In Horto, In Desertum

We should hit triple digits this weekend.

The petunias were spent.

There were pretty flowers at the tips of long, bare, yellow stalks.

I snipped them off.

I was ruthless, as you must be when changing seasonal containers.

This one was never attached to the irrigation system.

It did just fine until I went to Chicago just as the thermometer and  the wind picked up.

It was hard to cut down the dead gladiolus; I felt guilty about abandoning them.

Properly watered, they shine on 4' stems like these.

It's too bad the hibiscus (the deep green foliage on the right) wasn't in flower.

The bright red blossoms are a nice counterpoint to the white and yellow.

This rose is resting comfortably in its container, but there are no blooms.  Nor are there buds.

Instead, the leaves are a sickly yellowing green.

I was motivated to fertilize everything by this fellow's distress.

On the other side of the backyard, this rose is just about ready to pop.

It will be the first of may, the second set of blooms from this plant this season.

I must be doing something right.

Keeping the hanging basket properly hydrated was an issue until I hooked it up to the irrigation timer. 

This is how it looked after I pruned it of the less than amazing flowers.

It's the gift that keeps on giving.

My tomato was also a victim of being ignored.

He sat in the small plastic pot for two or three hot days.

He's not very bushy but the fruits are certainly tasty. 

Lest you think that my only successes are containers,look at this lantana. 

Little Cuter planted a pink and yellow variety in a small pot on the plant stand on her patio.  

Here, they are close to being invasive.

This was cut back three weeks ago.

And then, there's this rose.

I diverted the irrigation myself.

I dug the hole myself.

I separated it from its container and settled it neatly in the ground.

I was kneeling and bending and feeling just fine, and I think the plant knew it, too.

It's been rewarding me ever since.

In Horto, In Desertum

Garden in the Desert.