Garden Landscaping & Design - commerciallandscaping.info

Cleomes in bed

Tue, 31 Jan 2012 19:11:01 +0000

Hi Chris! I have been waiting patiently for a cool day in order to plant my Cleomes and TODAY WAS THE DAY! I had the perfect bed in my back garden where they will get the morning sun and some shade in the afternoon. My Three Sisters bed (which I called the “Pumpkin Patch”) had come to an end and the soil was rich and ready for new planting. They look really [...]

The Sunday Bird Show

Mon, 30 Jan 2012 09:07:13 +0000

Well its been hot, hot, hot here and I’ve really not had much inclination to dig in the dirt. All I can motivate myself to do as far as gardening goes is to lounge around, enjoy the garden and appreciate the birds who took over the back garden this afternoon. At one stage there were so many flitting around that I had to put the camera down just to appreciate the very [...]

My Favourite Plant of the Season

Sun, 29 Jan 2012 19:26:50 +0000

My favourite plant of this Summer season has been hands down, without contest, the Mexican Petunia (Ruellia brittoniana). I first took notice of this plant when I read about it on It’s Not Work It’s Gardening and then shortly thereafter I found them at the local nursery. I bought one, planted it and within days I knew that I wanted more … bought two additional plants and now I wish I had [...]

Bug-a-boo Zoo

Sat, 28 Jan 2012 21:38:55 +0000

I have had such weird and wonderful bugs coming into my garden lately that I had to do a special post on all the bugs I have met so far. Every time I step onto my back deck, I have to run and get my camera. It is as if they wait for me and pose. Thanks to a lot of our friends, we were able to identify all of them. Here [...]

A partly reclaimed view

Sat, 28 Jan 2012 19:31:05 +0000

In my list of Things to Do in the Garden in 2012 I mentioned that I want to prune some trees in order to reclaim a portion of mountain view. In the heat of summer we have managed to get that done and I am happy with the result. This is a small corner view as seen from one corner of the entertainment area of our back terrace. It’s a place I [...]

Something new for Someone new

Thu, 26 Jan 2012 00:00:12 +0000

It seems that whenever I add something new, someone new turns up to inspect my garden … A week or so ago when I spotted the little Rooibeksysie (Common Wax-bill) eating the apples in the bird feeder, I asked what I should be doing to attract different and new birds to my garden. One suggestion I got from Clare at Curbstone Valley Farm was to add different fruit and she suggested citrus. [...]

A few words about grasses on Wednesday

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 00:00:05 +0000

I know I go on a bit about ornamental grasses and how much I love them (are you tired of this subject yet?) and so rather than bore you with another one of my rants on how amazing, spectacular and gorgeous grasses are, I thought today I would show you in photographs why grasses belong in my garden … The Mexican Petunia is a beautiful plant in its own right and looks [...]

Heat of the Summer

Tue, 24 Jan 2012 11:00:12 +0000

The heat of the summer days does take its toll on the garden. It is usually 2-3 degrees higher here than in the city of Cape Town. So if my friend, Christine, says its 30 degrees in her garden, than its usually 33 degrees here. A few of my plants are now dropping leaves and flowers – notably the fuchsia, but my neighbour was very surprised to see it still blooming, so [...]

Prehistoric bug

Mon, 23 Jan 2012 20:00:09 +0000

Well, if the Ghost Mantis was not unusual enough for you – check out this prehistoric looking bug!! I found it on the fig tree – two of them!!! One must be a female (the bigger one). I am busy looking on the internet ….. dose anyone have a clue?? This is the female before she let go of the branch and tumbled to the ground. I would imagine this is [...]

Ghost Mantis in my garden

Sun, 22 Jan 2012 20:48:07 +0000

Today was a BIG clean up day in the garden because the heat of summer ebbed a bit! I was pulling out old, woody herbs in the Patio Patch, and was startled to see this AMAZING thing!!! What was it?? Ran to get my camera and macro lens and found out it was an exotic Praying Mantis. Oh my WORD!! I have never seen anything like it before! Take a look! I [...]