Surviving Drought

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One thing I love about working in the horticulture world is that there is always something new to learn or observe about plants.  The hot, dry summer we are experiencing makes for an interesting time to learn about plants, although I would prefer to have cooler temperatures and rain!

Plants require water for survival, something we are all acutely aware of during a Texas summer.  When it gets dry, plants have very different responses for surviving a lack of water.  Generally speaking, plants have three strategies to survive drought (more…)

Mosquitos

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I keep running into interesting bugs to write about, especially the bugs in the garden that are killing our squash plants and messing with my tomatoes!  This week, the bugs have been attacking me!  I spent the weekend scratching chigger bites on my ankles, and I could not spend time in the backyard without mosquitos coming after me.  It is almost enough to make this outdoors-loving gardener stay inside!

Mosquitos are a pesky problem in the warm months in Texas.  The bite can itch, but mosquitos can also carry diseases that affect humans.  Fortunately, there are several steps we can take to protect ourselves (more…)

Stinky Stink Bugs

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Every time I check the garden over the last few weeks, it seems like it has grown another foot!  We have had great rain and good weather lately, and the plants are loving it.  We have already enjoyed several meals with fresh potatoes and onions, fried squash, and even some fresh pinto beans.  The tomatoes are finally starting to ripen, and I cannot wait for a plate of fresh sliced tomatoes.

Unfortunately, the bugs seem to like this weather, too, and they are making themselves right at home in the garden.  One of my least favorite garden pests is the stink bug.  Stink bugs are so named because (more…)

Take Advantage of Rain to Save Water

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The recent rains have been a blessing in Central Texas, and I love seeing so much abundant green growth.  When I watched the weather this morning, the meteorologist showed some great drought monitor maps to show how we are slowly catching up to our average rainfall amounts for this time of year.

Even with the rainfall, water conservation is on my mind because our water sources are still low.  As of May 24, 2023, Lake Georgetown is at 66% capacity and Lake Travis is at 45% capacity.  Much of the county also gets water from Stillhouse Hollow Lake, which is at 69% capacity.  You can keep up with the drought numbers and our water supply reservoirs at www.waterdataortexas.org/.

As the weather heats up and we get into summer lawn care mode, it can be almost automatic to think we need to start watering (more…)

Squash Vine Borer

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May is the fun gardening month when vegetable gardens seem to grow overnight!  Just this week we have enjoyed fresh lettuce and spinach salads, the last of the Texas Superstar Green Magic broccoli, and a homegrown blackberry cobbler from the garden.  The onions are getting close to harvest, and I cannot wait to try out the purple potatoes that I planted this year.

Unfortunately, a few garden pests have also started enjoying the daily buffet found in our garden spot.  Warm weather brings out the garden pests, including caterpillars, stink bugs, beetles, aphids, and spider mites.  Be sure to monitor your garden frequently so you can stay ahead of pest problems before they damage your garden.

The pest at the top of our minds right now is the squash vine borer (SVB).  Most Texas gardeners groan when SVB is mentioned because we all know how quicky it can take a squash plant out just when your mouth was starting to water at the thought of fried squash for supper.

Squash vine borers are a tricky (more…)

Take All Root Rot

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Springtime weather brings beautiful wildflowers, lovely weather for picnics, and lots of fungus among us.  I wish I was talking about tasty mushrooms that we can sauté with a good steak, but the fungus that is popping up in many lawns this spring is Take All Root Rot.

Take All Root Rot, gaeumannomyces graminis var. garminis, is a fungual disease that causes weak, dead patches in turfgrass.  St. Augustine grass is most affected by take-all root rot, but it can also affect bermudagrass and Zoysia grass.

The symptoms of take-all root rot usually appear in spring and early summer (more…)

Spring Pruning

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One of the first signs that I look for to know that spring has finally arrived are blooming shrubs like bridal wreath spirea, forsythia, and quince.  The red flowers on quince seem to pop out just when I am starting to think that winter will never end, and my bridal wreath spirea gets the season going with showy white flowers.  These early spring blooming shrubs are great to have in the landscape to add color to your landscape earlier in the year.

If you have spring-blooming shrubs, one thing to keep in mind is that they should be pruned in late spring soon after flowering.  Spring flowering shrubs set their buds in the fall on last season’s growth.  If you prune them in the winter like we recommend for many other trees and shrubs, you will prune off all the buds for spring flowering.

Spring-blooming shrubs that bloom on last year’s growth include (more…)

Hummingbirds

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One of the best parts of gardening is sitting back to enjoy the garden and all the garden visitors.  As much as I love to plant new things and tend to my veggies and flowers, the ultimate reward is relaxing in my garden chairs to watch the hummingbirds visit the Turk’s Cap for their early evening snack and see the fat bumblebees in the comfrey.

Hummingbirds are so fun to watch, and I have worked to add plants to my landscape that will provide nectar for hummingbirds and other pollinators.  Bright, showy flowers in red, orange, and sometimes yellow are the most attractive to hummingbirds, and they love flowers with a long, tubular form.

If you are trying to attract more hummingbirds, consider (more…)

Spring Lawn Tasks

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Spring is in the air!  Well, spring was in the air last week, but this is Texas, and we never know when that last bit of winter will hit.  Even if the weather is confused about which season it is, the calendar tells me that it is time to get outside and start working in the lawn.  This cold snap is a good time to start making a to-do list for your lawn.

If you need to fertilize your lawn, now is a good time to take a soil test to understand what nutrients are lacking and how much you need to apply.  You can find the soil sample submission form (more…)

Cucumber Beetles

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This week I had a conversation with a newcomer to Williamson County who was interested in plant recommendations for our area and lawncare guidelines.  I have those conversations fairly often, and usually some of the questions are focused on the weather and how different it is in Texas.  Lately, I have to laugh and say that it has been a weird few years, even for Texas!

The weather already feels like spring, and we are just in the beginning of March.  I love warm weather, and I am already enjoying nice days in the garden.  I did get a dose of reality this weekend when I came across three spotted cucumber beetles crawling around the garden.  I’m not ready to see bugs in the garden, but the warm weather is bringing them early!

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