Well lets see: One that is drought tolerant, blooms beautiful orange flowers all year – even after a 15 degree day of ice and sleet. One that the bees just love and crowd over since its the only thing that is blooming in mid February. And one that the deer do not touch. Well I was lucky enough to find one just like that. Tada!!Its the Globe mallow! Also called Desert Globe mallow. (Sphaeralcea ambigua)

Now bear in mind this picture is taken in the middle of February. The grass is dormant and an ugly brown, and the pond needs some serious work.
We’ve had a rough winter (for Texas!!) of 15 to 20 degree days, hence the net hanging over the pond for cleanup in the background, and the dead foliage everywhere. But when I looked closer at this plant it was covered in bees.

I think there are three bees in that one flower. Ladies! There are plenty of flowers to go around…The silvery green hair covered leaves of this mallow is what makes it so cleverly drought tolerant. Thick hairy leaves prevent water from evaporating and trap moisture when it is in the air.

You can even see the pollen packs on the back of the girls’ legs in this closeup shot. These girls know how to pack!

This must be the yellow pollen deliciousness the bees are after:It was a wonderful 70 degree day and my bees were out scouting for some pond water and this beautiful, tough plant. Bees will come out of their hive when temps are in the 50’s. This was one of those days. We’ve had quite a roller coaster ride of weather here in Central Texas. Some days we have 70’s and others it is closer to 25 with sleet. Alas, no significant rainfall, and we’re already seriously lacking in soil moisture. Considering our average rainfall at the end of March is closer to 8 inches and we’ve had about 0.66 for the year. Anybody sick of snow and rain? We’d gladly welcome your leftovers. 🙂