Nandina - Pretty Enough for Christmas

Little Wildflowers

One of the neighbors has planted a variety of wildflowers.  Love the variety and the colors!  Enjoy!

Varigated Leaves

It is getting really warm in Houston now.  With humidity, it feels like temps in  the 90s.  These two survivors have endured the freezing winter and now the frying heat.   I love both of these plants a lot.

Texas Azaleas In Bloom

All over Houston, the Azaleas are in bloom.  They make such a spectacular showing.  The Redbud trees have all but lost their blossoms now so the Azaleas are showing their beauty.

 

Has It Really Been So Long?

I am surprised that I have not posted to this blog in more than a year!  Today I could see rain drops forming on the tree outside my kitchen window.  Despite the rain and the cold, I ventured outside to catch a few falling raindrops.

How many songs can you think of that have the word "rain" or "raindrops" in them?  The first that comes to mind is, "So many raindrops.  It must be raindrops, falling from my eye-eyes," by Dee Clark.  "Somewhere Over the Rainbow."  "Singing In the Rain."  "Kentucky Rain."  "Raindrops Keep Falling on my Head."  "It Never Rains in Southern California."  "I'm No Stranger to the Rain."  "Smoky Mountain Rain."  "I Love A Rainy Night."  "Here Comes the Rain Again."  "Purple Rain."

OK, that's enough to get you started thinking about rain songs.  Do you have a favorite?

Blue Moon Tonight

About 8:00 PM, I went outside to see if the moon were visible and it was not.  I walked around for a while to see if it were in some unfamiliar place but did not find it, so I retreated to the air-conditioned house.  It's a muggy August in Houston.  About 9:00 PM, I gave it another try and there it was!  This time I didn't use a tripod and most of the images turned out a bit shaky.  Those are real clouds that are reflecting the moon's light.  I winked at the moon, to honor Neil Armstrong, as his family requested.

What is a blue moon?  It often refers generically to a rare occurrence; however, a blue moon refers to an extra moon in a season or more recently, a second moon in the same month.  A blue moon is rather rare.  If you didn't get to see it in person tonight, enjoy these photos.

The "Blue Moon of August 31, 2012."

Yellow Blossoms Grace the Garden

There are two plants that really dress up a Houston garden:  Lantana and Esperanza.  My Lantana are not doing well due to excessive rain that destroyed their flowers and saturated the ground and their roots shortly after they were planted.  The Esperanza plants are doing very well, having been established for more than two years, surviving all the drought, the freezes, and the super saturation of recent rains.

 Above: Lantana - with their flower heads of multiple tiny flowers.  Mine have grown skinny and flowerless but I am hopeful they will make a comeback with the right growing conditions.

Above: Esperanza - a delicate trumpet flower with a beautiful buttery color.  The name is inspiring: Hope.  These plants often have to be staked because they will droop over, their tender stalks unable to cope with the weight of all the shoots.