Yard of the Month

Spring Lake Garden Club’s May Yard of the Month features the home of Darby and Regina Howle in the Hills of Hays neighborhood adjacent to Dezavala Elementary School off Staples Road in San Marcos. The Howles have lived at the corner of Crystal River Parkway and Clearview Circle since 1979, when this subdivision first developed, and the neighborhood, still mostly surrounded by open land, has a “rural” feel, even with houses set on smaller lots. The Howles incorporate this mix of formal and casual in their landscape, which includes both cultivated and native plants, in beds and in pots.

Regina recalls that two trees and a patch of St. Augustine grass were provided by the home builder, but both trees died and the thirsty grass withered, so she and Darby started over. They gradually added a variety of trees, including two large ashes (in front and in the fenced back yard), two Bradford pears, white crape myrtles and a Mountain Laurel, which has since provided numerous offspring in the yard. A Chinese privet near the entrance is trimmed up as a tree, and its small white flowers in spring attracts clouds of butterflies. A planting bed at its base tempers sunshine for many colorful potted plants. This bed, like others in the lawn, is neatly edged with pavers installed by Darby, who also seeded the surrounding lawn with a drought-tolerant turf mix. He keeps the grass cut “long” to shade its roots and deter weeds.

Plants that might be damaged by cold weather are grown in pots which Darby moves into the garage in winter, but May’s sunshine supports an amazing variety of flowering plants added to the landscape by Regina and her mother, Eva Perez. A potted pink hibiscus welcomes visitors near the front door, joined by pink primroses in this foundation bed. The primroses have spread from one transplant collected across the road in an open field, which is also the source of other flowering natives. Bookending the front bed, pots of purple shamrock (oxalis) add color until Mexican petunia and lavender come into bloom in the middle of the space.

In a planting area protected by the privet, a red begonia blooms near a yellow mandevilla, with a Texas star nearby yet to show its flower. This bed is also home to a peace lily and a poinsettia from the winter holidays. Other beds under front yard trees are home to native plants such as white sage and purple verbena, collected from nearby fields and now thriving in ground or in pots. Red rose bushes bloom under Bradford pear trees against the backyard fence. Darby keeps all beds heavily mulched to retain moisture and discourage weeds, and a vinca major ground cover covers bare spots in one area.

The Howle front yard is not all plants, however: A long swing seat and large picnic table offer seats for visitors and numerous garden ornaments contrast and complement the wide variety of plants. Solar-powered spotlights highlight both garden art and plants after sunset, and fresh breezes cool this hilltop corner lot, along with shade from trees added to the landscape over the years. But behind the fence lies another garden, including Darby’s tomatoes and cucumbers and Regina’s chile pequins and serranos, all of which might be included in refreshments for family and guests enjoying gathering in this “outdoor living room.”