Succulents and More™

As I was redoing yet another thing in the front yard, I thought it would be interesting to see how the garden has evolved over time. One of the reasons why I started this blog was to be able to make such comparisons, so it was simply a matter of digging out photos from years past. I thought I had a pretty good idea of how certain areas looked before, but looking at these photos, I realized how my mental image didn’t always line up with reality. Something else surprised me: In some cases, I like the “before” photos better, mostly because of plants I remember with special fondness. Because of that realization, I may just bring some old favorites back. ➤  West-facing sidewalk bed in front of the house 2017 This view is dominated by the bamboos on the left ( Bambusa oldhamii and Bambusa chungii ‘Barbellata’) and the palo verde on the right. This might have been the last year we had ornamental grasses in front of the house – or anywhere. 2024 One of the two bamboos ( Bambusa oldhamii ) an

As I said in part 1 of this post, if you liked Kyle’s front yard , you’ll love the backyard. To put it differently, if the front yard was the appetizer, the backyard is the main course and dessert all in one. The metaphor may be wonky, but you’ll get what I mean as you scroll through this post. Through the garden gate Kyle made this piece of wall art out of slices of rock cut from core samples. I loved it the first time I saw it, and I still do. In-ground succulents are what most visitors focus on, but there are many (many!) potted plants as well One way to tame a prickly hechtia The red leaves of Herbst’s bloodleaf ( Irisine herbstii ) add a perfect pop of color Succulents reflected in an old Mexican mirror on the fence One of about a dozen mounds in the backyard Fiery  Echeveria agavoides  ‘Merrill Grim’ attached to a lattice trellis Fence detail (photo by Kyle Johnson) View towards the house Another mound with a chaste tree ( Vitex agnus-castus ) as the center piece (already pruned