The garden of Colleen Jamison, a stop on the 2018 Garden Bloggers Fling

Back to Austin, in May, as we Garden Bloggers descended upon the garden of Colleen Jamison.

Check out that front porch!

And the custom gate to the back garden...

From our Fling itinerary, Colleen says: "My passion is to create beautiful spaces with plants that love our climate, and my to experiment has created something of a laboratory of what works! But more honestly, it is just a space that I love. The sound of water, plants that move when the wind blows, a place that wildlife thrives in—and me, all in my little suburban space."

I like the drama created by the slanted section of fence.

Yes please! I would love a shady back-garden retreat covered by a green vine.

And don't even get me started on how much I would love to have a courtyard off the back of our house, protected from the wind, taking in the sun...

It would be a dream space!

There were so many blooms on the Passiflora, I edited down my photos to just one...

Interesting shelves...

This seems right out of Pam Penicks The Water Saving Garden...

Emerging from the side-garden I couldn't help but appreciate the view of next door; the house, the planters, the shade trees...

That must make mowing a challenge...
Colleen also gardens the wide median in the street...

Also from the Fling itinerary, when asked about something unique: "The planted median in front of my house. I took on the biggest challenge here, as the space had terrible soil, no irrigation, and was covered in weeds and browsed nightly by deer. I wanted to see if I could garden successfully in the worst of the worst conditions. And I wanted to use plants to create some screening of my neighbor, who had turned his home into a stealth dorm. Little by little, a garden emerged."

There were several interesting plants in the median, but I chose to focus on the Opuntia...

Former blooms, now fruit-in-the-making, many coming of the side of the pad, oh and a new pad emerging from the side of a pad. This doesn't happen with my Opuntia. all the action is along the edges.

Ants on blooms are something we have in common though.

The central, shady pathway.

With comfy seating along the way.

Following Gerhard (pictured) I soon joined several other bloggers and we sat a spell.

Weather Diary, Dec 26: Hi 46, Low 38/ Precip .29"

All material © 2009-2018 by Loree Bohl for danger garden. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.