You know it’s summer when the myrtles are blooming. While the rest of Dallas/Fort Worth is enjoying the colorful blooms adorning highways, business fronts and neighborhood parks, our myrtles seem to have gotten a slow start and are just now beginning to flower. Our front yard is home to 7 crape myrtles: 1 Natchez crape tree, 1 Acoma weeping crape myrtle, 4 Petite Snow crape myrtles, and 1 Peppermint Lace crape myrtle, pictured on the left. All of them are loaded down with buds, bursting at the seams and ready to put on a vibrant show.
Not sending registration email
I’m investigating an issue with this WP install not sending the registration emails for new users. It’s not an issue I encountered with the other sites since this is the only blog that permits open registration. I toyed with setting up an SMTP server on the local box, but it may be something as simple as turning on a function in the php.ini. I’m still doing the research based on the WP forums. Expect to see multiple reboots during the day, which means the occasional site outage.
“My lawn is going to kick your yard’s grass…”
That’s the challenge posed by two amateur lawn-keepers hoping to win bragging rights to the best-looking lawn by the end of June. The gauntlet was thrown down between Dear Hubby and his friend a few months ago, and now the end of the contest is in sight. Only a week to go before judging and a winner is named. Will it be fondue night or a lobster dinner to mark the victory feast? (Personally, I’m salivating in anticipation of the crustaceous dinner at Steve Field’s.) Both competitors have already proclaimed themselves the victor ahead of the final judging, but only time and weather will decide whose green reigns supreme.
Did I mention that Wylie is now enforcing stage 3 water restrictions? That means watering only once a week. Somebody I know (DH) was slapped with a warning after he was found violating the ordinance, watering his lawn at 1:23am on a Wednesday morning–after I specifically told him the cutoff at midnight. Oh well, when we win this contest, all will be forgiven. 😀
Welcome to Summer 2006
This is the first official day of summer, and surprisingly, it’s 90 degrees cool. Possible rain in the forecast this week, but for now, I am enjoying the nice breeze outside and the clouds scudding across the sky.
Texas summers aren’t like other summers. Summer-blooming lilies don’t behave true in the brutal Texas climate. All of my beds have long shed their colorful blooms and have settled into a green state, storing food for the coming winter. However, a few of my late-purchased bulbs, notably the dwarf lilies, are bravely putting out buds.
Yesterday, I took a pruning shear and started lopping the dead twigs off the Hot Lips salvia and pinched off spent blooms on the Red salvia greggii. The Red salvias still look spectacular, aflame in red buds. The two Hot Lips that received extra pruning are trying to make a comeback, despite looking yellowish. I noticed a scattering solid red and white blooms on them earlier today. The purple greggiis have settled into quiescence, while one of the new San Antonio greggiis flowers profusely. Dad’s white salvias still haven’t been planted, but they are merrily blooming in their pots.
On my nightstand reading list…The New Book of Salvias: Sages for Every Garden by Betsy Clebsch.
Lollipop lollipop
One more surprise greeted me Saturday morning: it appears one of my late plantings of Lollypop lilies had flowered. Standing under 1ft tall, it looks like a thin reedy stalk with 3 flowers crowning it. I have one or two more in different beds with the same reedy stem and heads of buds, just waiting to bloom. FYI, these Lollipops were purchased from Robyns Gardens Ebay store. So far, most of my bulb purchases with them have yielded great results. I can’t wait for the Reinesse lilies to bloom!