Celosia

“Jack and the Sotolstalk”

ESPatch May 22, 2012 7 comments

You would not want to loose your footing and slip off this particular beanstalk.

It is also very high, (as beanstalks have a tendency to be after all).

The line down into the adjacent Buddha’s belly bamboo I assume is Naboo in origin. I theorize that the spike is currently being adopted as a high look out / communications tower with neighboring tribes across the street.

“Ach, thats mere like it ESP…Like ah’ teld ye last week…twice the length of a mun, nuthin’ mere nuthin’ less, a spear has tae be twice the leng…“

Haud yer Whisht William!

To climb up this beanstalk takes not only nerves of steel (and a hankering for insects) but also toes that have specially adapted adhesive pads, or…

‘lamellae’

…snort.

Ghecko Foot: Photo by Matt Reinbold

This “super grip” on anoles and geckos is created in the form of an attraction between the molecules of the lamellae and the climbing surface. (Pushes glasses excitedly up on nose bridge)

Stealing the golden egg and circumnavigating down the sotol stalk still proved to be a bit of a struggle for this anole though..

…don’t swallow it, DON’T SWA…

Moving sketchily along…

I said, MOVING ALONG!

Meet my new/old work steed (it has a rather menacing growl)…which will marry nicely with the wayward look of a poorly tied iced-turban along with a parched expression at a stop-light come the summer.

My steed’s menacing growl is apparently much better than its gum-lined bite, especially when trying to gain traction in mud. This is what happened to me on a recent country rock procurement trip.

Note to self: Even a 4-wheel drive is no match for a bog.

Oh don’t you even start!

I ended up getting pulled out of here with a tractor!

The same trip would have been a complete disaster if this chap, lurking under one of the limestone boulders had been a little more awake. This was one very plump ‘striped bark’ scorpion, and that looked like one serious stinger.

Centruroides vittatus

This is the most commonly seen scorpion and the only one found throughout the entire state of Texas.

Scorpions are arachnids but are a little special in that they are viviparous – they give birth to live young (usually about 30 or so) instead of laying eggs. This one groggily disappeared down this crack, I am sure I will come across it again, but it is the rattlers that I am really looking and listening out for.

Oh yes, I almost forgot to mention,

my new/old steed came with some rather classy aftermarket accessories.

If you catch my drift, ahem.

I pruned those two mist flowers (to the right of the stock tank) only a few weeks ago, they are already waist-high again. Feather grasses are almost ready for their bi-annual hair teasing, time to get out the cape once again: http://www.eastsidepatch.com/2010/05/knotty-dreads/

Hoja Santa is also on the rise, as are:

multiple stands of celosia, (there is no sticker, there is no sticker, there is n…aaargh!)

and verbena, which is currently popping up everywhere in my decomposed granite pathways…

…it is one of Lord Kumos favorite colored mattresses after he has had a few cocktails on the feather grasses.

This ‘always thirsty’ hydrangea, (yes I said hydrangea), is doing very well after the rains,

very interesting foliage and bloom structure.

I have mixed feelings about Duranta ‘shappire showers’, the blooms, yes…

but the aggressive foliage requires constant, (vitex equivalent) pruning to keep it in check.I am considering stopping pruning this one just to see how huge it will get.

Like the classic salmon fly that bears the same name and coloration,

Dusty Miller provides a great contrast of silver and gold when it is blooming.

Another more prolific bloomer is

Nierembergia hippomanica violacea

or if that proves hard to remember, cupflower (named for the cupped form of the blooms.)

It blooms like this sporadically through the summer and prolifically after a drop of the wet stuff.

Finally:

Burgundy canna lily, gopher plant and whales tongue agave.

Stay Tuned for:

“Between a Rock and a Hardscape”

All material © 2012 for eastsidepatch. Unauthorized
intergalactic reproduction strictly prohibited, and
punishable by late (and extremely unpleasant)
14th century planet Earth techniques.

Green Thumbs Up for Kids:

“In a world full of mesmerizing indoor toys like computers and video game consoles, it’s easy to lose sight of the bright sun and blue sky found in our own backyard… especially if you’re a kid! Inspired by this idea, these child-safe gardening tools were designed to help promote an active lifestyle, health-conscious attitude, and overall respect for nature. The parrot pruner, watermelon watering attachment, and snail shovel”:

Designer: Chris Armstrong

“You Can’t Handle the Tooth!”

ESPatch Jan 28, 2012 7 comments

As it turned out, I couldn’t.

The tooth fairy will be fluttering into the Patch tonight, let me back up a little.

She came home, sticking her tongue behind her front tooth, forcing it forward to a particularly unnatural angle (which looked completely ridiculous). She quietly asked me how I used to pull out my loose teeth when I was a kid. I barely finished telling her when she came back from the kitchen, sat beside me, reached into her mouth with a paper towel and tugged…

Not thinking she would actually go through with my “procedure”, her actions took me by complete surprise…”pop”!

I believe I was wincing more then her, the sound of her tooth exiting her gum had me up and about, involuntary performing a silly walk around my front room.

Quickly changing the subject…

After receiving a recent dowsing of rain (just shy of four inches) in classic Texas gully-washer fashion, these Gothic toadstools emerged overnight.

Calm down Bella!

This one was particularly disgusting, but I have had a lot worse in the Patch…who could forget this:

http://www.eastsidepatch.com/2009/04/my-sweet-olive-oil/

Another fast responder to the rains are the

oxalis,

Fatsia Japonica and

my Persian ivy.

Weeds have also responded positively to a “wee-nip” of the wet stuff…

I have been pulling out massive amounts of dandelions and a bunches of these

Erodium cicutarium

or Redstem Storks Bill (the fruit of the plant resembles a bird’s beak).

Not a bad looking weed really. The finely divided leaves and rosette growth habit are distinctive features of this winter annual weed.

I was also informed by Patricia that traditionally a leaf tea from the plant was used to induce sweating and as a diuretic. The leaves have also been put to use in the bathtub to help treat rheumatism.

Thanks for this Patricia.

Now where is my trowel?

Bluebonnets, poppies, blood-stained celosia and more weeds are battling it out in the Hellstrip

it looks like it will be a good show come the spring.

These feather grasses are in desperate need of a good grooming

and gopher plants are ready to be cut back.

The new central growth offers a good reminder of when it is time for some pruning. I generally wait until the older longer stalks start to look really bad before I attack them. Be sure to wear gloves, the sap from this plant can be quite an irritant…I found out the hard way:

http://www.eastsidepatch.com/2010/11/“i-decapitated-a-gopher”/

Moving on:

Lots of purple and pinks showing up this week in the Patch…lantana and artemesia ‘Powis Castle’.

Desert trumpet blooms do not last long on the vine with snaggletooth around.

Finally:

Back to the rock tumbling…snort

I am relieved to say that we have passed onto the final stage…polishing. Every time he lifts the lid to this cooler and rock tumbler he emits the same refrain: “Phew, that stinks!”…and it really does.

No need to call the authorities, this is the aluminum oxide polish going into the drum.

and here are the rounded stones pre-polishing.

Now to wait yet another ten days, it is a long process this rock tumbling business and it is testing my patience almost as much as “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner”…I said almost.

I will leave you with this image outside a restaurant in east Austin:

Chickens going to roost.

Stay Tuned for:

“Peas in a Pod”

All material © 2012 for eastsidepatch. Unauthorized
intergalactic reproduction strictly prohibited, and
punishable by late (and extremely unpleasant)
14th century planet Earth techniques.

Inspirational Image of the week: