Sharing Nature's Garden at Diana Kirby's garden

Photo: Diana Kirby

Diana Kirby, our fearless lead planner for the upcoming Austin Fling, shares her 1-acre suburban-country garden on her blog, Sharing Nature's Garden, and she'll be sharing it with us at Austin Fling too! 

As soon as you arrive you'll know you're at a gardener's garden. Diana is a true plant lover with design chops to boot. Ribbons of colorful salvia, society garlic, aster, and golden thryallis, anchored by stately, broad-leaved agave, act as welcoming committee. Along the curving walk to the front door, where tall trees provide shade, the bold foliage of sago palm, Persian shield, and root-beer plant offer rich color or texture.

Diana rocks tropical-style color and bold foliage in her back garden, which is designed for entertaining with a swimming pool, outdoor kitchen, and comfortably furnished cabana. She's recently added a rose parterre near her greenhouse and vegetable garden, and she's even claimed growing space outside of her fence for deer-resistant, drought-tolerant agaves, yuccas, and native flowering perennials.

We look forward to sharing Diana's garden with you at the Fling, which is happening May 3-6. Only a few spaces remain, so sign up today!

American Meadows and High Country Gardens help gardeners gain confidence and garden sustainably

Two trusted names in online nurseries, American Meadows and High Country Gardens, are partnering with Garden Bloggers Fling for the 3rd year in a row and will be our Sunday lunch sponsor at Austin Fling! Not only do these sister companies sell great plants, they also publish helpful gardening blogs, and you'll meet their friendly reps, Jenny Prince and Wendy Hatoum, at the Fling. We're excited to note that you'll also meet the founder of High Country Gardens, well-known plantsman (and a regular blogger himself) David Salman, who will join us for part of the Fling tour.

American Meadows is "where confidence grows." Their approach is simple: "For years we have offered gardeners only the best wildflower seeds, flower bulbs, perennial plants and flowers, vegetable seeds and flower seed packets ‐ the ones we grow in our own gardens. We stand ready to help you grow with confidence!"

Known particularly for their wildflower seed mixtures, American Meadows also offers a complete line of flower bulbs and perennials. Their 25+ years of experience in educating and learning from the horticultural industry, which is reflected in their educational and inspirational blog posts and How-To info, has helped many gardeners establish and enjoy their gardens.

American Meadows

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American Meadows Blog

High Country Gardens offers beautiful plants that thrive in the arid West. Their xeric (dry-loving) plants range from agastache to salvia, yucca to ornamental grasses, and include no-mow groundcovers that can be grown in place of thirsty turf grass. Their Pre-Planned Gardens aim to make it easy to create gorgeous gardens and are big sellers.

Pioneers in sustainable gardening for drought-prone regions, High Country Gardens shares inspiring examples of low-maintenance, waterwise gardens on its website and social media, showing Westerners how beautiful their gardens can be when planted with climate-appropriate plants.

Santa Fe horticulturist David Salman founded High Country Gardens in 1993 as a mail-order nursery, offering hard-to-find plants and native and adapted plants for high-desert regions and beyond. In 2012 the Salman family sold High Country Gardens to American Meadows, with David continuing on as chief horticulturist and developer of unique and award-winning plant varieties. He's also a regular contributor to the High Country Gardens blog, so check it out!

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Our thanks to both American Meadows and High Country Gardens for their support of Austin Fling!

Botanical lighting for the garden from Fern Valley Art

Oak and Japanese Maple light bollards (Photo: Fern Valley Art)

While visiting a garden in Fort Worth last fall, I fell in love with the owner's pillar-style garden lights with cut-outs featuring the distinctive leaves of a Japanese maple and an oak. As it happens, the gardener is also the metal artist, and more of her beautiful botanical-themed metalwork, including sculptural flowers and flower "pictures," was displayed throughout her garden. This talented artist is Wanda Stutsman of Fern Valley Art, and she has an online store and can ship anywhere! We're proud to say she's also a sponsor of Austin Fling!

Wild Grass light bollard (Photo: Fern Valley Art)

Wanda specializes in replicating nature in steel. She designs and fabricates Texas native and adapted plants using steel to create unique and beautiful framed art pieces. With her husband, Karl, she creates her outdoor-light bollards with detailing featuring the foliage of plants and trees. They are stunning by day and magical when lit. Check out her entire Nature Series, which includes Japanese maple, oak, palm, and wild grass. She also makes several mid-century modern designs.

We're proud to have Fern Valley Art as a sponsor of Austin Fling, and we have a special surprise for attendees. Wanda is donating one of her lights -- winner's choice -- to our raffle, with free shipping within the continental U.S., or with a $40 shipping credit if the winner lives elsewhere. We'll be displaying her work at the Fling so you can see the quality for yourself. I think you'll fall in love with her work, as I have!

Our thanks to Wanda and Fern Valley Art for their support of Austin Fling! Find them here:

The light bollards are beautiful by day as well.

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Wildflower meadow, garden haus, and a killer view

Someone with less vision might have chosen to let a breathtaking view of downtown Austin do all the talking. But Ruthie Burrus has vision. After her house was built -- in a style that references the simple stone houses German immigrants in the 1800s built in the Texas Hill Country -- she chose to enhance her backyard's stunning view with a frame of native blooming plants and succulents, mixed with some Texas favorites and a few roses.

"My garden," Ruthie says, "is all about pollinators, native plants, and taking advantage of views and natural surroundings. We live on top of a hill overlooking downtown Austin, the Texas Capitol Building, and the University of Texas tower. Our property is both a Certified Wildlife Habitat and a Monarch Way Station, so it's filled with sunflowers, salvias, lantanas, pavonia, Turk’s cap, and bee balm -- lots of food for pollinators! We also have a rainwater collection system that harvests rain off our roofs and gutters and stores it in a 10,000-gallon galvanized tank. It is wonderful to be able to water flowerbeds with rainwater instead of chemically treated city water."

Anchoring one end of the back garden is a charming garden "haus" designed by Ruthie and constructed of stone and antique doors, old windows, and recycled roofing material. It has been featured in Southern Living magazine, and if we're lucky with the timing, we'll see it smothered in pink 'Peggy Martin' roses.

Ruthie's garden "haus" in Southern Living, April 2017

Out front, a steep hillside has been planted as a wildflower meadow, showcasing native wildflower annuals and perennials in the spring, native lantana in the summer, and native grasses in the fall and winter. 

We look forward to sharing Ruthie's garden with you at Austin Fling! If you're a garden blogger and want to snag one of our remaining few spots on the tour -- a great value at only $275 USD -- click here for registration info.

Plants for every region from sponsor Plant Development Services

Plant Development Services Inc. offers three distinctive plant collections: Southern Living Plant Collection, Encore Azalea, and Sunset Western Garden Collection. We're proud to have their sponsorship for Austin Fling and excited to share their plant collections with you! They develop plants for diverse regions, so whether you're in the hot and humid South, the arid and sunny West, or even the colder Midwest and Northeast, check out their collections (below), and we're sure you'll find one or more plants to try in your own garden. 

And get this -- those who attend Austin Fling will have a chance to win some of their plants! For our banquet night raffle, Plant Development Services has donated 3 gift certificates, each one redeemable for 4 plants from one of their collections. What does that mean? It means that one lucky blogger will get to pick out 4 plants from Southern Living Plants. Another will get to pick 4 plants from Encore Azalea. And another will get to pick 4 plants from Sunset Plants. Which will YOU try to win?

Take a look at the three exciting plant collections offered by Plant Development Services.

Southern Living Plant Collection is designed to solve landscape challenges in Southern gardens. Each plant in this collection is thoroughly trialed and tested for the South. You'll find the collection in retail nurseries throughout the South -- just look for the distinctive brown containers with the Southern Living logo. You can also buy them online. 

I'm growing several Southern Living plants, including personal faves 'Everillo' carex and 'Soft Caress' mahonia, as well as three plants I'm trialing for the first time: 'Platinum Beauty' lomandra, 'Clarity Blue' dianella, and 'Marvel' mahonia.

A few of Southern Living's plants, from their website

Southern Living Plant Collection is a partnership between Plant Development Services Inc. and Southern Living magazine, a lifestyle and entertaining magazine of the South. Longtime Flingers may remember meeting Southern Living's garden editor, Steve Bender aka The Grumpy Gardener, at Asheville Fling in 2012!

Follow Southern Living Plants on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and Twitter. 

Encore Azaleas are the only patented brand of azaleas to bloom in spring, summer, and fall. Each of the 31 Encore varieties begins their performance with the spring flowering season. Once this "first act" of blooming concludes, new shoots begin to grow and set buds. The Encore Azalea's "second act" opens when these buds begin blooming into full flower mid-summer. This unique bloom season continues through the fall, the curtain dropping with the onset of cold weather. But, the show goes on. As an "encore," these exceptional azaleas flower again with traditional spring azaleas.

 

Unlike traditional azaleas, Encore Azaleas are sun tolerant. In fact, 4-6 hours of direct sunlight or high filtered shade will ensure optimal blooming and growth. Encore Azaleas are also cold hardy. University studies and extensive plantings throughout the Midwest and Northeast show that the majority of Encore Azalea varieties are cold hardy through USDA zone 6.

A few of Encore Azalea's plants, from their website

Follow Encore Azalea on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and Twitter. 
 

Sunset Western Garden Collection is the first plant collection designed specifically for the Western gardener. According to SF Gate, "The collection offers a mix of bold, contrasting foliage and perennial flowering color -- all on compact plants that won't overwhelm Westerners' urban and suburban lots." It also emphasizes water-wise plants suited to the region's arid climate.

Bloggers who attended San Francisco Fling in 2013 will remember our visit to Sunset headquarters and test gardens in Menlo Park -- only a year before that beloved property was sold. Sunset's new test gardens opened at Cornerstone Sonoma, just north of San Francisco, in 2016, and I made a pilgrimage to see it last summer. One word: wow! If you get the chance, go. You'll see their plant collection growing in a beautifully designed space.
 

A few of Sunset Western Garden's plants, from their website

Sunset Western Garden Collection is a partnership between Plant Development Services Inc. and Sunset. Since 1898, Sunset magazine has been a source of inspiration for those living in the West. Sunset’s experts focus on regional travel destinations, home design, outdoor living, gardening ideas, and recipes that celebrate the best of the West.

Follow Sunset Plants on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and Twitter. 


Our thanks to Plant Development Services and their plant collections for supporting Austin Fling! 

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