The late spring rains have brought some nice blossoms to the garden this April. Including...

The Royal Penstemon I got this winter from the nursery at the Theodore Payne Foundation.
The blossoms on the Royal Penstemon are really lovely, and butterflies and other pollinators seem really into them. I saw a butterfly just hanging out inside one of the blooms the other day, drinking in the awesomeness. I guess that's the benefit of planting natives.

Also currently blooming are one small lupine and a few pink Cosmos from the wildflower seed mix my sister gave me for Christmas. More Cosmos, scattered throughout the backyard, are on the way.

Plus these, whose name I can't currently remember.

Speaking of my sister, she has an amazing wildflower display in front of her house in San Antonio. Mine is pretty pitiful in comparison, but I'm still happy to see some pretty spots of color around the backyard.

The front yard is really bushy and overgrown, but in bloom as well, which is great. I am planning to prune it back soon and recover the paths with some wood chips we got from friends a couple of weeks ago. There are bees everywhere, to the point where I'm concerned about my son accidentally grabbing one when he picks lavender blossoms. But still, it's nice to see so many happy bees.

Despite some past failures, I have recently decided that I really enjoy growing potatoes. I don't even have to buy seed. I just accidentally leave potatoes from my produce delivery box in the pantry for too long, and I've got some starters almost ready to plant.

Last year, I grew potatoes in the ground, but this year I decided to use the potato bags again. I think I have it figured out this time. I planted earlier--in March--and I'm keeping them bags out of direct sun and being careful not to over-water. I think my last potato bag disaster was due to hot summer temperatures combined with overzealous watering (due to the hot temperatures). So far, things seem to be going well.

Here is the first bag I planted back on March 18, sitting next to my two blueberry bushes.

And here it is today, April 28. Potatoes grow so quickly!

Today I filled in dirt and compost around the stalks until it was almost to the top of the bag. Now, I just have to wait and try not to get to crazy with the watering. If I'm good, I should have some potatoes by June. What could be easier than that? (I hope I'm not jinxing myself by saying that.)