The Garden What's Growing in the Garden? These are some of the things you might see in our garden . . . Chilpetine Peppers look a lot like Red Hots. Vegetables: Big Boy Tomato, Little Bel "Cherry" Tomato, Banana Peppers, Chilpetine Peppers, Yellow Bell Peppers, Jalipino Peppers, Cucumbers, Summers Squash, Zucinni, Japanese Pumpkin Squash, Sweet Basil, Lemon Basil, Dill, Spearmint, Sweet Corn, Snap Beans, Pinto Beans, Red Beans, Wax Beans, Swiss Chard, Spinach, Mustard Greens, Rosemary, Oregano, Carrots, Wild Creek Onions, Potato. Flowers: Purple Iris, Bearded Iris, White Cloud Climbing Roses, English Tea Roses, Miniature Red Roses. Wildflowers: Sunflower, Indian Paint Brush, Texas Paintbrush, 21's, Texas Bluebonnet, Indian Blanket, Yarrow, Scarlet Flax, Showy Primrose, Evening Primrose, Tickseed, Dwarf Red Coreopsis, Lemon Mint, Corn Poppy, Purple Coneflower, Toadflax, Drummond Phlox, Tuber Vervain, Mexican Hat, Black-Eyed Susan, Clasping Coneflower, Baby's Breath, Maroon Bluebonnets, Yellow Cosmos, Orange Cosmos, Red Cosmos, White Cosmos, Pink Cosmos, California Poppy, Ox-Eyed Daisy, Baby Blue Eyes, Rocket Larkspar, Cornflower, African Daisy, plains Coreopsis, Rocket Larkspur, Tuber Vervian, Blanketflower, Chicory, Foxglove, Gay Feather, Sweet William Dianthus, Tickseed/Lance-leaved Coreopsis, Lavender, and many many more too numerous to name. Shrubs and Bushes: Guava, Holly, Silver Junipers, Sprawling Juniper, Boxwood, Wax Leaf Lagustrums, Red Tip Photinas, Possum Haws, Nandina, Indian Hawthorns, Variegated Bush. Trees: Bartlet Pear, Several Peach Trees, Mountain Laurel, Crab Apple, Red Maple, Alpine Pine, Elm, Crape Myrtle (pink), Granny Smith Apple, Chinese Pistach, Arizona Ash, Italian Cyprus, Hybrid Live Oaks, Pin Oak, and a Newport Plum Tree. Ground Covers: Saint Augustine (small patch), Bermuda, English Ivy, Wondering Jew, Spider and Airplanes, Iron Plants, Small Elephant Ears, Summer Mitten Ivy, Honeysuckle. Cacti: Yucca, Barrel Cactus, Bayonet Cactus, Sawtooth. Weeds: Dandelion, Johnson Grass, Crab Grass. Other: Florescent Yellow Mushrooms, Wood Mushrooms, Rock Moss, Wisteria, Cat Nip. Animals: Earth Worms, Snails and Slugs, Toads, Mediterranean Gecko, Green Anole, Five Domestic White Rabbits, Ribbon Snake, Field Mouse, Possum, Squirrel, Mexican Freetail Bat, Racoon, and ocasionally a stray cat or two. Birds: Cardinal, Blue-Jay, Dove, Sparrow, Grackle, Humming Bird, Owl, Robin, Crow, Red Headed Woodpecker, Finch, Warbler, Hawk, and "Fester" the Pigeon. Fish: Three Koi named Sunshine, Pinky, and Spot. Four Shubunkin Goldfish, and some Minnows. Pond Plants: Lily Pads, Parrot Feathers, Bull Rush, and a couple of other unknown bottom plants. Insects: Monarch Butterfly, Yellow Swallowtail, White Moth, Lady Bug, Dragon Fly, Lightning Bug, Carpenter Ant, Red Ant, Black Ant, Sugar Ant, Fire Ant, June Bug, Bumble Bee, Honey Bee, Killer Bee, Wood Roach, Mosquito, Yellow Jacket Wasp, Mud Dauber Wasp, Walking Stick. Fruit Fly, House Fly, Horse Fly, Praying Mantis, Several Types of Beetles, Grasshopper, Assorted Grubs, Cricket, Locust, Stink Bug, and many many more. How to make Hummingbird Nectar for your Hummingbird Feeder: Mix a solution of 1 part sugar with 4 parts of distilled water. DO NOT add any coloring or any other substances as they are harmful to the hummingbirds. There is enough color on the feeder itself to attract the hummers. I have heard many theories about boiling the water to get the sugar to dissolve but I do not find it necessary to do that, just stir the solution real well in a clean container with a clean spoon. Only boil the water if you use tap water to remove the chloromates and and to sterilize the water, as any bacteria in the water will quickly grow in the sugar solution and contaminate the hummingbird feeder. I have found the solution of distilled water and sugar to be the preferred choice in my feeders, tap water is has too many contaminates both biological and chemical. The distilled water is free of contamination and dissolves the sugar easily. I usually use a quarter cup measuring cup to measure the amounts with, as the smaller feeders hold about eight ounces of water which is exactly one cup of water. One scoop of sugar, four scoops of water. The sugar really does not add any volume to the water. For the larger IV type bottle feeders I just fill it about half full with about two cups of the solution, and change it when it starts getting low. If you have any left over solution you can store it in the refriderator for about a week. Do not let the feeder run out of nectar or the hummingbirds may not return to the feeder. Thoroughly wash your hummingbird feeder with warm water between fillings one or two times a week, or when ever the nectar solution is getting low. A diluted mixture if vinegar can be used to clean the feeder just in case it has been neglected for some reason. The frequency for refilling varies by the number of hummingbirds feeding, the warmth of the weather which promotes bacterial growth, and always the contamination factor. If the solution becomes cloudy, change it immediately, as it has become contaminated. I have also observed that hummingbirds will return to the same location where the hummingbird feeder is located year after year, looking for nectar, even if it removed. So I do not suggest moving the feeder to a different location once it is established. Simply put the hummingbird feeder where you want to observe the hummingbirds in the first place, or just add another feeder. I suggest a shady yet highly visible placement of the feeder, the shade will also keep down the amount of bacterial and mold growth in the feeder and keep the solution cool. Remember that the hummingbirds will also feed naturally from flowers and insects for other nutrients that they may need. So it also helps to have the flora which attracts them to the area, and you do not have to refill real flowers with nectar all of the time. In some areas you might have to take down your hummingbird feeder about one week after the last hummingbird passes and store it in a safe place away from the weather. As luck would have it I happen to live in a geographical climate region where several species of hummingbirds migrate each year, and there are hummingbirds of one kind or another coming or going almost every month of the year. Other Hummingbird Links I found interesting: Hummingbirds Page, Perky Pet Hummingbird Feeders with Ant Guard, and Hummingbirds in Houston. Garden Links on the Net: Texas Wildflower Center Lady Byrd Johnson's Texas Hill Country Wild Flower Center. Texas Hill Country Gardener not much here but you can make some or your own soil mixes. Wildseed Farms has some Texas Maroon Bluebonnets and lots of other herb and wildflower seeds. (free catalog!) Enature.com National Audubon Society's online field guides of wildflowers, birds, insects, butterflies, and much more. How to Grow Watermelon. Rot Web Home Composting Site. GardenReview.com share your garden photos.
Vegetables: Big Boy Tomato, Little Bel "Cherry" Tomato, Banana Peppers, Chilpetine Peppers, Yellow Bell Peppers, Jalipino Peppers, Cucumbers, Summers Squash, Zucinni, Japanese Pumpkin Squash, Sweet Basil, Lemon Basil, Dill, Spearmint, Sweet Corn, Snap Beans, Pinto Beans, Red Beans, Wax Beans, Swiss Chard, Spinach, Mustard Greens, Rosemary, Oregano, Carrots, Wild Creek Onions, Potato.
Flowers: Purple Iris, Bearded Iris, White Cloud Climbing Roses, English Tea Roses, Miniature Red Roses.
Wildflowers: Sunflower, Indian Paint Brush, Texas Paintbrush, 21's, Texas Bluebonnet, Indian Blanket, Yarrow, Scarlet Flax, Showy Primrose, Evening Primrose, Tickseed, Dwarf Red Coreopsis, Lemon Mint, Corn Poppy, Purple Coneflower, Toadflax, Drummond Phlox, Tuber Vervain, Mexican Hat, Black-Eyed Susan, Clasping Coneflower, Baby's Breath, Maroon Bluebonnets, Yellow Cosmos, Orange Cosmos, Red Cosmos, White Cosmos, Pink Cosmos, California Poppy, Ox-Eyed Daisy, Baby Blue Eyes, Rocket Larkspar, Cornflower, African Daisy, plains Coreopsis, Rocket Larkspur, Tuber Vervian, Blanketflower, Chicory, Foxglove, Gay Feather, Sweet William Dianthus, Tickseed/Lance-leaved Coreopsis, Lavender, and many many more too numerous to name.
Shrubs and Bushes: Guava, Holly, Silver Junipers, Sprawling Juniper, Boxwood, Wax Leaf Lagustrums, Red Tip Photinas, Possum Haws, Nandina, Indian Hawthorns, Variegated Bush.
Trees: Bartlet Pear, Several Peach Trees, Mountain Laurel, Crab Apple, Red Maple, Alpine Pine, Elm, Crape Myrtle (pink), Granny Smith Apple, Chinese Pistach, Arizona Ash, Italian Cyprus, Hybrid Live Oaks, Pin Oak, and a Newport Plum Tree.
Ground Covers: Saint Augustine (small patch), Bermuda, English Ivy, Wondering Jew, Spider and Airplanes, Iron Plants, Small Elephant Ears, Summer Mitten Ivy, Honeysuckle.
Cacti: Yucca, Barrel Cactus, Bayonet Cactus, Sawtooth.
Weeds: Dandelion, Johnson Grass, Crab Grass.
Other: Florescent Yellow Mushrooms, Wood Mushrooms, Rock Moss, Wisteria, Cat Nip.
Animals: Earth Worms, Snails and Slugs, Toads, Mediterranean Gecko, Green Anole, Five Domestic White Rabbits, Ribbon Snake, Field Mouse, Possum, Squirrel, Mexican Freetail Bat, Racoon, and ocasionally a stray cat or two.
Birds: Cardinal, Blue-Jay, Dove, Sparrow, Grackle, Humming Bird, Owl, Robin, Crow, Red Headed Woodpecker, Finch, Warbler, Hawk, and "Fester" the Pigeon.
Fish: Three Koi named Sunshine, Pinky, and Spot. Four Shubunkin Goldfish, and some Minnows.
Pond Plants: Lily Pads, Parrot Feathers, Bull Rush, and a couple of other unknown bottom plants.
Insects: Monarch Butterfly, Yellow Swallowtail, White Moth, Lady Bug, Dragon Fly, Lightning Bug, Carpenter Ant, Red Ant, Black Ant, Sugar Ant, Fire Ant, June Bug, Bumble Bee, Honey Bee, Killer Bee, Wood Roach, Mosquito, Yellow Jacket Wasp, Mud Dauber Wasp, Walking Stick. Fruit Fly, House Fly, Horse Fly, Praying Mantis, Several Types of Beetles, Grasshopper, Assorted Grubs, Cricket, Locust, Stink Bug, and many many more.
Thoroughly wash your hummingbird feeder with warm water between fillings one or two times a week, or when ever the nectar solution is getting low. A diluted mixture if vinegar can be used to clean the feeder just in case it has been neglected for some reason. The frequency for refilling varies by the number of hummingbirds feeding, the warmth of the weather which promotes bacterial growth, and always the contamination factor. If the solution becomes cloudy, change it immediately, as it has become contaminated.
I have also observed that hummingbirds will return to the same location where the hummingbird feeder is located year after year, looking for nectar, even if it removed. So I do not suggest moving the feeder to a different location once it is established. Simply put the hummingbird feeder where you want to observe the hummingbirds in the first place, or just add another feeder. I suggest a shady yet highly visible placement of the feeder, the shade will also keep down the amount of bacterial and mold growth in the feeder and keep the solution cool.
Remember that the hummingbirds will also feed naturally from flowers and insects for other nutrients that they may need. So it also helps to have the flora which attracts them to the area, and you do not have to refill real flowers with nectar all of the time. In some areas you might have to take down your hummingbird feeder about one week after the last hummingbird passes and store it in a safe place away from the weather. As luck would have it I happen to live in a geographical climate region where several species of hummingbirds migrate each year, and there are hummingbirds of one kind or another coming or going almost every month of the year.
Other Hummingbird Links I found interesting: Hummingbirds Page, Perky Pet Hummingbird Feeders with Ant Guard, and Hummingbirds in Houston.
Texas Wildflower Center Lady Byrd Johnson's Texas Hill Country Wild Flower Center. Texas Hill Country Gardener not much here but you can make some or your own soil mixes. Wildseed Farms has some Texas Maroon Bluebonnets and lots of other herb and wildflower seeds. (free catalog!) Enature.com National Audubon Society's online field guides of wildflowers, birds, insects, butterflies, and much more. How to Grow Watermelon. Rot Web Home Composting Site. GardenReview.com share your garden photos.