Parking may be challenging as the streets are narrow, but parking on the side streets and a short walk will give you an
opportunity to observe the historic neighborhood and all the original houses still on this block. The houses are very close
together which seems to have brought the neighbors closer together as well.
We want to give a special thank you to Wabash Feed and Garden for the gift certificate awarded to our host. Wabash is located at 4537 N. Shepherd Dr.
2410 Keene St is a native plant and kitchen garden in Near Northside. Cory Saul, a horticulturist at Houston Botanic Garden,
and his partner bought the house with a good-sized lot about 3 years ago and set about transforming the long-neglected space
into a resilient and biodiverse garden by identifying and responding to microclimates, improving the soil, and of course,
planting natives. Notable spaces include the streetside drainage ditch, which has been re-wilded with Gulf Coast Prairie
plants, the greenscreen thicket on the south side of the lot, the live oak canopy with epiphytes, and the cactus mounds.
The gravel path borders are made of broken concrete and bricks sourced from the site itself.
This tour should prove educational as well as entertaining. For example, Cory planted daikon radishes early on as a method of
improving the heavy clay soils. While the green tops were mulched in place, the radishes themselves burrowed deep into the
soil to allow pathways for water to penetrate the hard packed soil also adding organic matter as they decomposed in place.
This treatment ,as well as adding native plants later, have made the drainage ditch a water sink, drawing excess water into
the ground. The cactus mounds were built starting with piles of concrete rubble supplying the necessary drainage the cactus
require. There are many lessons to be learned from this challenging landscape.
The “China Hat” bushes (Holmskioldia sanguinea) on the west fences bloom a brilliant orange in November. Last year several families used the display as a background to their family photos! They and the Japanese Yews remind us of the gardens of Japan and the Orient. We also added what we call the “Zen Garden” in the patio, which is a quiet place to relax with a book, meditate, or enjoy a meal.
The succulents and the white and brown boulders and rocks scattered around our yard remind us of the deserts of the Australian outback. We developed an appreciation for good wine from friends we had in Australia, so we planted a grapevine to attempt it ourselves, but it never bore enough fruit for even one glass.
Since the Heights is like an urban forest, we added five Shumard Oaks along Peddie which offer a few seconds of shade to pedestrians, as well as a playground for young squirrels.
Our yard evolves as the days and seasons go by. We add new plants, hardscape, and décor to enjoy. We have planted milkweed, bluebonnets, Black-eye Susans, Lantana, and other perennials and annuals over the years, in hopes of attracting butterflies. We also welcomed some “volunteer” plants such as the Redbud tree that rooted and grew right on the property boundary between us and the neighbor’s house on Peddie Street. (The neighbors were kind enough to trim a notch in their wooden fence so the tree can thrive.)
We hope you enjoy it now and in the future.
The garden club would like to thank Buchanan's Native Plants for the gift certificate presented to our Yard of the Month recipient. Buchanan's is located at 611 E.11th here in the Heights.
We are delighted to be able to bring you Mark McKinnon's woodland garden here in the Heights. This garden has been featured in more than one Garden Conservancy tour and was recently included in Pam Penick's book 'Gardens of Texas'. From the street, the house is almost invisible, camouflaged with mature trees with a thick, shade-loving native understory. A row of river birches in the side yard lead back to a shady and secluded courtyard containing a large pond, a water retention trough, and a horseherb lawn surrounded on three sides by covered porches. In the pond, water is filtered through a planter of aquatic plants which is also a fountain adding the soothing sound of falling water to this secluded getaway. The landscape has been carefully planned for resiliency, water retention, shade, and privacy all on a normal-sized Heights lot
The garden club would like to thank New Roots Landscaping Nursery and Antiques for the gift certificate presented to Mark. New Roots is located at 5117 N.Main here in the Heights.
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