Please Sir, Can We Have Some More???

The image you see above, is a leaf, floating in a puddle on our driveway. Yes....a puddle....created by rain. That's right....RAIN!! Not much rain, but ANYthing is good.

If you've seen any of my posts lately, you know we're in the throes of a severe drought here in Central Texas. I've been moaning and whining for months now. If fact, my last post...Wordless Wednesday...was a silent whine.

The .47 inches of rain here at the house yesterday was not anywhere near what we need. After all, we've been without rain for two months here.

But, those horrid temperatures that were forecast haven't shown up the last couple of days. In fact, it's only been in the 90s, and overcast skies. And then, that glorious, wonderful rain....

We're very thankful for what we got. But...

Please Sir, can we have some more?????

Wordless Wednesday~Beauties & the Beast

Need Some Cheese With That Whine???

As you may know, we're having a bit of a drought problem, here in Central Texas. There was a little rain around the area this last week. But, right here at our house, in Wimberley, Texas, USA.....nothing. Oh, we had the clouds....we had the wind....and the thunder did roll down our valley...three nights in a row. But, here...at this house....maybe we had seven drops. What's up with that???

I have to tell you...as a gardener, I am pretty frustrated with the whole thing.

But, this morning, when I was checking out some of my favorite blogs, I came to Caroline's post at The Shovel-Ready Garden. She reminded us all to 'Look Closely', and see what's good in the garden....not what's burned to a crisp.

So, I grabbed my camera and went out to look closely.

There, right outside the door, is the plumbago. It is blooming its heart out right now.

And a Cyclamen, blooming since Christmas. I thought these were cool weather plants.

And, the Candy Lily...blooming, even though it's been moved three times since March! The Bulbine, that I love, and probably needs a bigger pot. The basket of heat and sun loving Verbena.

A basket of Calibrachoa, hanging on the veggie garden fence.

Purple Heart and this succulent I don't know the name of, hanging inside, on the veggie garden fence.

The Malabar Spinach....which I understand could take over the whole place.

And, last.....a weed (I don't know its name, either), growing in a pot of liriope that I've given up on. No watering here, at all. And, there are more things blooming here, than I took time to photograph.

Yesterday, we broke a string of 100+ degree days, at sixteen in a row. The temperature stayed in the 90s. It's going back up today, but, the forecast has some chance of rain next week.

Caroline is right!! Things are looking up.

So, whether you're here in crispy Central Texas, or somewhere in the soggy Northeast, go out there and see what beauty you have, if you just 'Look Closely'.

Have a great weekend. I have to go water.

And the Thunder Rolled......

and, the wind blew dark rain clouds across the Wimberley Valley. Thunder sounds different here in this Valley. A deep, rumbling sound. A sound we haven't gotten to hear enough times, yet.

But, again, no rain fell. Oh, rain came to the north. And, rain came to the south, and to the west , and to the east. But, for some reason, rain keeps evading us here.

Things are so very dry. The veggies have quit....except for some cucumbers. But, they're bitter. I worry most about the trees. This is the second year they've been without adequate rainfall.

We have a 'chance' of rain today, and another tomorrow. Then, the sering heat is supposed to return.

Let's hope the weather systems change up soon, and we get some rain.... for the trees, and for the critters.....and, for all the rest of us.

We're longing for the thunder roll......

Garden Bloggers Bloom Day July 2009

Thanks to Carol at May Dreams Gardens , garden bloogers around the world celebrate what is blooming in their gardens at the middle of each month.

Here in Central Texas, the heat and drought has taken it's toll on many of the plants that might be giving us a show this time of year. With a lot of work to keep things alive, here's what's blooming in my garden.

A pretty pink begonia in the shade on the porch.

A yellow bulbine keeps hanging in there, again on the porch, out of reach of the deer.

A bright pink calibrachoa, in a hanging basket on the garden fence. The deer don't bother this. Bright hot orange and yellow of a gaillardia. A new hanging basket of landmark lantana. Love those little pompom blooms.

Mexican oregano.... A coral periwinkle, to replace the chomped gazania.

A white periwinkle, to replace the chomped gerbera daisy. Deer don't seem to like periwinkles.

The cool blues of a plumbago. Soft pink upright ruellia.

Bright red, heat loving verbena.

And, last, but not least...

Candy Lily, pardancanda norissii, from the old house. This is another plant the deer haven't touched. It's from the iris family. The bloom is only a couple of inches across, and only lasts one day. It blooms much better if deadheaded each day.

So, that's it from this garden in the central part of Texas. What's blooming in your part of the world?

And the Heat Goes On

If you saw my post about the The Flowers in the Creek , you saw how the wet weather creek behind our house looked in May. We'd had a little rain. Not much, but enough to keep things going. Wildflowers were blooming, the grasses were green. It got pretty warm in May, but not unbearable.

The 'Deer Grove' was green. There were lots of Mexican Hats blooming and some nice grasses.

Then, we moved into June. We had one of the warmest Junes in Austin history. Many days were record breaking heat. And....no rain. In the whole month of June, we had less than an inch of rain, here at the house.

So now, this is what the creek looks like...

and the 'Deer Grove'. Weeks of 100+ degree days, and no rain do take their toll.

Yesterday morning, there was a nice rain to the north of Austin. Last evening, there was a nice rain to south of us here....in fact, a good rain came down the Blanco River, about two miles from us. We had a good 'shower'...not enough to register on the rain gauge. But, we enjoyed every minute of it, sitting on the covered porch, watching and listening to the rain.....even as little as it was.

All the weather forecasters say we'll be back to the triple digit temperatures before the week is out. And, our chances of more rain are slim to none. This drought has gone on for some 22 months now.

I feel bad for all the critters. It's so dry, there's little for them to eat. We keep the birdbaths filled with water.

And, it seems to be appreciated.

And, sometimes, seed gets 'accidentally' dropped beneath the feeders.

And, it gets goobled up in a hurry.

There's a fine for feeding the deer here, but accidents will happen, and things get ....er....dropped here and there. I know I complain about them eating my plants. But, I do understand, they need to eat.

We're all hoping this drought comes to an end sometime soon. Water restrictions are making this gardening experience a bit more difficult. And more than that, there are wells going dry close by, and having to be dug deeper. That's a bit scary, especially since we're less than half way through summer.

And the heat goes on.....

Red White & Blue

Here we are in July, already. Time to celebrate the birthday of the good old USA.

Towns and cities, big and small celebrate. Picnics...parades....families and friends gather together to honor Old Glory.

Even the flowers stand at salute.

Scarlet RED verbena.

Beautiful WHITE Phalaenopsis

Cool BLUE Plumbago.

Here's wishing you and yours a safe and happy 4th of July.

Happy Birthday America.