Fall at the Nursery

 It is fall at the nursery and I for one couldn't be happier.  The weather has been amazing lately and the butterflies are everywhere which makes me ecstatic!!  

 The Dwarf Japanese Black Pines look like huggable teddy bears to me- I just love these!!

 The Japanese Maples have been showing off and doing their fall color display.

The Red Admiral Butterflies seemed to enjoy the white Lantana...

and the Gulf Fritillary seemed to enjoy the white Leucantha.

 Probably my most favorite sighting though has been the Monarchs- they are all over the place.  It is magical.  I counted 8 varieties of butterflies yesterday when out taking photos.  EIGHT!

 The Coral Bean never disappoints- such a show stopping display of red blooms!!

Hard to say which plant was most popular.... Lantana, Salvia, Butterfly Bush, Milkweed.... just to name a few- they were all over the place.  

  I am not sure what was going on with this guy- someone told me he had freshly gotten out of his cocoon and so his wings hadn't dried out?  Never heard of that- anyone heard of that?

Plants are blooming, leaves are changing colors, succulents are turning their new shades with the cooler temps.  All of it has been wonderful!!  It's a wonderful time to be outside and enjoy nature.  The birds are chirping, bees are buzzing and the butterflies are fluttering about.
Hope you enjoyed the pics!!

Happy November GBBD

Can you believe it is November?  Can you believe November is almost over?  Where does the time go I want to know.  Happy November GBBD to everyone. 

 Below are some photos of things that have been blooming lately.  Hope you enjoy.  

 Alright, not a bloom but it looks like a rose bloom, and this is the start of a beautiful Kalanchoe bloom stalk.

 The butterflies have been everywhere.  I have seen so many different varieties this week!

 The Lions Tail are always such a stunning bloom- so unique!

 The Mexican Mint Marigold has a fragrance some love or hate- it's rather strong but wonderful if you like the smell of licorice.  

 Someone just wanted to say hi!

 The Celosia are covered in butterflies.  It is wonderful!!

 The Lantana are always butterfly and bee magnets. 

 Though not a bloom, the Artemesia looks beautiful right now.

The Dragon Fruit bloomed- I can't wait for the fruit!

Don't forget to stop by May Dreams Gardens to check out what is blooming on different blogs all over the world!

Happy GBBD June 2016!

Happy GBBD!  I still can't believe it is June!  Where does the time go?  We have had a lot of rain here in Austin lately and things are blooming like crazy!  The butterflies are flying around, bees busy working away, hummingbirds zipping around- it has been wonderful!  Here are a few photos of things I felt stood out lately.  

 The Gomphrena have such a bright cheerful bloom!

 The butterflies have been all over the Gregg's mistflower.  Too pretty!!

 Ice Cream anyone?

The Butterfly Vine- old standby.  Love the intricate almost lace like blooms.

 The Vitex never disappoint.  Tons of color!  So pretty - they are blooming all over town!!

 The Charity Mahonia are nice though approach with caution- they are spiky!!

 The Pedlianthus are loaded with the Lady Slipper blooms, hence the more common name.

 These little guys are all over the place.  So sweet.

 The verdict is still out for me on the purple Jerusalem Sage.... Can't decide.... I think I prefer the yellow.  Just a bit too subtle for me I think. 

The Agastache.  If only this were scratch and sniff.......  adore this plant.

Hope everyone is enjoying their summer!  Where does the time go?!?!  A special thank you to May Dreams Gardens for hosting the GBBD!  Visit her blog to get a glimpse of what is blooming all over the world!  Enjoy!

The Hummingbird Stalker

 

 It's official.  I am a hummingbird stalker.  

It was worth it- I got some good shots.  They were so funny- they kept buzzing right by me almost taunting me!

 I had a lot of fun chasing them around though.  There was one little pair that liked to hang out over along the fence line so I just kinda hung out there with them.  Got a few shots.

The were working over the Salvia and the Mexican Bush Sage.  I got so many photos, and so many blurry ones....

 I love this one - got him with his tongue out!

 The Mexican Flame Vine was a hit as well. 

Hope you enjoyed the shots of my first of many hummingbird stalkings.

Not too Windy for the Bees and the Butterflies!

Well I got some shots I am happy with today. Who knew- as windy as it was today they were still very active. The white butterfly was all over the Lavender Provence. He was so light and the lavender itself so light it was hard to capture a striking photo of the both of them. The bees I think showed up great on the Milk Weed as well as on the Spanish Lavender. I got that one other butterfly on the Mystic Spires Salvia. He was really interesting. It was as if he had "horns" on his wings. It was odd. He was quick too. He was all over the place.

Love It, Now to Learn How to Use It....

My sweet husband got me a new lens for my camera for my birthday. Since we opened up this nursery I have been having a blast shooting pictures of the butterflies, bees, dragonflies etc... along with plants, blooms, stalks and leaves. There are several photos that I was always unable to get due to my lack of skills for the most part and due to the lens I have. Well, for my birthday last week I opened up one of the best presents I think I have ever gotten- a new lens. I am having so much fun with it!!!! I will post a few shots but there is a lot I have to learn. Off to shoot!!!

The bee with the Mystic Spires Salvia and the Dragonfly perched on top of a blade of the Dianella.

Bee-autiful Butterflies!!

Had to share- the butterflies were just too fun this morning. It was if they were posing for me. There was one that I just couldn't get - a bright yellow one- he was really friendly and kept flying up around me but wouldn't pose haha. I hope you enjoy the photos- it seems everything loves these Mystic Spires Salvia- the bees, the dragonflies, lady bugs and the butterflies. Not sure if they are like that with all types of Salvia, but they sure do like this stuff!!!

Who knew?

Who knew there were three types of bees? Not me. I do now but was totally clueless to this. George, our neighbor at the nursery, pointed this out to us the other day that we have not one, not two, but THREE types of bees hanging out with our Salvia. We have this incredible Mystic Spires Salvia that is just breathtaking. I posted a photo of a bee on it so you can see. I love to sit and watch them - they are much better photography subjects than the hummingbirds that I have still been unable to catch and the dragonflies, who I can get one at a time while they sit but the tandem ones, not great shots nor when in flight.

Everything is blooming right now and it is just so pretty. I have had so much fun doing this nursery with my husband. He is very patient in teaching me about all the plants , what does well where and how big this or that gets etc.... as well as about the plants themselves. I was just informed a few minutes ago that after I have learned about everything out there, we are getting about 20 new items tomorrow. Just when I get to where I am feeling comfortable BAM more to learn. Keeps me on my toes. That's for sure. I am not complaining, I am excited. I love putting things together and setting up the little gardens around- they aren't all done - which is what brought up the conversation- I was telling him I was trying to decide what to include to finish this one garden I had started the other day when he said, why don't you wait until the truck gets here tomorrow and decide then. Well who knew. More stuff. It's like Christmas when those trucks come in - I stand back there watching them unload and make all my comments and ooh and ahh over things ha ha. The drivers I am sure think I am nuts. I can't wait to see it all- apparently lots of new fun stuff coming in- Spider Lilies (one of my favorites), Variegated Dianella, Firespike- just the name itself - can't wait to see what that is going to look like and then a bunch of other stuff. I will take some pictures and post them after I finish organizing everything- I am all about the rows. ha ha ha. I told my husband that is one thing I honestly enjoy doing- organizing the rows, arranging by color etc... I take great pride in my rows. It's the little things in life.... ha ha.