Gill Garden Center + Landscape Co.
Corpus Christi, TX Garden Center
My Christmas Cactus from last year is nice & healthy but not a bud on it. To force blooming, move the pot into a dark spot, like a closet, for 12 hours a day and then out in good light for 12 hours. Fertilize with a water soluble fertilizer like Hasta Gro or Miracle Gro and you should get buds and blooms for the holiday season!
-Sally
We have customers of all ages. Maybe two of our youngest gardeners, very active gardeners, are brother and sister Kai & Isla. Kai is a third grader and Isla a first grader, both attending Windsor Park Elementary.
It’s no surprise, they’ve grown up watching their parents and grandparents garden. And it seems they all love to experiment with what they plant, where they plant it and how they take care of it.
I asked the kids what they are thankful this Thanksgiving. Kai said he is thankful for nature and camping; Isla for being outside, NOT watching TV & NOT eating fast food!
For starters, they prefer raised beds. They use sandy loam topsoil mixed with Nature’s Blend from Gill’s and then they add compost between crops. Kai says their compost is made up of kitchen scraps (veggie peels, egg shells, strawberry tops, etc…) mixed with leaves and grass clippings.
The kids have three different growing areas in their backyard. One garden is behind the garage along the back fence where they grow veggies on a string trellis. They have a crop of green beans ready to harvest right now!
The second garden is along the side of their house where they have huge tomato plants mixed with marigolds and lots and lots of basil.
Their third garden is in the back corner where Jeff, their dad, built a L shaped raised garden. It was a gift to his wife Erika! It’s the largest garden and has the most diversity with different greens, radishes, herbs, carrots, kale, kohlrabi, pumpkin, broccoli & Bok Choy.
And to top it off, they have a big pot of beautiful fresh spearmint on their patio next to a pot of pineapple and a grow bag with potatoes they’re experimenting with!
I asked them if they liked to eat what they grow. Yes, they do! One of Isla’s favorite recipes is fresh kale from the garden mixed with olive oil, parmesan cheese, garlic and lemon. Yum! They also love simply munching on leaves while playing in the backyard!
I thought my visit was going to just be about plants, until they asked me if I wanted to see their chickens. They have four chickens, soon to be producing eggs. One of their fun pastimes is picking worms off their greens to feed their chickens!
Kai & Isla both seem to love digging in the dirt, watching veggies grow, and eating healthy food! So this Thanksgiving week, one of the many things I will give thanks for is parents that share the miracles of nature, gardening and good old healthy living with their children!
-Sally
Poinsettias come in lots of colors and sizes, but all love to be kept in indirect light and very moist. Place inside, in front of a window and away from heaters and vents, or on the porch away from direct light.
A good way to keep watered by placing a few ice cubes on the soil every day. Only water the soil, not the foliage.
If the plant is wrapped in foil, remember to poke a few holes in the bottom and place in a saucer for drainage. Expect to see a few brown, ugly leaves – just remove when you water.
Read more about how to plant your poinsettia and enjoy again next year!
Happy gardening!
We have lots of calls coming in about how this cold weather will affect plants. Winter is here, but the results won’t be too brutal for most. Some areas of the Coastal Bend are forecast to see a light freeze, and some not.
If temperatures stay above low 30’s:
Some tender house plants, such as Chinese evergreen and spathyphyllum, can be damaged by temperatures of 40 and below, so hopefully you have plans to bring those in, but ficus and schefflera and many others will be okay to 30 and a little below.
Esperanzas, hamelias, and many other tropical blooming shrubs will drop leaves and look bad, but that’s what to expect for this time of year, and they should come back fine next spring. If you want to try to keep them looking as nice as possible for Christmas, you could throw a sheet over them until temperatures are back in the high 40’s and hope for the best.
If temperatures drop below low 30’s:
Always continue to watch forecasts. If we have more clearing skies than expected, it could get a little colder. If it gets below the low thirties, some additional protection would be warranted.
If they can’t be brought inside, tender plants in pots should be watered just before a freeze, and tumped over so they are closer to the ground (a source of heat) and covered, not wrapped, so ground heat will be trapped under the cover and around the plant. We have reusable N-Sulate frost protection blankets available if you don’t want your bed sheets out in the garden.
Most citrus will be okay down into the high twenties. If you have questions not answered here, call us at Gill Landscape Nursery, 361-992-9674.
-James
We just received a nice selection of geraniums for last minute planting in your garden for the holidays! Ours are the zonal “Fantasia” variety with large ball shaped clusters of flowers and rings on their leaves. These geraniums are known to be compact and very hardy.
Originally from South Africa, geraniums like part sun to full sun fall through spring. They can be planted in well drained soil in flower beds or in containers with good rich potting soil. They make good cut flowers, really don’t have pest problems and don’t need a lot of water. They love being fertilized with Hasta Gro.
We promise this will brighten any sunny spot in your garden all winter and spring long. Hardy to the upper 20’s (which probably won’t happen this winter). Enjoy!!
-Sally
Sally and I recently tripped up to “San Antone” to celebrate my sister Marie’s 70th. So much to see and do, but since all three of us are “plant people”, I think the highlight of the trip for all of us (besides the cake, of course) was the San Antonio Botanical Garden. We have been visiting since it opened in 1980, and have always enjoyed the 33 acres of plants, walkways, stone, and sculptures. On this trip, though, we were surprised to find it received a $22 million expansion this past fall!
The original garden includes a sensory garden full of textures and smells in addition to the visual, a striking fountain, and wisteria arbor, a hilltop overlook, rose gardens and perennial gardens, East Texas and South Texas habitat areas of native plants and pioneer-era cabins, and a lot more. Subsequent additions include the Kumamoto En Japanese Garden, and the Halsell Conservatory, several greenhouses containing exotic cacti and succulents, palms and tropicals, bromeliads and orchids.
The new expansion includes a very attractive entry garden and a culinary garden/teaching center, and a great new gift shop, with more on the way. Next year will see the opening of a new Family Adventure Garden, with nature play and learning areas. We can’t wait to go back, and I highly recommend this trip. Hopefully you can share it with your kids, or grandkids, a niece or nephew, or a friend. Spread a little plant joy, it’s fun and easy at the San Antonio Botanical Garden.
Here is another great article from My San Antonio for more info: First look at the $22 million San Antonio Botanical Garden expansion ahead of its opening.
Great memories of family trips to the gardens back in the 80’s with our son Stuart!
–James
Joey, who works with us at Gill’s, wanted some color on his front porch to greet visitors. He lives in an apartment so space is limited. He loves purple and loves Violas because they remind him of happy faces so his container included Mona Lavender (a good base background plant), Sorbet Mix Violas and Dusty Miller for contrast! $16.95 for all the plants and blooms all winter; you can’t beat that!
-Sally
This year for Christmas we mailed 9 boxes of Myer lemons to family & friends around the country with our favorite lemon yogurt cake recipe. The Myer lemon is native to China and is a cross between a true lemon and mandarin orange. We have 2 Myer lemon trees growing at my family’s home, producing over 400 lemons a season.
And you’re wondering, what the heck do you do with that many lemons. Squeeze and freeze in ice cube trays for lemons all year long!! So here’s a great lemon cake recipe; easy and delicious plus photos of cakes our friends made! Enjoy!!
Makes 1 Loaf, Barefoot Contessa
For The Glaze:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8 1/2 x 4 1/4 x 2 1/2 inch loaf pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper. Grease and flour the pan.
Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt in one bowl. In another bowl, whisk together the yogurt, 1 cup sugar, the eggs, lemon zest, and vanilla. Slowly whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. With a rubber spatula, fold the vegetable oil into the batter, making sure it’s all incorporated. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 50 minutes, or until a cake tester placed in the center of the loaf comes out clean.
Meanwhile, cook the 1/3 cup lemon juice and remaining 1/3 cup sugar in a small pan until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is clear. Set aside.
When the cake is done, allow it to cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Carefully place on a baking rack over a sheet pan. While the cake is still warm, pour the lemon-sugar mixture over the cake and allow it to soak in. Cool.
For the glaze, combine the confectioners’ sugar and lemon juice and pour over the cake.
-Sally
