The ammonite fossils are big. Very cool. Hard to believe that a long time ago the land we live on was a sea floor.

Yes, hard to believe, but according to projections my yard will be waterfront property in a few hundred years. But who knows?

The Gregg's dalea received at the swap will be planted on the other side of the birdhouse planter to see it will trail down somewhat like the 'silver ponyfoot' has.

The round leafed "Fire cracker plant" planted on the old pigeon loft has trailed down just as I had envisioned ...

I'm off to get the step ladder ... :-)

What sort of visions do y'all have for your garden next year?

That is beautiful Hi there has been a while but finally able to get back in here since Gardenweb changed to houzz had been having trouble getting in here but today was is my lucky day I have missed yalls posts and happenings Did yall already had the pfall plantswap?

Ok went down the line and saw the Plantswap was held last Sat hopefully for the Spring I can attend

Marcelina, glad to hear that you got on GW again. Welcome back!!!

The fall San Antonio Plant Swap was last weekend. We'll have another one in the spring. If anyone hears about any other plant swaps let us know.

Bossy, beautiful! Congratulations for your "small success" -- a great photo of .... (here's another link for ya' :-) .... Giant swallowtail.!!!

As to next year vision, my garden is established so my vision is more flowers/fruit.

ETA: the most important vision is to have so many butterflies, but sulphurs in particular, that I have to fight the swarms off w/my hands. How could I forget?!?!

some things are getting even bigger than I anticipated, so either next year or the next. I will be confronted with removing or transplanting plants that are getting swallowed by the monsters.

R, the dyckia with the rooster tail is a photo contest entry,

Your garden is always filled with so many beautiful shapes, textures, and colors. I received a dyckia earlier in the year and it hasn't grown much. I don't have any experience growing dyckias but seeing your plant gives me inspiration. :-)

They are low maintenance but the teeth can hurt, must wear gloves, low water

Thanks Bossy. I have mine in a mixture of decomposed granite and a little potting soil. I was afraid to put it out in the sun so it's been on my porch since Spring which gets some shade in the afternoon. In my area I'll probably have to bring it indoors right?

I'd say yes to overwintering. Would not be afraid to put them in full sun next year. I'd say your soil is perfect. Because I put them in containers in areas that I sometimes forget to water, I take a chance and add compost for a little more moisture retention.

Soil gurus are probably having coniptions over my practice but I do what works for me regardless of what they dictate. I'm a rebel.

OMG, roselee, I posted a pic in the citrus forum asking what the little balls may be. Somebody was indelicate enough to insinuate I was a bad citrus Mom but no definitive answers.

the "little balls" are Giant swallowtail eggs. OMG!

Ok I'll write that down. I have it in a 4" pot, should I put it in something larger next year?

I think they do well in tight quarters and the plant starts growing on top of itself if too tight. For me, it's not a plant that I want to handle frequently (teeth, ouch) so I put them in 12" hanging baskets or wok-type containers and they stay there forever. I hope others comment on how they pot them.

Bad, bad mother!!

Omar

Yea Bossy! You're gonna' be a 'mom' (don't listen to Omar ;-) to Giant swallowtail caterpillars! Maybe that was the real mom that you photographed.

Blackwillow, I find Dyckias to be very undemanding. Your potting medium will work fine. A four in. pot might be easier to move around to protect this winter.

Study in Blue. A small success with Salvia X Amistad, Eupatorium greggii, native aster, and Tradescantia sillamontana.

Slightly better photo.

Thanks for that information roselee, I'll be sure to place it in front of a sunny window.

Those are some pretty blues Eric. :-)

Eric, your T. sillamontana looks way greener than mine. Mine are more purplish. Now I'm wondering if we are talking about the same plant.

Omar

Roselee, you are the master of composition :-) How do you 'see' it? What is the planning process for creating such a cohesive look?

Beautiful as always!

BV, how exciting to have giant swallowtail babies in progress.

Eric, what a lovely and complimentary grouping. How do you choose what to plant together?

Ponder, I find an empty spot and plug something in. LOL. Seriously, when I get a new plant, I search for a spot where I think it would like to grow and not be overwhelmed by neighbors or overwhelm them. If it grows and thrives, I re-evaluate how it fits in and may move it around.

They say plants at Peckerwood Gardens spend more time on John Fairey’s shovel than they do in the ground. I’m not that compulsive.

Pretty much the same here as what Eric says. Sometimes I carry a plant around the yard before I plant it, setting it here and then there, until I get the feel of a certain balance being right.

But that doesn't mean I don't move it if I think it might look or grow better in another spot. I move plants around like they are furniture. That's what nice about having things growing in pots. Mostly I grow in pots because in this rocky ground it's so hard to dig a hole, but pots being easy to move is a big plus.

Also I try to repeat the color and form in another plant or object within the same viewing frame.

I used to be able to persuade Bob to move some of the heavy statuary around, but finally he put his foot down and said "Are you sure this is where you want it because this is the last time I'm moving it." Sometimes he will relent though, like in the case the of the big bird bath in front when we put the chairs out there.

I laughed when years ago I read that comment about how often John Fairey moves plants. I can relate. But I don't go around moving a 14 foot Yucca rostrata like some people we know. :-) I just wish I had a 14 foot Yucca rostrata to consider moving! lol

I do the same things, but my outcome is not as pretty :-) Some of you just have the 'gift' for choosing what looks great together.

I’m always trying new plants and pushing the limits in all directions - heat or cold tolerance, wet or dry, alkaline soil, shade or sun. I have a large garden that allows me a lot of room to play.

I often acquire plants from impulse purchases, whether browsing a nursery or going to the big box store for lumber via the plant area. Then there’s plant lust. I see something on line, in print, or someone’s trade list and I just have to have it. No idea where it might be planted. Sometimes these impulse plants spend a year or two in pots in my nursery area while I try to figure out what in the heck I’m going to do with them. It can get embarrassing and sometimes causes feelings of guilt for the poor orphans.

As my garden has matured I do find myself more frequently evaluating an area of the garden and making a pre-acquisition decision about adding a new plant. Could this be a sign of horticultural maturity or, possibly, old age, creeping conservatism?

I probably have several hundred different types/species of plants in the garden. Never bothered to count. But I’m pretty darned sure I’ve killed many more than that. I remember seeing the “graveyard “ at Peckerwood Gardens. They label every plant with a metal marker as soon as it is planted. If it dies the marker is pulled and placed back in the ground in their maintenance area in a dense forest of such markers. This was pre-pc days. The concept was to have a record of failed trials. I’m just not that organized and fall back on Tony Avents philosophy to not give up on a plant until you have killed it three times. So what if I loose track if this is the third or fifth time?

It’s all about having fun.