JULY YARD OF THE MONTH
Two giant non-flowering mulberry trees at 2300 Thomas Place create welcome summer shade that invites you to set a spell.
“Our yard is like our third pet,” chuckles Kathryn McGlinchey who is the mastermind and main caretaker of AHNA’s July Yard of the Month. Husband Parnell shares watering duties. When they both leave town, they board their pets, but have to hire someone to water the plants.
Pots of purple hearts, ferns, begonias, coral bells, vinca, cast iron plants and Creeping Jenny are scattered throughout the landscape. Cross vine climbs up the front face of the house and intertwines with climbing white roses and hyacinth bean vine. A purple climbing rose creeps up the driveway wall. A pot of ornamental cabbage left over from the spring continues to look good despite the heat. Kathryn’s motto: “if you keep growing, I’m going to let you live.”
After a major underground pipe broke under the house, the McGlinchey’s were forced to move out while repairs were made. Returning after nine months, Kathryn was faced with a landscape that was mostly dead. In 2016, she replanted almost the entire garden, including re-sodding the lawn.
“We had always had a hard time getting grass to grow in the front and we thought it was because the mulberry trees were blocking the sun,” says Kathryn. She called in Lawn Doctor who diagnosed grubworms as the problem. After two applications of insecticide, “it was like night and day.” Even Parnell, initially a doubter, is now a believer.
The newest addition is a Pride of Barbados plant that the McGlincheys made a special trip to Austin to pick up. Also known as Mexican bird of paradise, the bright orange flowers attract butterflies and are a nod to UT where both McGlincheys graduated from law school. The purple plants throughout the landscape are in honor of TCU, Parnell’s undergrad alma mater.
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