Heat, hail, tornadoes & does
Orange narrowleaf zinnia ( Zinnia angustifolia) loves the heat.
Ah, summer. The Death Star is back. For the past week Austin has felt the heavy hand of summer pressing down, with sticky humidity and temps near 100 degrees (37.7 C). Summer also means thunderstorms, and on Thursday night we were pounded by hail, high winds, and warnings of two possible tornadoes just a couple of miles up the road.
And there are still the ever-present chomping deer and digging armadillos.
What’s a gardener to do? Just put on a sunny face, like the ‘Radsunny’ Knock Out rose…
…make tart refreshments (that’s ‘Apple Tart’ daylily)…
…keep a sense of humor, and lounge in the pool whenever possible. Ahhh, summer.
All material © 2006-2009 by Pam Penick for Digging. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.
I am sure your pool makes summer more bearable. Deer AND armadillos. Whew you do have your hands full discouraging the critters.
The deer are discouraged from entering the back yard, which is the only place I’m gardening just now, by the fence. I do plan to start a garden out front either next fall or next spring, and then my deer-resistant plant choices will be put to the test. —Pam
Extreme weather there! We have had some storms here too. Mild temps but that will be changing next week! Get out the cookbook and open it to a venison stew recipe for the deer to see…that outta discourage them!(-:
Perhaps so, Cindee. 😉 —Pam
All we have out here in Southern CA is fog, fog, fog……typical June gloom…yesterday was only 64 degrees! But that is OK by me summer heat & fire season can wait a little longer. Please don’t melt, your posts are too pretty.
Thanks, Susie. I wish you could send some of your cool California weather to us! —Pam
Your apple tart daylily is stunning! Hope you escaped damage from hail/wind. We lucked out and got decent rainfall with no hail.
Yes, no damage here, thank goodness. I’m glad to hear you got some rain too. —Pam
Ah, summer, yes indeed. It hasn’t really gotten “hot” here in Indianapolis yet. It’s actually been kind of nice.
Please enjoy your lovely summer on behalf of us Austinites, Carol. I, for one, will be living vicariously through you. —Pam
I feel your Summer pain! Even mornings are brutal down here – My church had a work-day this morning to work on the landscape of a new parking lot. After only a couple of hours, we were all wilting. We should have followed with pool time! Love your pictures.
Whew, that does sound brutal. I bet the only thing that kept you going was knowing it was for a good cause. If no pool time, perhaps some ice-cold refreshments under a ceiling fan? —Pam
Wild weather there Pam! (still looking for the Armadillo Song) 🙂
How about the “London Homesick Blues“—the song that used to start PBS’s Austin City Limits? “I want to go home with the Armadillo…” Do you know it? —Pam
You have as many critters as I do it seems. Country critters are better behaved for the most part. They have plenty normal food and places to dig and hide. Except for the raccoons. Raccoons just like to make trouble.
I think today was the first real hint of warm.
I haven’t seen a raccoon yet, but I’m sure they’re around. Coyotes too. —Pam
You can’t scare me away with talk of hot summers, Pam! …I still count Austin as my favorite city! I think a swim is the best way to deal with the weather and the critters….gail
Strong fencing, a swim, and a margarita, Gail. 😉 —Pam
Pam, we were in the path of the tornado sighted on 1431. I was so shocked because it was moving so fast, I thought we were going to miss all of it. Thankfully we didn’t lose any trees, but they did take a beating. We will be taking a trip to the insurance adjuster to file claims on our vehicles for hail damage. Crazy weather!
Ah yes, Deer and Armadillos. Two of our regular visitors–as well as skunks and ‘possums! The armadillos can really do a lot of damage digging for grubs. We saw a grey fox several nights ago on the greenbelt in our neighborhood! What I would have given for my camera.
The heat has been beastly. I know you are enjoying your swimming pool. How is the new pond coming?
I’m sorry to hear about your damage from the storm, Jenny. The stock-tank pond project stalled out while I went to Chicago, and it hasn’t picked up again yet. I need to put in a small retaining wall to hold the leveled slope. One little step at a time! —Pam
Would those be Crape Myrtle blossoms lounging in the pool? They have just started blooming here and are not ready to fall and decorate the cars, sidewalks or bird baths.
They would indeed, Les. There’s a big pink crepe myrtle at the back corner of the house that’s in full bloom. —Pam
Hello Pam!
Came across your blog through a few others. I’m so happy to find garden bloggers! I live in Chandler, AZ (Phoenix area) and I just love to garden. You don’t find many gardeners here. If by chance, there is a garden walk in the area, it is pretty pitiful. The sad thing about that, is that you can grow almost anything here, as long as you can figure out the right time to do it. Most people here opt for simple desert landscaping and they hire landscapers to tend to it.
I’ll be back for more visits and I plan on taking a look at some of the other gardeners you have listed.
Michelle
Thanks for stopping by to say hi, Michelle. Have you come across Arizona garden blogs Water When Dry and Scott Calhoun’s Desert Garden? They’re wonderful. —Pam
I visited our house-in-progress today and found six deer using my future garden area as their resting grounds. I went screaming out to chase them off but I’m sure they will be back. And I think deer feasted on my sunflowers at our rental property last night. But I do love sweet and sour venison balls.
If only you could eat the ones that eat your garden, there’d be some justice in the world, right? 😉 —Pam
Do the deer eat your zinnias, I know they are on their “do not like” list but is that really true…inquiring minds want to know??? Hugs, Pamie G.
I can’t say, Pamie G. These are growing in my fenced and protected back garden. Eventually I plan to create some garden beds out front, and then I’ll find out what my deer find particularly tasty or unappealing. —Pam
At first glance, I thought I read “warnings of two possible tomadoes just a couple of miles up the road”. Which made me wonder whether you’d meant tomatoes and why they needed a warning. I need a vacation…
That creates a funny mental image, somewhat along the lines of the children’s book and upcoming movie Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs! —Pam
Deer and armadillos in the same yard just seems so exotic. I’m sure you don’t feel that way but to those of us up north it just seems so.
It’s exotic to me too, Loree, as our previous houses in Austin for the past 14 years have been in more-central neighborhoods, where deer-sightings were rare and armadillos nonexistent, so far as I know. Now, just a couple of miles up the road in the hills and near the greenbelts of northwest Austin, the critters are much more numerous and pesky. I’m just glad not to be gardening where rattlesnakes are fairly common, like my mother-in-law in southwest Austin. —Pam
Hi Pam,
Here in Sweden it just rain, rain and rain it´s no fun.
Next week we are cellibrating the midsummer here in sweden I hope it will be bettr then.
When it is bad weather the flowers seams to take a brake so it is´t so manny plants that blooms like it do in your garden, real nice.
Even if you have some problem a hope you have a good summer.
Best regards Ken
The deer are taking a break from my garden probably because they are giving birth to the next batch of garden chompers. No armadillos here but we do have woodchucks. It has been raining here for most of June which I will need a reminder of come July. All is lush and green and soggy.
Orange zinnias are one of my favorite annuals. And I like deer, too, but don’t tell anyone. 😉 But really really hot and humid is not for me. Eep!
We’re still waiting for Summer here in Chicago, Pam. This year we’ve had an “Irish Spring ” – nothing but rain and more rain.
We share a love for orange zinnias I see. I actually have the same variety in hot pink and yellow.