July 2026
July has been a difficult month in our area. On July 16, 2026, the Guadalupe River rose 31 feet between 5 a.m. and 8 a.m. In 2025, the river crested at 37 feet and slightly below this in 2026, but the most recent flooding was more widespread and there has been much more property damage in Comfort, Texas. Thank you for your help and concern! -Dinah
July 1, 2026
Sara found huge, well-established pipevine plants for sale at an HEB-Plus! grocery store 31 miles from the STEAM garden. She stumbled on them by accident, bought five pots, and when she arrived at the garden with her extraordinary find, we couldn’t believe our eyes!! I immediately headed back to the store with two of my godchildren and a large vehicle to get as many as I could. See the next entry for more info.
To make a long story short, over a period of twenty-four hours we made multiple trips to Bulverde and bought all the plants they had available -- thirty! Those of you who have followed my photo diary over the last year know that we struggle to keep enough pipevine leaves available to feed the hungry pipevine swallowtail caterpillars that hatch in our garden. This is no longer the case! What a relief! You can see that we have transplanted them into larger pots with good soil and lots of compost.
July 3, 2026
This plant is a Texas Star Hibiscus (Hibiscus coccineus). If you grow it in your garden, I bet someone will tell you it looks like a marijuana plant, but it isn’t even kin. It is part of the mallow family which includes cotton and okra. This hardy tropical-looking perennial is most often seen with a red, five-point star-shaped flower. This white variety blends in nicely with our white-flowered salvia plants, and it is growing in an area that will eventually be part of our white and silver Moon Garden. Nocturnal pollinators are attracted to light colored flowers.
Comfort had a very patriotic July 4th parade this year, but we were also remembering those who died in last year’s flood. It was nice to have the continuity of our traditional parade to celebrate 250-years of independence. We are fortunate to be able to sit on the 8th Street side of the STEAM Garden and comfortably view the event in shade! George Washington was one of many participants and the military flyover was an emotional high point for me.
This very big caterpillar is a cherished addition to the STEAM Garden!
It was made locally by Kim D. who loves gardening and Eric Carle’s book, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, as much as we do. We plan to buy a paperback version of the book, laminate the pages, and have it next to the artwork for visitors to enjoy. Toddlers sit on it and pet it. Thank you, Kim!
July 10, 2026
Two stray cats have been living in our barn since they were born there a couple of years ago. Now they are part of the spayed/neutered ‘trap-and-release’ cats in our community. We bought this QuickFeed automatic feeder and programmed it to release a cup of food two times a day. Luis and I designed what we hope is a racoon-proof cover for the feeder. We are using a game camera to view any activity. Baby Face is usually at the feeder looking up at the pipe before it releases food, and Gray Boy comes when he hears it activate.
This beautiful red dragonfly is a male neon skimmer (Libellula croceipennis). Sometimes we see dragonflies around our STEAM Garden water features. I think this is a male because of the bright color and the slim pointed abdomen. Dragonflies are carnivorous predatory insects, not pollinators, but we love seeing them in our pollinator garden. We can learn a lot by observing their territorial behavior and their unique anatomy.
It is time to erase our white board. We will miss these notes from past garden visitors, but we look forward to new comments and sketches. We try to check the board daily to make sure comments are respectful and not offensive. Seldom has there been a problem. I think allowing visitors to physically communicate and "leave their mark" is good for a STEAM garden. Besides comments we have gotten facts, diagrams, quotes, riddles, Bible verses, and questions.
This very sad image captures the heartbreak of the property damage of this current flood. A fabric doll can no longer be cuddled because it has been soaked by river water that could have been carrying contaminants and/or sewage as well as silt and developing molds. For some of our neighbors, this is the second time in a year they have lost their belongings and experienced damage to homes that have been part of their family for over a hundred years.
July 16, 2026
Left is an image of our backyard right before the river crested this year. The second photo shows what we are viewing to the right of the first photo. You can barely see the peak of our 5-foot-tall compost pile, the 2-foot-tall black water trough used by deer, and my glass greenhouse. I am sitting on our back porch which is four feet above the ground. We have lived here 30 years and this is the highest water we have seen. Needless to say, the water collection tanks under the porch deck are full.
(July 4, 2025 the water touched our back rock fence, but it didn’t extend into the back yard.)
July 20, 2026
When I wake up before dawn, I like to take Sophie for a moonlight or cell-phone-light walk in the STEAM garden. Click the play arrow on the video to the left to listen to a sound we hear frequently. Do you know what it is? Find a baby animal in this wood pile for the answer. I didn’t know that a female gray fox had a den in the woodpile on our neighbor’s side of our garden fence. Luis saw this kit and was lucky to get a photo before it disappeared.
Today, Ignacio and I spent several hours visiting the Lady Bird Johnson Wildlife Center in Austin, Texas. It is an inspiring and exhilarating place to visit, but today it was also exceptionally hot -- nearly 100F. Even the butterflies seemed to be resting in the shady areas and under these magnificent arbors. This fall, I hope to build lots of cattle-panel arbors like these for the pipevine plants we purchased earlier this month. We also enjoyed the Ice Age Exhibit that is currently visiting the Center. A pair of Dire Wolves and their cubs met us as we entered the garden compound. Imagine that! Remember to use sunscreen, wear a hat, and take an umbrella!
Sending oceans of love and sunshine from Florida. You are always in our prayers!
Our prayers to COMFORT! We love you Dinah take care!
Dinah we are so glad you and the academy are safe!