Diana C. Kirby, Author at Diana's Designs Austin

The Lurie lures us in…

After a wonderful tour of the Chicago Botanic Garden, the Spring Fling Garden Bloggers all went to Millenium Park where we were treated to a tour of the Lurie Garden by the Chief Horticulturalist, Colleen Lockovitch.

There was a river of purple — made up of four different types of Salvia. All the attendees will have shots of this river of plants — they were amazing in their own right, but I loved the contrast with the bold Chicago skyline.

Colleen showed us all “her” plants, talked about the past, the design and the creation of the garden, as well as its upkeep and evolution going forward.

And then she said it.

What every gardener says when having guests.

“Oh – don’t look at that corner!”

I didn’t take a picture of it, though I was tempted. Even a professional garden horticulturalist suffers from “gardener’s excuse.” I could totally relate. And it made me feel better about MY humble garden. Gardeners are kindred spirits the world over, whether their gardens be large or small. It was an entertaining and a comforting moment for me. And frankly, I saw the Lurie garden in a whole new, human light.

See the skyscrapers peeking through this tree?

Everyone really listened to what Colleen had to say and kept pretty quiet during her whole tour — unusual for us — we’re a pretty rowdy group!

And the garden had this wonderful display with information readily available to the public.

More alliums. Just not blooming yet. See … I’m drawn to them like flies to honey.

That’s if for Day #1. More to come …

By Diana C. Kirby|2019-07-15T19:14:17-05:00June 2nd, 2009|Blog, Chicago, Lurie Garden, Sharing Nature's Garden, Spring Fling 2009|0 Comments

The fling has flung…

We’ve had a wonderful five days at the 2nd Annual Garden Bloggers Spring Fling, held this year in Chicago.

It was such a treat to see friends and make new friends and step into a whirlwind of garden-mania.

The Chicago bloggers put on a great show for us and treated us to the best their gardens and their city has to offer and I want to extend my thanks to them for a fabulous fling.

Our first outing was a visit to the world-renown Chicago Botanic Garden.

We strolled through so many different gardens.

We ooohed and aaaahed over the design, the plants, and the color combinations.

And we speculated about whether or not we could grow that plant, that combination, in our gardens.

After she’d heard enough of my speculating, Pam, of Digging, finally said:

“Diana — don’t think for even a minute that you can grow any of this in your garden!”

Ok.

I knew that!

But I needed an intervention. After seeing all the beautiful gardens, I just wanted to rush home and try to replicate some of that creativity and color in my garden.

There were a handful of things that we can grown in Austin in my zone 9 garden. We were shocked to find Texas Bluebonnets among the plants in this bright spring planter.
And there were several Agaves growing throughout the garden, which surprised me as well.

Cindy, My Corner of Katy, Layanee, Ledge and Gardens, and Pam, Digging, and I spent a really long time in front of this poppy field – taken by the interesting mix of colors and the papery-softness of the poppies.
Alliums have held a mysterious allure for me for some time. I even tried to plant them in my garden, but the one that actually came up OUT of the ground fried to a crisp at about 2-3 inches tall. So much for Alliums in Austin!

I certainly got my fill of them in Chicago — they were everywhere. and I couldn’t stop taking pictures of them — big ones, little ones, purple ones, lavender ones, white ones — they were all there, just waiting for me to join the party.
One of my favorites at the Botanic Garden was the Japanese Garden. It was so peaceful to stroll through the meticulously cared-for garden with its Zen style and simplicity.
And there were Irises everywhere, too. I never tire of looking at them. These were stunning in the Japanese garden. And even though my camera is showing them as more blue than they actually were, they are still pretty.
The species Tulips were so cheery.
As were the Ranunculas (above) and the Toadworts (below).

Enough posting for now, my bed is calling after a long travel day back home.

(Where the first place I went was a walk around the gardens to see what I could see and where I found everything happy and healthy thanks to my DH who lovingly took care of my plants while I flitted off to the Fling!)

I’ll post more tomorrow…check back for gardens galore, ala Chicago.

By Diana C. Kirby|2017-11-29T23:27:44-06:00June 1st, 2009|agaves, alliums, Blog, blue bonnets, Sharing Nature's Garden, Spring Fling 2009|0 Comments

Garden dinner…

This was the scene from my kitchen this afternoon. I sliced up leeks to fry and crisp up to top some boiled and fried potatoes, cut up green beans for a side dish and sliced a Lemon Yellow tomato to eat with just a little kosher salt.

Yum, yum. The beans were picked about a week or more too late, but with travel and other family things going on, I finally got to them today and my husband and I are both at home together tonight to eat them.

The leeks were originally going to be potato leek soup, but I thought I’d try something different and it worked great. They were browned little crisps that went great with the browned potatoes.

And the tomato was sweet and delicate, with a lot less acidity than your average red tomatoes. They have a very subtle but very nice flavor — I’d plant that one again. The cherry tomatoes on the counter were “Hank” and were sent to me for free with my TomatoBob heirloom tomato seed order in December. My DH said that they were not as sweet as the normal cherry tomatoes we grow, so I don’t think I will order them.

Paired with some pork tenderloin medallions under the broiler, as Martha Stewart would say, it was “a good thing.”

By Diana C. Kirby|2016-04-14T02:44:35-05:00May 25th, 2009|Blog, green beans, Hank, leeks, Lemon Yellow Tomato, Sharing Nature's Garden, tomaotes|0 Comments

Big goings on …

Lots happening here today. I called my buddy, Juan, who sent his guys out to do a lot of heavy lifting garden work around here today.

First, they took down this huge cedar tree in our front yard. Heaven knows why, but the previous homeowner put a pretty mulch ring around it and pretended it was a real tree. Texans will understand that this particular cedar is a trash tree — one that drinks all the moisture in the soil and robs other plants of water and causes our well-known cedar fever allergies. So — off with her head!

Wish I had thought to take a picture FIRST, but you get the point and you can tell how big she was by the trailer full of tree in the background as well.

Then, on to digging and pruning. They guys dug the big holes and I stuck to the little ones! The Brug finally went into the ground — you’ll remember I dug her up from a spot that was much too hot for her and now she will live in partial shade. It’s not shady there now, but in an hour or so, the oak tree behind her will shield her from the worst of the hot Texas afternoon sun. One of her babies, rooted from chopping off her head in the greenhouse last winter, also went in beside her.

Also planted today (not by me) were two volunteer palms, the Mexican Bird of Paradise, the variegated agave from Tuesday’s shopping trip, and three Blackfoot daisies. Dang — the soil is just too darn dry here for me to get much into the ground and with tendonitis arms, it’s that much harder. So, I just save up the big stuff sometimes and add those chores onto a job list when I call for help.

I planted a little Bulbine today — two plants that have been waiting in the “hold indefinitely” area! This big one came in a plantable pot last summer and I finally got around to planting it in the ground because it was getting too hot on the table.

And this baby bulbine in a 6 inch pot found a home by the driveway. Cross your fingers that no one EATS them!

A couple more hours of work to go … I’m going to go back out and supervise and prune and weed a little. Oh – and I have 5 day lilies, some caladiums, some irises and some succents to plant, too…boy…I’d better get to work!

By Diana C. Kirby|2017-11-29T23:27:44-06:00May 21st, 2009|Blog, brugmansia, bulbine, cedar tree, Sharing Nature's Garden|0 Comments

Shopping and planting and puttering…

Today I went with a friend to two Hill Country nurseries that specialize in Cacti and Agaves and Succulents.

I had a list (in my head) and wanted some things for pots and the rock path and a few other empty spots. I came home with this very interesting Agave americana var. mediopicta f. alba.

I also came home with the really big rust/burgundy glazed pot. The lovely toile-looking distressed urn-pot was a thank you gift from my shopping companion for giving her tickets to Rent last weekend. Isn’t that a nice thank you? And it came with a soy candle and sweet-smelling almond soaps, too. So I bought this adorable Flapjack Kalanchoe to put in it — with something else I don’t have yet…I also got the tiny Echeveria, and the curly-edged Rose Kalanchoe.

When I got home, I dug into the holding area by my garage, read: Diana’s nursery of stuff waiting to find a home, and found a spot of this Kangaroo Paw – Cape Amazon – that I bought a few weeks ago. Being native to Australia, I hope it likes our hot climate here. I put it in a non-irrigated area, but in a spot where I spray frequently with the hose by hand.

This little Agave and her even smaller pup went in the same area as the Kangaroo Paw, and are passalongs from Lori, of The Gardener of Good and Evil.
These are some orange daylilies that I dug up when I organized a eighborhood entryway cleanup with some of my neighbors. They were crowding other plants and in full shade, so I rescued them to my garden. How con-VEEEEN-ient for me!
So, here’s what’s left in the holding area: Two volunteer palm trees that I dug up around our giant palm. A Bulbine, A Mexican Bird of Paradise Tree, and some irises and Sprekelia bulbs.
And here we have chocolate mint, two purple Alyssum and a pot of moss along with a volunteer Crape Myrtle tree that I dug up in the front bed.
And here are some passalong irises and the Avocado tree that will make its home in that big new pot.

Those are my “to-do” lists for the near-term. Along with WEEDING every bed except the veggie garden, which I did last week. I will be so happy when some of these newer and sparse beds fill in more so I have fewer WEEDS!

By Diana C. Kirby|2017-11-29T23:27:45-06:00May 19th, 2009|Agave, avocado, Blog, bulbine, iris, Kalanchoe, Kangaroo Paw, lilies, Sharing Nature's Garden|0 Comments

We’re back!

I’m back to blogging after a few weeks of taking care of family, and what to my wondering eyes should appear?

No, not eight tiny reindeer!

But a slew of new plants and blooms popping out in the garden — back after the winter’s hiatus to show off for me.

Above, a full 3 months ahead of schedule, I have a beautiful blooming Pride of Barbados. Our incredibly mild winter kept it from dying all the way back and so it got a big jump on growth. Which is great with me, because I just love those wispy, exotic blooms.

Caladiums are popping up in the shady beds in between other things.

This tiny Lobelia is a volunteer that decided to grow in the crack on the edge of the steps to the rock bed.
This is a salmon/pink Gladiola that is growing with a cluster of others behind the greenhouse and in the cutting flower bed. It’s the first one to open and I can wait to CUT it!
Here we have a cluster of Larkspur, given to me by MSS of Zanthan Gardens. In spite of my late planting of the seeds, they have proven to be winners and are so pretty — the first seeds to bloom in the cutting garden.
Here is a new bloom on my Carefree Beauty rose, also known as a Katy Road Rose.
Another shot of the amazing and HUGE display of Winecups in the rock path. They are growing so much that they have obliterated the entire pathway! I am happy to step out of their way and into the grass, though my DH thinks it’s quite foolish.
This Sago palm is very excited that it’s spring and that summer is on its way. This male is producing its cones, which are torpedo shaped and produce pollen. In the wild, the male pollen is spread by wind or insects to the female cycads, which produce a cabbage shaped reproductive organ with seeds that receive the pollen. Cool, huh?!

The Mexican Oregano is blooming profusely. It loves our sunny climate.
The black Elephant Ears are happy right now, but they may have to be babied some in the heat of the summer.
I love the orange bloom on this purple canna that showed up this week.
And these daylilies are lining one side of the pool bed with their deep, burgundy, velvety blooms.
Some Esperanza or Yellow Bells, have already been blooming around town, and mine have caught up. But it’s still pretty early for them.
My Rock Rose is showing her pretty flowers, too — next to the Indigo Spires Salvia.
These little Veronicas are growing nicely in their second year.