My intention is to talk and report about all things that pique my interest and touch upon design and gardening. I’m Linda Francescone, and I’ll be sharing this space with my business partner, Wendy Redding. We have just started a garden design business called Contained LLC. Our business is focused on urban plantings for city dwellers, particularly container plantings.
We’ll take turns posting about plants, people, projects, and events that interest us. Welcome to our blog, and we hope you find it entertaining and informative!
Let me introduce myself. I am a native New Yorker, who has lived mostly in the Northeast, most recently in Cape Elizabeth, Maine. Four years ago, my husband and I moved to Austin for a job opportunity. My work history is varied and eclectic—but I have been working as a landscape designer and gardener for the last decade or so. Moving to Texas from the coast of Maine has been quite the shock—from zone 5 to zone 8 is a killer! However, I've jumped into Texas gardening with enthusiasm, learned a lot --and met some very nice Texans along the way.
Big Bend National Park, West Texas
Last month I traveled to Big Bend National Park, and was overwhelmed by the incredible landscape that pictures really can’t convey. It’s a lonely, vast space with a unique terrain and flavor. The western movies of the past really did capture what West Texas looks like.
The Chimneys Trail
View from the Chimneys
The weather was spectacular, warm air and clear skies. The hiking was low key, enough to work up a sweat but not so strenuous that you were out of breath all the time.
One of our favorite trails, The Chimneys, was a 2 mile hike into the desert that took us to an ancient gathering place at a volcanic rock formation. There were a number of petroglyphs etched along the base of the rocks. The most impressive moment was discovering a number of Native American artifacts that had been carefully displayed by a previous traveler. Thanks to that fellow traveler for leaving them where they belong .
Artifacts at the Chimneys
Walking through the desert and seeing all of the West Texas plants in their native environment was really exciting. These plants, among them agaves, sages, grasses and cacti were beautiful in their form and simplicity. They are plants worth using; sturdy, reliable bloomers, and able to take the adverse conditions in Texas with a minimum of care. Desert natives are readily adaptable to residential design. Just plan on placing the prickly plants several feet away from circulation paths.
Desert natives are easily accessible to the average homeowner. Local nurseries in Austin stock them. While you are picking up your native plants, get a copy of the Grow Green Guide. This is a terrific publication containing an extensive list of native and adapted plants suitable for Central Texas. Grow Green is a collaborative effort on behalf of the City of Austin and the Texas Cooperative Extension: visit the website at www.growgreen.org.
Ciao for now. Linda
The weather was spectacular, warm air and clear skies. The hiking was low key, enough to work up a sweat but not so strenuous that you were out of breath all the time.
One of our favorite trails, The Chimneys, was a 2 mile hike into the desert that took us to an ancient gathering place at a volcanic rock formation. There were a number of petroglyphs etched along the base of the rocks. The most impressive moment was discovering a number of Native American artifacts that had been carefully displayed by a previous traveler. Thanks to that fellow traveler for leaving them where they belong .
Artifacts at the Chimneys
Walking through the desert and seeing all of the West Texas plants in their native environment was really exciting. These plants, among them agaves, sages, grasses and cacti were beautiful in their form and simplicity. They are plants worth using; sturdy, reliable bloomers, and able to take the adverse conditions in Texas with a minimum of care. Desert natives are readily adaptable to residential design. Just plan on placing the prickly plants several feet away from circulation paths.Desert natives are easily accessible to the average homeowner. Local nurseries in Austin stock them. While you are picking up your native plants, get a copy of the Grow Green Guide. This is a terrific publication containing an extensive list of native and adapted plants suitable for Central Texas. Grow Green is a collaborative effort on behalf of the City of Austin and the Texas Cooperative Extension: visit the website at www.growgreen.org.
Ciao for now. Linda
