Just thought I'd post a closer shot of the new Japanese Maple I planted the other day. It's called 'Oshi Beni'. What lovely color...This variety can grow up to 20-25 feet, although I expect this one to max out about about 20...but that's a long way off. I find this variety to be much prettier than the more commonly planted 'Bloodgood', but it does get a bit larger. So pretty when the light shines through the leaves...

Ok so I got some partial planting done yesterday. The large weeping tree that hasn't leafed out yet is a weeping mulberry that I pulled out of the front yard a couple of weeks ago. It was so established and well rooted in that by the time I got it out (quite the sight) I pretty much had to butcher the root system. Figured it was a lost cause. But after looking at it yesterday, I noticed it was trying to leaf out and all the wood is still green. So what the heck...mulberrys are tough so I'm going to see if I can't get it to root back out. It would look pretty cool there if it did. Think happy thoughts for the mulberry, lol.

Also planted a few groups of background shrubs, some Japanese Aralia, Variegated Pittosporum and some 'Spring Bouquet' Viburnum. Also a wonderful Sweet Olive at the end of the bed and an Oakleaf Hydrangea. I'll be planting another right next to the patio. Dropped a handful of perennials in the ground, some 'So Sweet' Hosta, Autumn Fern, Heuchera, Dwarf Acanthus and a few transplanted Iris. Planted a beautiful Japanese Maple 'Oshi Beni'. There will be lots more planting to do in the next couple of weeks...

Ok, so I know I'm crazy, and it's completely masochistic, but I agreed to be on the White Rock Lake garden tour on May 17th...sigh. This means killing oneself in the garden for the next 6 weeks. This is a crazy time of year for me at work, so it's doubly hard in that regard. BUT, I knew if I said yes it would kick me in the pants to get all sorts of long awaited garden projects done.

Yesterday, thew new ornamental shade bed in the back yard:

The bed runs the length of the West side of the yard, but is shade or dappled sun most of the day. Now I've got to fill this sucker up! Which will be no small feat, because it's huge. A couple of Japanese maples will make their way into the planting as well as a sweet olive. We also used some of our leftover flagstone to built a pad around the shed so I have a nice place for my potting bench. Now, I'm off to work to hunt some plants...

A few spring bloomer updates...

The crazy beige Iris I have have yet to identify...

Rose 'Abraham Darby'

Louisiana Phlox 'Blue Moon'

I forgot to post a picture of our first egg...at this point we're getting about one a day. So there is either only one hen laying right now, or they're taking turns in the "good spot", lol.

As they ventured into new parts of the yard, they discovered the leftover pile of decomposed granite. It's some good grit. But these gals have yet to let me touch them or pick them up. They are just not havin' any of it. Of course the 2-year old neighbor comes over and they her reach right down and grab them! It is cute to watch. Now all she wants to do is torture her parents to bring her over to see the chickens. I have no idea how I'm going to catch them in order to bring them back to the breeder in a couple of weeks when I switch out for the breeds I'm waiting on. THAT should be video worthy...

Spanish Bluebells, Hyacinthoides hispanica, are blooming in North Texas now. These are one of my favorite perennial bulbs here. Anything that falls into the "blue" category will get at least one shot in my garden. These are great for naturalizing in perennial beds, groundcover beds or even turf. They'll tolerate some afternoon shade. Purty.

New Chickens Arrive

Today, I had a sales call at NHG from Dan at Bagienice Farms in Poetry, Texas. We're working on selling urban chicken keeping supplies at the garden center soon (exciting). I believe Dan is better known as "The Chicken Man." Not only did he deliver my very own chicken tractor to my house on his way out of town, BUT he also brought me LOANER CHICKENS! Total surprise.

PC: Leslie F. Halleck

I plan on visiting Dan at his farm in about a month to pick up my juvenile Ameraucanas. He wanted me to have some layers in the meantime. Is that awesome, or what? So now I'm terrified I'm going to do something wrong with these lovely leghorn loaners...wish me luck! We let them out for a while and the sight of Sean and I trying to corral them back into the coop must have looked hilarious. We are definitely chicken wrangler newbies...more to come.

PC: Leslie F. Halleck

Growing Fava Beans is GREAT for your Soil!

So, if you haven't grown Fava Beans before...You need too! This vetch, (Vicia faba) is in the legume family (Fabaceae), and is even more effective at fixing nitrogen in the soil than typical beans, is frost hardy, breaks up the soil, makes a great green manure AND produces super flavorful fruit. If you have a heavy clay compacted soil, consider using fava beans as a cover crop over the winter to help break up and aerate your soil.

In Texas and similar warm climates, you can seed this in fall - September is the best time (along with peas) -and let them grow through the winter. Plants will bloom even through the cold weather then start producing fruit in spring.

The flowers are incredibly fragrant, as well as edible, and when you break the pods open they have the same fragrance. Harvest the "peas" before you see them swelling too much in the pod, or harvest the entire pod early and eat whole. Make sure to save and dry some seed for your next fall planting. The foliage is also edible and tastes great mixed in with salads. Here are a couple of photos from my garden yesterday...

Fava bean pods
PC: Leslie F. Halleck