iris

Louisiana Irises are actually a collection of beardless water irises that encompasses five species: Iris hexagona, Iris fulva, Iris brevicaulis, Iris giganticaerulea, Iris nelsonii. They are found naturally in most southern states and even as far north as Ohio.  I don’t know exactly which species this is, but I suspect it is the Iris hexagona, […]

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Passionflower Vine (Maypop)

The Passionflower has to be one of the coolest flowers I know.  It reminds me of a little flower space ship.  It also happens to be a Texas native so it loves it here in my yard. The Passionflower (passiflora incarnata) has many wonderful qualities, one of which is that it is the host plant […]

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Gulf Coast Penstemon

This is the Gulf Coast Penstemon or sometimes called the Brazos Penstemon.  The scientific name is Penstemon tenuis.  It is a Texas native from the marsh areas.  It does well in standing water and poorly drained soils, but I have also found it to be very drought tolerant.  It is in a part of the […]

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Trailing Purple ‘Homestead’ Verbena

This is a Purple “Homestead’ Verbena that I got from another gardening friend.   It is the showiest thing in my garden from about the middle of February until the rest of the garden catches up in May or June.  The foliage stays green all year here.  I’m not sure if it is a Texas native […]

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