Jesse Jenkins

Chinch Bugs

Chinch bugs in the lawn are still active and can be all summer as long as the weather stays hot and dry. Treat as needed with hose-end Bayer Complete, Cyonara, Natural Guard Spinosad or Diatomaceous Earth.

Mealybugs

Mealybugs on tropicals like Hibiscus , Jatropha and Mystic Spires Salvia can still be found. Look for the white cottony insects on the stems and undersides of leaves. Treat with Safer Insect Killing Soap or Natural Guard Neem Oil in the evening once the plants are in the shade and temperatures have cooled down for the night. You can also use Bayer Complete or Cyonara.

Asian Cycad Scale

The last problem bug is the Asian Cycad Scale on Sago Palms. If your Sagos have white specks on the top and bottom of the fronds then you have scale. These can be much harder to control since they also live on the root system of the palm. Treat the fronds with a contact insecticide combined with an oil spray to kill and suffocate any eggs. It is also important to drench the root system with the same mixture. Repeat applications every week or two until all evidence of the scale is gone then follow up with Bayer Tree & Shrub Liquid Systemic drench for long term control.

-DeAnna

This is one of my favorites. It has the most beautiful blue blooms all fall, winter and spring. They love the sun. I fertilize mine periodically with Medina Hasta-Gro Fertilizer and top dress with Nature’s Blend a couple of times a year. I planted mine in a cluster of three in the front yard near a birdbath; the butterflies drink the nectar from the salvia and then drink water from the birdbath. Beautiful and very easy to grow!

-Sally

Crape Myrtles will always have some leaf scorch the first summer, despite adequate watering, and we should inform customers of that. Also, that watering needs to be frequent – apply enough water to replace what is lost from the rootball every day, twice a day the first two weeks if planted March thru September, then once a day for the next two weeks, then every other day for two weeks, then twice a week through October. Water to soak the surrounding area once a week, but just a few gallons per plant the additional watering days each week.

Do not let grass grow over the rootball and around the trunks of the crape myrtle. Do now stack soil onto the trunks of the crape myrtle. Mulch a 3ft. or larger circle. Remove spent bloom heads for faster growth and more blooms while you can still reach them safely.Do not prune off branches larger than your thumb unless you have good reason (hitting the roof, blocking the walk, or rubbing against another branch).

Having backyard chickens in urban neighborhoods is becoming more of a trend with each changing of (gardening) seasons. While many may think that having some hens running amuck in their gardens sounds like a lot of work or perhaps that they may not have enough room to keep them happy, the truth is that having some feathered ladies in the garden may take a lot of work off of your hands – and only about five square feet of space per chicken is required to keep everyone happy territorially.

Gills’ employees from Left to Right: Kady, Emily, Josh, all have backyard chickens of their own

The three main benefits of keeping backyard chickens, in my opinion, are as follows:

Natural Pest Control – Chickens absolutely love finding and eating bugs! When allowed to free range in your yard, you will find chickens scratching the ground to look for worms (and a lot of happy squawking if they find a chunky little grub worm!), and you will see your chickens sprinting around chasing mosquitos to grab out of the air. Not only is it eternally entertaining to watch the girls on bug-duty, it is extremely beneficial to your garden and to the peacefulness in your yard. I have watched chickens eat grasshoppers, worms, moths, fleas, snakes, ticks, aphids, scorpions, mosquitos, grubs, spiders, ants and termites. The girls will eat pests of any life-cycle including egg, larval stage and adults. This helps to keep the garden pest populations down which means less spraying that you have to do. The key is to allow your girls to have access to your gardens during the right times of the year. For example, you should not let your chickens in your garden if you have small seedlings growing as they may scratch them or sit on them accidentally. Keep your garden protected until the plants are established. And again, if you are growing fruit or vegetables, do not allow your chickens to reap the benefits of fresh food before you can! Do allow your chickens to roam through your freshly tilled garden as they will scout out the weed seeds to eat before they have a chance to sprout.
Natural Fertilizer – Chicken fertilizer is very beneficial if used responsibly. It is naturally extremely high in Nitrogen which could cause it to burn your plants if you do not allow it to sit for an amount of time. The easiest way to apply chicken fertilizer is to keep it mixed with your chicken’s bedding such as straw, hay or shavings. These are compostable materials and can be added to your garden in the way you would add any other compost or amendment. You have to clean their coops anyway so you might as well put it to good use in your garden! Another great assistance is the egg shells from your chicken’s bounty being used in your garden can add calcium and enrich the soil. When you crack the eggs, wash out the egg shells and allow them to dry. Then simply break them up and add them to your already-dug planting holes in your garden.
Urban Composting – I understand all of the benefits of having a compost bin but simply cannot keep one as A) I cannot stand the smell (and I don’t think my neighbors would appreciate it either and B) the bugs that are so attracted to the compost bin are a major turn off for me. I have always felt guilty throwing away table scraps and fruit/veggies that have gone off before having the chance to eat them. The chickens are living compost bins willing and able to take all of this guilt off of your hands! They are omnivorous so they can eat meat (although I do not condone feeding them chicken for obvious reasons) and they will eat just about anything else that you have had for dinner – with the exceptions of a few foods being unhealthy and poisonous for them to eat such as: candy, chocolate, sugar, raw potato peels, avocado skins and pits, raw or undercooked beans, salt and citrus along with a few various other items. Of course it is always a good idea to do a quick google search before feeding an animal anything that you are unsure of what the effect will be.

Enjoying the girls in the lower gardens at Emily’s house.

Raising your backyard chickens from day old chicks, in my opinion, is the most rewarding way to keep chickens. This gives you a chance to handle them from the time they are very young which makes them used to you, giving you a pet-like relationship with your backyard flock.

5 day old Silkie chicks

When you bring your new chicks home, you must keep them very warm at 95* F for the first week of their life and drop 5* F each week until they are maintained at regular daytime temperatures. The best way to do this is to keep a bulb and a thermometer in their coop. Of course it is important to practice proper safety methods with this such as not allowing the bulb to touch any surface in the coop and turning it off frequently to let it cool down.

Your new chicks will require a special type of feed called chick starter. You can purchase this medicated or unmedicated. The choice is yours, however, if you choose unmedicated you must diligently pay attention to the cleanliness of your coop and the distinct signs of health of your new chicks. Any unusual activity from one of your girls should be investigated immediately. Any symptoms can be found through a beginner chicken guide book or an online google search. www.backyardchickens.com is an excellent source of information and a great place to post questions/pictures of what’s going on in your flock. A trick that I have found helpful is to add a capful of organic apple cider vinegar to each gallon of water that your chicks drink. This helps to keep them drinking regularly as they like the taste and it also helps to keep them flushed out. Hens begin laying eggs between five and six months old. After three years of age, their laying rate begins to drop to one less egg per week.

The safety of your chickens should be your biggest concern when keeping backyard chickens. You must have a fenced-in yard if you want your chickens to free range, and even then they can take flight high enough to get over your fence. Fortunately, your chickens will not try to leave unless they are missing something that they need in your yard. If you have plenty of food and water, this should not happen. Next, you want to be sure that no outside predators can get into your yard, or your coop. In Corpus Christi, other than maintaining a safe coop, the concerns of predators are typically raccoons, opossums, coyotes, wild dogs, hawks and migratory birds. Be sure that your chickens have plenty of options to run to safety in a covered, hard to reach area to hide from predators that might have set their sights on your birds. The last safety concern is one that you may not immediately think of: your pet dogs and cats. If your pets go outside to roam around in your yard, you must remember that their first instinct is to hunt. You absolutely cannot leave your chickens out unprotected in your yard with your dogs. You must have an area to keep them safe and separated.

Some chicken fun facts:

Chickens do not have teeth. They have a gizzard that has tiny stones which grinds up the food that they swallow whole.
Chickens lay between 100 and 300 eggs per year, at a rate of one per day. The eggs are only fertilized if there is a rooster around.
Chickens begin communicating before they are born. The Momma Hen makes a purring sound to her unhatched eggs and the chicks can begin peeping back to her while they are still inside the eggs.
Chickens know who you are – they can learn up to 100 different faces.
Chickens have prehistoric roots. They are believed to be the closest living ancestor of the Tyrannosaurus rex.

Three Silkies enjoying the nasturtiums.

-Emily Capule

Plumeria, Frangipanis, Hawaiian Lei Flower, no matter what you call them they are beautiful and one of the easiest plants to grow in South Texas!

Native to Central America, Mexico, South America, and the Caribbean, Plumeria have now naturalized throughout most tropical areas around the world. It was on my 1st trip to the Florida Keys that I realized just how beautiful and huge plumeria can get. The one at our cabana was over 25 ft tall and raining fragrant flowers over our patio. Talk about impressive! Closer to home you can find a plethora of specimens at the South Texas Botanical Gardens. Plumeria come in a variety of colors and fragrances from subtle to intoxicating.

Caring for these tropical plants is so easy. Plant in a pot or in the ground, with full to part sun…they really like dry conditions so not too much water. Feed them with Nelson Plumeria Food during the growing season. You can leave them outside in the ground or pot during our mild winters. Keep them dry while they are dormant. If it’s going to freeze…pull them up…yes that’s right…pull them up and store them in a cool dry place over the winter…no light, water, soil, just the stalks.

Come next spring, plant them back outside and repeat…You can’t get any easier than that!

-Debbie

Starting your first cutting garden may be much easier than you would think. Planning your garden is the best way to start: a 3 foot x 10 foot garden bed will produce more than enough flowers to make a bouquet for yourself and a friend each week. Your garden plot must be in a place that receives at least 6-8 hours of sunlight every day. If you are unsure about the amount of full sun a certain spot receives each day, dedicate a day to checking the same spot hourly: from 8am until 5pm. Take notes each hour on what the sun conditions in that spot are. This may sound menial, but when planting near trees, the sunlight can be tricky! The next thing to consider is the location of your garden in reference to a viable water source. Keep it simple for yourself rather than having to constantly drag a garden hose. The final thought in choosing a location for your cutting garden is to place it out of sight. This may sound crazy to you, but will you be able to cut the beautiful flowers if you can see them from your favorite spot in the house or on the porch?

Creating your garden bed is the most important part of starting to grow any plants, especially cut flowers. You will need enough compost to add 6 inches to your 3’ x 10’ bed and enough mulch to cover 3-4 inches to cover your 3’ x 10’ bed. Feeding your plants with fertilizer is not the same thing as feeding your soil, you must plan to continuously add compost to be feeding your soil. You should be mindful of the hundreds of thousands beneficial microbes in the top 6 inches of your soil and your goal should be to constantly feed them and keep them in your garden as they are helping to keep the bad bugs away and to keep your garden soil aerated and stronger. By continuously adding organic matter, you are setting your garden up to become more self-sustainable each season.

My sweet boy, Baylor, always loves to inspect my freshly prepped garden beds. Photo courtesy of The Honey Bee & the Hound

To start making your 3’ x 10’ garden bed, first you must clear the designated area of any vegetation. Burn Out and Horticultural Vinegar are great organic herbicides. Once your bed area is free and clear of grass and weeds, you will start turning the soil in your bed simply by using a shovel. You will dig down as far as you can and place the shovel-full of dirt and make a pile of the dirt you have dug out. You should be digging out 3”-6” of soil. Next you will need a fork to put in the very bottom of the bed you have dug out to aerate and open the sub-soil. Your goal should be to make as many little holes in the very bottom of the bed as possible. Now you will need to get some compost, such as Cotton Burr Compost, to add about 3” of compost to the bottom of the newly dug-out bed. After you have added some compost, you will now add back in the soil that you have dug out to begin with. To top off your bed, you will add another 2”-3” of compost. Your end result should be a 3’ x 10’ bed that is raised about 6” above the ground. While this method of “double-digging” is much more labor-intensive than using a piece of machinery such as a tiller, but it more beneficial for your garden in many ways: it protects the beneficial insects and tiny microbes living in the top six inches of your soil that protect your plants from harmful pests and keeps the soil a healthy, living, necessary part of your healthy, happy flowers. It also helps to keep you accountable for your care of your garden – when you put that much work into starting a garden, you are bound to keep it up and to love and care for it often!

My favorite activity these days is riding around to find someone to share my flowers with! Photo courtesy of The Honey Bee & the Hound Cut Flower Farm

Next is the fun part: picking out the seeds to plant in your brand new garden bed! My three recommendations would be a Zinnia (Pumila Cut & Come Again), a Basil (such as Petra), and a
Sunflower. You will plant all of your seeds on a 6” x 6” grid. This will give the plants enough room to fully grow in while utilizing every bit of your space. With this combination of flowers you will easily have flowers for a bouquet that smells good and will come back week after week in your garden.

Fresh bouquets of zinnia and basil – photo courtesy of The Honey Bee & the Hound Cut Flower Farm

In order to maintain your new cut flower garden, you must stay on top of the weeds! The easiest way to get ahead of the weeds is to begin mulching your garden when your seedlings have grown 6” tall. Add 3” of mulch at a time using grass cuttings and old leaves that you have collected. This should allow you to have a whole season of no weeding necessary!

Enlisting your feathered ladies to help keep the weeds and pests down is always a good idea as long as they do not try to sit on your seedlings! – Photo courtesy of The Honey Bee & the Hound Cut Flower Farm

Lastly, when you go to cut your flowers be sure to do it in the cool part of the early mornings or late evenings. If you cut during the high noon sun, your flowers will likely wilt. Allow your flowers to sit in a bucket of water for at least six hours before beginning to arrange them in a bouquet. This allows them to get maximum hydration. Once you have gone through a season with your first cutting garden, I encourage you to begin looking for the seeds of the flowers that your mother and grandmother grew. This is what helps to make me feel so connected with my cutting gardens – I can cut the same bouquet that my late grandmother used to put on her dining room table and it makes me connect with her in a very special way. Enjoy!

To learn more, be sure to come to Gill’s on Airline this Saturday (September 10, 2016) for Emily’s Garden Talk:

”From Beginning to Bouquets – Cultivating Cut Flowers”

If you would like to connect with a local cut flower farm, visit

www.thehoneybeeandthehound.com

-Emily Capule, Flower Farmer and Gill’s Landscape Design Assistant

Believe it or not, we do have seasons in South Texas. As they come and go, so does our selection of vegetables. It’s end of season for hot weather veggies like tomatoes & peppers. So here’s your heads up….We have beautiful tomatoes and peppers now so get em’ while you can. We’ve got celebrity, sweet cherry, tycoon and other nice varieties along with a few peppers like sweet banana, chili pequin, and jalapenos.

And don’t fret too much when they’re gone; we are getting tons of fall/winter veggies and herbs.

Cool is coming soon!

Debbie

All from a shiny reddish ball. Or a fuzzy white ball. Or a corky brown ball. I’m talking oak galls, which commonly strike terror into the hearts of live oak tree owners this time of year. They are all caused by various species of small, stingless, solitary wasps. These wasps insert an egg (or several) into the tissue of small oak branches or young leaves, and are thought to modify the DNA of the plant, forcing the plant to produce growth (the gall) that supplies both housing and food to the wasp larvae living inside. The saliva of the wasp applied at the time of the egg laying is thought to contain a virus that produces the genetic changes, so wasp larvae have been eating GMO’s for millions of years.

So wasps are defacing and eating your oak tree this summer, what you gonna do about it? As one writer says, “I recommend a cold drink, a good book and a comfortable chair.” ‘Cuz there’s nothing you can do or should do about it. Oak galls come in periodic waves, a few one year, more the next, and none the year after. Or close thereabouts. This is thought to be due variously to the tree buildup up of tannins to discourage the gall formers, and to a buildup of parasitic wasps (also stingless) that drill into the galls and lay their eggs on the gall inhabitant. Crazy Mother Nature, there are even wasps that lay their eggs on wasp larvae that are consuming the original gall wasp larvae (did I put one too many eaters of larvae in there, I must proofread). The galls do not do substantial damage to your trees, and there’s really no way to get involved in the crazy gladiator’s pit of nature without screwing things up, SO DON’T SPRAY, just sit back in awe (or take a nap). And empty oak galls actually take in desirable boarders such as lacewing larvae and small spiders, scavenger ants and more beneficial wasps, all feeding on caterpillars and aphids.

Other fascinating factoids –

Oak galls were an important source of dark and permanent ink used for writing for over 12 centuries, and iron gall ink is still used by artists today.

Oak galls have recognized medicinal uses due to the high tannin content (and also used for tanning).

Before his landmark work on human sexuality, Alfred Kinsey was known for his study of gall wasps.

James

Jesse Jenkins

Chinch Bugs

Mealybugs

Asian Cycad Scale

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