Lost Valley Gardens

The Gardens are Growing

By Carol ⋅ April 18, 2011 ⋅ Post a comment

I can’t believe that it is 95 degrees F here today. The lettuce, chard, and other cool weather crops are really struggling on these hot, dry days. The wind has also been pretty relentless for much of the spring as well, which takes it toll on the seedlings and transplants in the gardens. But, despite […]

Birds, Bees and Butterflies

By Carol ⋅ April 9, 2011 ⋅ 2 comments

The buddleia alternifolia in the courtyard is attracting all manner of bees and butterflies. The plant is absolutely alive with activity. I got a nice photograph of a monarch feeding on it late in the afternoon.

Is It Spring or Summer?

By Carol ⋅ March 24, 2011 ⋅ 4 comments

Another sure sign of spring is the annual Austin Funky Chicken Coop Tour, which is coming up on April 23, 2011. Ron went on the tour last year so we could get ideas for our first chicken coop and to collect information from local experts about what types of chickens do well here. Now, less than a year later, we have our first coop and a nice little family of chickens, two hens and one rooster.

Reflection and Renewal

By Carol ⋅ March 6, 2011 ⋅ Post a comment

I have been occupying myself with caring for the transplants in the greenhouse and propagating more warm weather vegetables and herbs. I have also started putting some of the chard, broccoli, and cauliflower transplants out into the gardens, but had a bit of a setback last night due to the temperature dipping down to 26.

Preparation and Propagation

By Carol ⋅ February 22, 2011 ⋅ Post a comment

The transplants in the greenhouse are thriving for the most part, although it has been a bit of a challenge keeping the greenhouse cool enough for the broccoli, chard and lettuce during the unusual warm period we have been experiencing for the past couple of weeks. The temp rose to 84 F outside yesterday, which […]

First Chickens and New Customers

By Carol ⋅ February 14, 2011 ⋅ Post a comment

As a first step in tidying up the entrance to the farm, Ron hung prayer flags over the birms on either side of the gate. A day or so after he hung them we had a note in our mailbox from one of our neighbors inquiring where we obtained such nice, big prayer flags.

Full Time Organic Farming – My New Life

By Carol ⋅ February 6, 2011 ⋅ 5 comments

Some twelve or thirteen years ago Ron and I, disappointed in our corporate high tech jobs, set a goal of starting our own small business. We weren’t completely sure exactly what kind of business it would be at that point, just that it would involve growing plants and vegetables. And so we set out on our journey of learning and discovery. There was so much to know, so many decisions to make, so far to go to get where we wanted to be. It seemed overwhelming and confusing many times, but we kept moving along at a slow and steady pace.

Feels Like Fall At Last

By Carol ⋅ September 27, 2010 ⋅ 2 comments

Fall has always been my favorite season, but for different reasons as the years pass by. Many folks celebrate fall because it is harvest time, but I celebrate it here in central Texas because it is the beginning of our second growing season, and it spells relief from the sweltering summer heat for another year.

Spring Flowers Abound

By Carol ⋅ April 14, 2010 ⋅ 4 comments

This spring in Central Texas is the most colorful that we have had in years. Not only are there greater numbers and a larger variety of wildflowers this year, they are also much larger and more deep in color than I have ever seen. Every day brings new discoveries and more brilliant displays. We have […]

El Nino Showers Continue

By Carol ⋅ March 16, 2010 ⋅ Post a comment

Thanks to the el nino effect, this has been one of the wettest fall and winter seasons that I can remember since I moved to Central Texas over twenty years ago. The results of all this rain on the gardens and wildflowers is remarkable. The late winter, early spring blooming plants, such as the Carolina […]

Late February Central Texas Snowfall

By Carol ⋅ February 24, 2010 ⋅ 2 comments

We got more snowfall yesterday than I have ever seen in Texas. It was absolutely lovely, and gave me a chance to see my gardens in a whole new way. Here are just a few of the shots that I took while dodging silver dollar sized snowflakes.

Fall Showers and Flowers

By Carol ⋅ September 28, 2009 ⋅ 6 comments

It has been ages since I have put up a post. There are several reasons for this, but the main one is that it has been so hot and dry for the past three months that I have spent most of my free time watering and mulching the gardens in an effort just to keep […]

Sizzling Summer in Austin

By Carol ⋅ July 17, 2009 ⋅ 12 comments

Every summer for the past ten or so I have said to myself, surely this summer won’t be as hot and dry as last summer, but unfortunately that just hasn’t turned out to be the case. According to Jim Spencer at KXAN, the summer of 2009 has already been the hottest summer on record so far, with more than 30 days over 100 degrees F. Add to that the fact that we have also had almost no rain for the past six weeks (see the drought map below), we remain in the worst drought that we have seen here for years. All in all, this makes for some terribly challenging growing and gardening conditions.

Transitions

By Carol ⋅ May 27, 2009 ⋅ 2 comments

This native Texas clematis has benefitted from the nice spring rains that we have been having. It has more blooms on it this year than it has had in the past ten years.

Grotto Pond is Complete

By Carol ⋅ May 7, 2009 ⋅ 9 comments

I didn’t have much luck with the first desert willow tree that I planted several years ago. It is still alive, but barely. So when we built the retaining wall this spring, which created deep, well drained planting beds, I bought a new desert willow to plant in this bed. I have always wanted to have a mature desert willow tree. They have such beautiful blooms, interesting foliage and graceful growth habits. The blooms on this specimen almost look like orchids.

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