HARDSCAPES THAT "SPEAK TO US" . . .
SO, RELEASE THE KRAKEN! . . . SCARECROWS & AVOCADOS

 

 

BY BRENDA BEUST SMITH

 

Just as the personal pictures, knickknacks and/or more priceless objets d'art are how we turn a house into a home, so do hardscapes that "speak to us" weave a weft of intimacy that turns look-like-everyone-else's landscapes into something very personal, comfortable, more enjoyable . . . or whatever moves you to put hands to dirt.

 

Hardscapes are actually any non-plant additions to our garden. But here not talking about bricks, landscape timbers and other "foundation" materials.

I'm talking more about those nontraditional non-plant additions.  For example, in the case of Trish Smith's garden, pictured at center above, a common wooden pallet* painted, tweaked a bit, set up on-end behind some Mexican poinsettias and turned into a great holder for small potted marigolds to add an extra splash of color at a slightly higher level.

 

Gardens tend to be viewed a "whole" and it often takes something slightly askew - maybe simply beautiful or striking or slightly quirky, like Trish's upended pallet, to give the garden personality, a sense of humor, a smile-provoking ambiance.

 

Particularly effective, I find, are those "little hardscapes" that aren't visible until you turn a corner, or stand at a particular angle, something that's beautiful, whimsical or touching on it's own, but gains even deeper significance when someone comments on it and you explain what it means to you. 

I get this in our garden when someone notices two small narrow decorative wrought iron edging stakes nailed to our wooden fence. They are all that was left - only because they were nailed to the pilings awaiting a climbing vine - at our Ike-swept-away beachhouse. About that time I saw the movie Notting Hill, and loved the Chagall "La Mariée" reference to the fiddle-playing goat. I copied the ascending angle in positioning the stakes  and it's my little private memory that makes me smile every time I see it.

 

RELEASE THE KRAKEN! The fun part about hardscapes is that there are no "hard" rules.  It's all in what YOU want and often the more unusual will attract the most notice. For example, the Kraken, pictured at left above, is a mythical, medieval sea creature. How more appropriate for a beachhouse or lake house garden can you get? Thanks to Jules Verne and Johnny Depp, young visitors are more likely than older ones to immediately identify this hardscape rising from the depths of a garden!

 

This particular Kraken (donated by Nautical Antiques, Galveston) will be a Silent Auction item at the free Sat., Oct. 10, 6th Jane Long Festival, 10am-4pm at Fort Travis Seashore Park on Bolivar Peninsula. It can be viewed now at the Bolivar Gallery (1980 Hwy 87, Ste. A, upstairs, open 10am-4pm, Thurs-Sat). Trish's "plant shelf" pallet is one of gaily-painted ones that will be sold during this same festival by the clever ladies of Bay View Methodist Church in Crystal Beach. 

 

WITH FALL (HOPEFULLY!) CREEPING IN, it's would be criminal not to mention that truly ancient garden hardscape favorite, the scarecrow. That's my 'lazy gardener' scarecrow pictured at  left, below, with my (unfortunately late) "Moi" hibiscus.

 

Although we use scarecrows now mostly as fun garden protectors, almost every country on Earth has used them in one form or another since the beginning of time. The first recorded use is from the year 712, the Japanese mythical deity Keubiko, who cannot walk, yet knows everything about the world. Dorothy knew what she was doing!

 

At center below is pictured a Vidor Junior High entry in Texas' largest Scarecrow Festival, at Shangri La Botanical Garden and Nature Center in Orange, TX. Visitors vote on the winners. Entry deadline is Oct. 7 for the festival that runs from Oct. 13 to Nov. 7. 

 

Chappell Hill has our oldest nearby celebration. This picturesque little town northwest of Houston will hold its 38th annual Scarecrow Festival Oct. 10-11. 

 

 

One couldn't exactly call an avocado tree a hardscape, but it's certainly still unusual enough in this area to be a true eye-catcher when it's fruiting. Even as recently as 10 years ago, I would never have believed I'd be standing under a fruit-bearing avocado tree as large as the one at right (that's me at Nature Way Resources' under John Ferguson's extremely prolific avocado in The Woodlands.) 

 

And most certainly my eyes would have popped if I'd gotten a plant sale notice that included avocado trees. 

 

Yet here comes one from the Galveston County Master Gardeners who are selling not one, but nine different avocado varieties touted as great this area.  Tips on growing avocados in Houston abound online. 

 

Two you might want to check out: 

 

* Ray Sher/Urban Harvest's blog: Avocado Trees For Houston  

 

* Buchanan's Native Plants has a great Avocado Selection, Planting and Care Guide  

 

Note these recommended variety names below. All are rated as cold-hardy enough for us to grow. All will be available the Galveston County Master Gardener's Sat., Oct. 10 Fall Sale, 8am-Preview; 9am-1pm Sale, at the Wayne Johnson Community Center in Carbide Park, 4102 Main, La Marque. Free. 281-534-3413; aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/galveston:

 

            * Pancho    * Don Juan   * Brazos Belle   * Joey    * Lila    * Mexicola   * Mexicola Grande 

 

All need great drainage and can get quite large if they really like you. And they will probably need some protecting the first few years. 

 

Avocados are one tree you should purchase from a source you truly trust. Not all varieties will do well here, or they might grow, but never bear fruit (typical of store-bought avocados). Be sure to tell your seller exactly where you live, as that might influence the variety recommended. 

 

 

*** Brenda's column in the LAZY GARDENER & FRIENDS HOUSTON GARDEN NEWSLETTER is based on her 45+ years as the Houston Chronicle's Lazy Gardener. 

 

Please help me honor the MOTHER OF TEXAS by sharing this information on your Facebook, etc., page! The 6th Annual Jane Long Festival, will be Sat., Oct. 10, at historic Fort Travis on Bolivar Peninsula, Jane Long Highway (87) near the Bolivar Ferry Landing. Free - 10am-4pm. Want to know more about Jane? www.janelongfestival.org or www.facebook.com/janelongfestival. Or, for a complete Jane Long Festival kit, email: lazy gardener@sbcglobal.net