Hallson Gardens

Beau-T-ful pictures! I just love your yard. I still have so far to go to have anything near that structured or full looking.

I meant to say 'designed', by the way. Tell your mother-in-law that next time she comments on your yard you're going to take her to Trembling Hills nursing home, and that she would probably appreciate the 'understated' landscaping there. (it could be kind of like The Golden Girls, when Dorothy threa...

I wish I could do that, I love those vines, but the surrounding concrete composes the driveway, sidewalks and back porch, the foundation of the house being the only raised portion, and it has a crawlspace that can't be covered up. Good thought though!

Linda that is just incredible! You guys can grow so many more things than we can down here. And I love how you desined it to look very natural and yet not overly wild.

That has got to be one of the coolest things I've ever seen!

Hmmm, it may not be off base at all. It's up against a southwest facing wall that reflects a lot of light in the afternoons and is surrounded on all four sides by concrete. I had wondered if elements of the concrete were leeching into the soil but hadn't considered the heat retention of such conditi...

Actually, it would be but I've gone the pond route before and always ended up filling it in because it just became too darned much work to maintain.

By the way, love your signature GT!

Thanks Linda! I always have a plan. 99% of the time it's a failure, but I always have a plan!

That's a good thought, but the house was converted to electric about 35 years ago and all lines removed. I haven't had the soil checked, but I've found that putting 'prarie' type plants that are grown locally do well, so I'm going that route. Gaillardia (4 different varieties), hardy cacti, Mexican ...

Oh yes, the storms were fantastic. the rocking and the sound of the rain hitting the water. Put me right to sleep. I know I would do it again, but differently, with a bigger, low maintenance pontoon houseboat and something to eliminate the holding tank like an incinolet or something like that. I'd a...

Not a bad idea at all. Yessir I brushed up quite a bit on container gardening too. It was tough because the soil could get hot, soggy, dry, frozen, etc, so easily! I think I ended up with Red Yucca, Gaillardia, bulbs, Clammyweed, and Prickly Pear. They were mostly self-tending. There was a year betw...

Hi Linda! :wink: Yes I tried asters twice because they are such tough little buggers but most of the seed never germinated and what did, came out small and weak, growing slowly and dying without blooming. The clover that once took over the yard grows there, but not rampantly and no other weeds sprin...

Hey Sam how's it going?!
The Dead Bed, I like that! Describes mine perfectly. In the spring it's the mud patch, and in the summer/fall it's the patch 'O concrete!
Those are sure beauties you have now!

Thanks John! I'll make a note of those and try them in the spring. I know it won't be a wasted effort as it appears dailillies can grow literally anywhere, under any condition. :wink: My favorite Gaillardia thus far is the one with the ruffled trumpet-shaped petals. Blooms almost constantly for near...

Very close John! It's due West. Morning shade, afternoon sun. The worst combination of course. :P Good advice Wanda. If I get a chance I'd be curious to see what a soil test turns up. It's not particularly compacted and was never parked on or a traffic area, but as far as old spills I'm not sure. It...

I love daylilies, but they just don't bloom long enough. I actually have pulled everything out, tilled it clean, amended and started over three times. Same result. I may end up having to go the raised bed route. Thanks for the suggestions, at least I know I'm not the only one who has had this proble...

And that's likely the case. It sops up moisture so quickly in the summer that I have leaned toward plants that are drought tolerant. I would have thought that Prickly Pear would rot too, but it has proven to be extremely tolerant and adaptable to almost any condition. I had thought about raising the...

Thank you!
Well you sure must be doing something right! Although your roses may be better established. These are on their second season. We're still a couple of months away from our first good freeze but after that summer I'm looking forward to it!

Me too. Oh and I also killed a Hardy Hibiscus in that bed! I planted its mate out in the yard next to the garage in the middle of July where it competes with the Bermuda and it's thriving. I've had Ice Plant before (at my old house) and really liked it so I may try that. Surely it has a chance if th...

My front yard does very well luckily, but the back yard is another story, particularly in the big flower bed between the house and back walk. Remember the Sam Kinneson comedy routine?... "Nothing grows here!!!!!!! Nothing's gonna grow here!!!!!!" I knew that the soil wasn't the greatest, but I've su...