On Valentine’s Day 2006 I hit publish for my very first blog post. Back then I saw blogging as a way to document my garden through the seasons and to join the online conversation about gardening in Austin.
Boy, was it ever!
I’ve been documenting my garden(s) — and gardens across the country, and beyond — for 17 years now. Seventeen years! I could have raised another child in that amount of time.
I still get so much enjoyment out of sharing about gardening and reading other gardeners’ posts on blogs and other social media. The online world has changed dramatically in those 17 years, but I’m still here talking about plants and gardens.
I’m grateful to you for coming to Digging to read and engage about gardening with me. Thank you, readers! You make it a conversation.
And now that it’s a party, let’s see who else is attending. Deer, of course. I walked past this crowd at a neighbor’s house one evening.
It quickly became a staring contest.
Yesterday I spotted a little brown skink on the driveway. Worried he’d get stepped on, I tried to encourage him onto a branch I picked up. Finally though, I cupped my hands over him, and he leaped into my hands.
I carried him over to the island bed, where he promptly kamikazied into the leaf litter. What a cutie!
Winter and spring vie for dominance each February in Central Texas. The earliest trees are already starting to flower, and many plants are pushing up new growth. It’s also the month for ice storms and snowpocalypses. We’re still cleaning up here. Only a few weeks, though, until we’re in full-on spring. Enjoy this last month with no mosquitoes!
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Digging Deeper
Come learn about garden design from the experts at Garden Spark! I organize in-person talks by inspiring designers, landscape architects, and authors a few times a year in Austin. These are limited-attendance events that sell out quickly, so join the Garden Spark email list to be notified in advance. Simply click this link and ask to be added. You can find this year’s speaker lineup here.
Make plans to attend the Budding Out Plant Sale & Festival on March 18 at the John Fairey Garden in Hempstead, TX. Rare and distinctive plants will be offered, as well as art, ceramics, jewelry, food, drink, music, and other entertainment for the whole family. Members have early access and get in free. Non-member admission is $5. Children 12 and under are free.
Experience the Surreal Garden at Zilker Botanical Garden, an enchanting neon-art display throughout the gardens, with food and drink, music and dancing, surreal performers, and interactive art sculptures. Surreal costumes encouraged! 25% of event proceeds benefit the Zilker Botanical Garden Conservancy. Runs April 6 (VIP Night), April 7-8, and April 13-15, from 6:30 pm to 11 pm.
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