Time for a little cleanup! James explains techniques to use for early spring pruning.
cleanup
Welcome to 2022! January is the planning month for South Texas gardeners. Time to think about what/where/when/how, and most importantly, why to plant! Here are our top January to-do’s to set you up for a fun and successful Spring.
Check out our January Garden Guide for more tips and remember that trees, shrubs, and perennials can be planted 12 months out of the year! The only difference is the amount of water they need depending on temperatures and wind!
1. Set Your Gardening Intention
What are your reasons for gardening this year? Could be for stress relief, exercise, improving the environment, growing and cooking delicious food, attracting birds, or just enjoying being outside. Think about why you want to garden first, then use the month to plan your new garden spaces, clean up beds, and prepare your planting areas.
2. Keep Planting – But Watch The Weather
Our South Texas Spring is only about 45 days away! Pleasant weather brings the itch to start planting everything, but January weather is quite unpredictable, and temps can drop suddenly. January is a perfect time to plant trees & shrubs, greens & herbs, and cool weather flowers, just hold off on the tender tropicals.
3. Fertilize Your Citrus Trees
Use organic Citrus Tone by Espoma once you’ve finished your harvest. This helps your citrus get ready to bloom this Spring and produce a bumper crop next Fall-Winter. Reapply in June. You can feed in between with organic Hasta Gro.
4. Plant Climbing Roses
Our favorite climbing rose, the Peggy Martin variety, are blooming like crazy right now. Climbing roses benefit from being planted now and should not be cut back until after they have totally gone out of bloom. Other shrub roses should be cut back late January/early Feb to promote new growth and more Spring blooms.
5. Houseplants – Find a Good Spot
The key to vibrant and healthy houseplants is often just finding the right spot. A good starting point is to place near windows that get good indirect light for at least some portion of the day. Be sure to keep houseplants away from A/C and heat vents, which will dry them out. This Pilea is happy on a high shelf about 5 feet from a Western-facing window that gets indirect/dappled light through the trees outside.
6. Lawn Care
This Winter we’ve been diagnosing and treating fungal issues in lawns including the dreaded Take-All Root Rot. Check out our tips for prevention which include applying Peat Moss and making sure that you are not overwatering. For weeds, Bonide Weed & Crabgrass Preventer will help stop weed seeds from sprouting. Weed Beater Complete kills existing weeds and helps stop new weeds from sprouting.
Lots of us are gearing up to host friends and family for Thanksgiving and other gatherings this week. Can’t wait! Here are 3 ways to create the biggest impact outdoors with the least amount of time on your part.
1. Instant Color!
Fall flowers look ahhhmazing right now. Plant a few Pansies, Violas, Ornamental Cabbage and Kale, or Snapdragons in beds or in pots for an instant pop of color. Plant or set your containers in the most visible locations (like near walkways and entryways) that get at least 6 hours of sun throughout the day. Feed with organic Plant Tone when you plant for a quick bloom boost.
2. Quick Cleanup
Now is a great time to do light trimming on trees, shrubs, and perennials. Don’t do any major surgery right now, just a little light shaping goes a long way. For trees, always trim up from the bottom, not down from the top.
If you have oak trees, we bet you’re seeing more acorns than ever this year! The freeze in February + all the rain we’ve had throughout the year increased acorn production big time. They’re not fun to walk on, and some will sprout and grow into saplings, which you don’t want either. They can be difficult to rake up but try this amazing acorn hack using the back side of a leaf rake!
3. Seal the Deal with Fresh Mulch!
Fresh mulch can transform a space with very little time and effort on your part. A couple of tips: 1) estimate 1 bag of mulch per 12 square feet of bed space. This gives you a good mulch depth of 2-3”. Good depth makes it last longer, holds in more moisture, protects from cold, and helps keep weeds at bay. 2) Make sure you get a nice straight line at the back of the bed where the mulch meets the foundation of your house, or wall/fence. This is a quality check we use on landscape projects – makes all the difference!
Lawn Care
FERTILIZE
Organic fertilizers such as Milorganite and Medina Growin Green are excellent fertilizers that feed plants and soil and are the best choice during hot, dry periods.
LAY NEW SOD
Lay new sod anytime, and Bermuda seed anytime this month.
FIX YELLOW SPOTS
Apply organic Nature’s Blend, or conventional Hi Yield Iron Plus to yellow spots in lawn.
MOW
Mow as required. Keep St. Augustine cut to about 3”, Bermuda at 1”– 2”.
WATER
Water well every 7 days.
Read: Summer is Here, Time to Resume Watering
WATCH OUT FOR PESTS
Watch for Chinch Bugs and Grub Worms.
Read: Check for Chinch Bugs if Your Lawn Looks Dry Even Though You Know It’s Not!
Plant
All container grown trees, shrubs, and vines
It’s prime time to plant tropicals such as hibiscus, bougainvillea, ginger and palms.
Late spring and summer color
Zinnias, periwinkles, purslane, moss rose, gomphrena, lantana, ruellia, penta, caladiums, coleus, and more
Seeds
Sunflowers, morning glory, zinnias, and gomphrena.
Pepper and Tomato Seeds
Start seeds of peppers and tomatoes in containers to transplant in the garden in August.
Add plants to your indoor spaces to create a fresh air relaxing atmosphere.
Feed your houseplants to keep them healthy and looking their best. Hasta Gro works wonders. So does Plant Tone. And Worm Castings provide an amazing boost for houseplants too!
Houseplants that are happy & healthy will produce baby plants that are easily removed and transplanted to another container. A great way to increase your collection and share with your friends.
Fertilize
ANNUALS AND PERENNIALS
Organic: Medina Growin Green, Hasta Gro or Plant Tone
Conventional: Miracle Gro or Osmocote Time Release Granules
HIBISCUS AND TROPICAL BLOOMERS
Organic: Maestro Gro-Rose Glo
Conventional: Hibiscus Food
TREES AND SHRUBS
Organic: Milorganite, or Medina Growin Green
Prune
Dead wood from trees and shrubs
Faded blooms to encourage new blooms – especially important on perennials, tropicals, and crape myrtles
Shrubs to maintain good form
Palms, if needed
Watch out For
CATERPILLARS
Watch for caterpillars or their damage (chewed leaves).
Organic: Thuricide, Spinosad
Conventional: Cyonara
FUNGUS, POWDERY MILDEW
Organic: Neem Oil, BeeSafe 3-in-1
Conventional: Broad Spectrum Fungicide, Fertilome Systemic
WHITEFLIES
Organic: Spinosad Soap, Bee Safe 3-in-1
Conventional: Cyonara
CHINCH BUGS IN LAWNS
Organic: Diatomaceous Earth, Spinosad
Conventional: Cyonara
MEALY BUGS
Organic: Neem Oil, Insecticidal Soap, BeeSafe 3-in-1
Conventional: Cyonara, Bonide Systemic
Read: Mealy Bugs are Here
SPIDER MITES
Organic: Neem Oil, Spinosad Soap, BeeSafe 3-in-1
Conventional: Bonide Systemic, Cyonara
FLEAS AND TICKS
Organic: Spinosad, Diatomaceous Earth
Conventional: Cyonara
BORERS
Watch for Borers in mesquites, ash, and yucca.
Organic: Spinosad
Conventional: Fertilome Tree & Shrub Drench
Water-wise Gardening
MULCH
Mulch all landscape areas with at least 2-4 inches of shredded mulch.
ADJUST MOWING
Cut your grass higher so it will not dry out as quickly.
TRIMMING & CLEANUP
Trim overgrown plants with excessive foliage so they use less water.
Remove old or unsightly plants you plan to get rid of anyway.
Repot root bound patio plants.
ADJUST IRRIGATION SYSTEM
Use your irrigation system or sprinklers once a week. You can water anytime before 10:00am or after 6:00pm. Use the Cycle Soak Method found on our website. Be sure not to let water run off onto the streets and sidewalks.
FERTILIZE
Top dress lawns with Nature Blend.
Use organic fertilizers to keep plants healthy.
WATER
Install drip irrigation around your foundation and plants for slow soaking and less water waste.
You can water anytime with a hand held hose, soaker hose or drip irrigation hose provided it is equipped with a positive shut off nozzle.