Submitted by Westcreek resident Barbara Huffman

Congratulations to Frank and Debra Lewis of 4513 Langtry Lane for receiving the WNA Yard of the Month award for December! The beautiful holiday lighting on their house earned them a $50 gift certificate from Emerald Garden and a $25 gift certificate from Mandola’s.

Frank and Debra love decorating for Christmas, and at their front door they proudly hang an antique ornament that Frank’s family hung at his family home. There is a friendly competition among the neighbors on Langtry to out-decorate each other each year. Frank and Debra were thrilled to be this year’s December Yard of the Month winners.

Submitted by Westcreek resident Hannah Williams

Congratulations to Robin Mayfield for winning Yard of The Month in September!

Robin Mayfield’s beautiful yard and certified wildlife habitat has always caught my eye while making the rounds in Westcreek. I love her amazing variety of colors and textures! She was so much fun to talk to about her yard. She had GREAT information to share and also writes a gardening blog!! The website for her blog is getgrounded.wordpress.com and she is part of the Austin Garden Bloggers.

All of her plants and trees are native or adapted native. She uses the city’s Grow Green Guide and tends to frequent nurserys like Barton Springs Nursery, The Natural Gardner and The Great Outdoors. Everything is done organically. She cares for her plants by using compost and mulch twice a year.

In her yard she has a beautiful assortment of Salvia Greggi, Purple Fall Aster, Lantana, Pride of Barbados, Blackfoot Daisy and her favorite: Gomphrena (the little red ones).

Her grass looks great for the horrific summer we had, too! She said that on the left, between her and her neighbor, the grass had a St. Augustine fungus. They worked together and got rid of it with cornmeal and compost from Natural Gardner.

These are Persimmon Trees.

One of her favorites is this Varigated Flax Dianella. It’s great for shade, dies in the winter, but then grows back.

Her favorite, Gomphrena. She gave me a bud to dry out and plant the seeds in my yard! She said that her and her neighbors “plant swap” all the time and highly recommends it.

Ruby Crystal and Mexican Feathergrass.

Varigated American Agave. Eventually this will grow and curl over the tub. The other plant blooms yellow flowers.

All plants are very heat and drought resistant – and look gorgeous, too!

Robin gave us a few tips to share as well. She said that the MOST important thing is MULCH MULCH MULCH! She has 8 inches of mulch in her flower beds. She said not to plant directly in the soil or the plant won’t make it. Lay down the foundation with mulch first. (I’ve learned that the hard way!). Another tip: on her corner bed, she laid down cardboard and then 8 inches of compost. She mulches twice a year.

Hear more great tips from Robin by reading her blog! Here’s the website again: getgrounded.wordpress.com.

Happy gardening!!