holiday

Need to do some peaceful, non-stressful holiday gift shopping? Come take a stroll at Gill’s and pick out a few gifts for the green thumbs on your list! We’ll help you find the right plants, useful tools, nature-related holiday ornaments, holiday cards, and all kinds of other unique and fun gifts to help connect your loved ones to the outdoors. Here’s our gift guide for gardeners!

1. Gifts that Grow

Now is a great time to plant winter flowers like petunias, geraniums, and snapdragons, and they’re quick and easy to plant! Easy for Santa to sneak in and secretly plant a few flowers.

Roses, herbs, and onions are all great to plant right now too. Or if you want to make it a truly memorable holiday, plant a tree! Remember that trees benefit greatly from being planted in fall and winter, including these gorgeous large citrus trees that already have fruit on them! And if you don’t want to do any hauling or digging, we’ll deliver and plant it for you.

2. Poinsettias and Other Holiday Classics

Poinsettias are THE classic holiday décor and centerpiece for holiday meals. They make great gifts for teachers, bosses, coworkers, and friendly acquaintances – they just make people happy!

A blooming Christmas Cactus or Kalanchoe is great too, or a small living holiday tree like a juniper, Norfolk pine, or rosemary. We can gift wrap these for you. Easy wow!

3. Custom-Planted Pottery

Let us help you put together something totally unique! Choose the pots and plants and we can pot it all up for you, or you can make a mess here at our potting shed. Houseplants, flowers, herbs, native plants for pollinators, and lots more can stand alone or be combined in the right pot.

4. Quality Garden Tools

We don’t carry a huge selection of tools, just nice tools that are made to last – the tools we sell are the tools our pros use. Pruners, loppers, kitchen/herb shears, or even a quality sharp-shooter shovel make great gifts. Working with quality tools makes gardening a lot more fun.

5. Soothing Wind Chimes

Lots of different tones and styles for relaxing in the garden, including our favorite chimes of all time, Music of the Spheres. Hand-made and hand-tuned here in TX.

6. “Gordo” Birdhouses + Birding Supplies

These Gordo birdhouses have been a huge hit this fall. People love them and birds too! Or go with a nice stone bird bath, quality bird seed + feeders, and some bird-attracting plants and you’ll make the birders on your list very happy.

7. Handmade Ceramic Snakes

These snakes are so cool! They come in a variety of colors and shapes, some are made to hang on the wall, and some are great for slithering into potted arrangements indoors or out.

8. Animal Pot Hangers

Cats, bunnies, gators, turtles, snails, birds, and so many more! Gardeners young and old (and medium old) love adding fun critters to pots.

9. Cosmic Herb Seed Kits

These herb seed kits make awesome stocking stuffers. Choose the herbs that align with your loved one’s astrological sign, or seeds that grow inside a beautiful ceramic mug – or both!

10. Houseplant Cutting Jars

Our cutting jars make great gifts for houseplant lovers. We collect interesting glass jars and use LECA (lightweight expanded clay aggregate) + water as the growing medium for cuttings that we take from rare mother houseplants. You can keep them growing like this long-term, or choose to transfer them to bigger containers whenever you wish. Beautiful, elegant, and alive!

11. Nature-Themed Children’s Books + Vintage Gardening Books

Have you browsed our new bookshelf yet? We’ve been collecting new and vintage gardening books and nature-related children’s books that your gardeners will love.

12. Nature-Themed Holiday Ornaments

We have such a cute collection of nature-themed ornaments this year. Come take a look!

13. Handmade Frog Houses + Bee Watering Cups

Did you know that Gill’s Asst. Manager, Wyatt Page is a ceramic artist?! He sells his cool frog houses and bee/butterfly watering cups here at Gill’s! Invite more of these beneficial creatures into your veggie garden by providing shelter and water.

14. When in Doubt – Gift Cards!

Can’t go wrong with a Gill’s gift card! Purchase in store or online here. Good for plants, supplies, and services too. You could give the gift of landscape design, a food garden next spring, a planted tree, or anything else we provide. We can help you with ideas too!

We know that watering restrictions, especially the new Stage 3 ban on most outdoor watering, are cause for alarm for gardeners. We are in close contact with City leadership, and we’re here to help you navigate the situation. As always, Gill’s is here to show you what you CAN do in the garden, not what you can’t do.

1. URGENT: You CAN (and should) Ask City Leadership to Revise the Drought Contingency Plan

At a minimum, we need to be able to hand water to keep trees and established landscapes alive through the drought. We all need to continue to contact City leadership to urge them to make necessary revisions to the Drought Contingency Plan. We wrote the letter below as a template for you to use. We recommend copying it, customizing it however you wish, and sending it via mail and/or email to City Council members, Mayor Guajardo, City Manager Peter Zanoni, and Corpus Christi Water COO Drew Molly (their contact information can be found at these links). If you can contact the new incoming 2025 Council members, reach out to them too! Here’s our letter template for you to use:

Dear City Council Members, Mayor, City Manager, and Corpus Christi Water:

The Stage 3 ban on all outdoor water use is not compliable for citizens or enforceable by the City. We need a Drought Contingency Plan that citizens can comply with and conserve water while still protecting their investments in their property.

We ask that you review and revise the Drought Contingency Plan. Specifically, section 10.3. Stage 3 Response should be revised to include:

Allow irrigation of landscaped areas on any day if it is by means of a hand-held hose (with positive shutoff nozzle), a faucet filled bucket or watering can of five gallons or less, or drip irrigation system with a positive shutoff device.
Allow temporary exemptions to watering restrictions for new plantings for up to 60 days.

Since we know that residences account for less than half of city water use, and we know that only some of those users water their landscapes, the Stage 3 ban on hand watering and drip irrigation would save only a very small portion of overall water use. These small water savings are not worth the negative environmental impacts and economic hardships they will cause.

Please revise the Drought Contingency Plan as soon as possible.

Respectfully,

[Your Name]

2. You CAN Water Potted Plants, Food Gardens, and Food-Bearing Trees

We confirmed with City leadership this week that you CAN water all potted plants, food gardens, and food-bearing trees by hand-held hose with positive shutoff nozzle at any time without the need to apply for an exemption to watering rules. That means winter veggies and herbs, citrus and fruit trees, and all your festive potted arrangements are all safe. We’re envisioning lots more food gardens and edible landscapes in 2025!

3. You CAN Still Apply for Watering Exemptions for Other New Plantings

For any new plantings, you CAN use the City’s form to apply for an exemption to the watering restrictions to help get the plants established. We handle these exemptions for our landscape clients, and we can help you with the calculations and technical information depending on the type of watering you’ll be doing. Just give us a call or stop by!

4. You CAN Collect and Recycle Water to Use Outside

There are no limits or restrictions on the use of rainwater, A/C condensate, dehumidifier condensate, or gray water (recycled water) for outdoor watering. Consider adding a few rain barrels or investing in a larger rainwater harvesting system like the one we have at Gill’s – yes, we sell stainless steel cisterns in lots of different sizes and our landscape department can install them for you. Some of us have also been experimenting with gray water collection from our washing machines and dishwashers. A single washing machine load can produce 15 to 40 gallons of gray water! As long as you use chemical and salt-free cleaning products, most plants and lawns will do just fine with recycled gray water.

5. You CAN Still Make Big Landscape Improvements While Saving Water

There are still lots of options for adding new functional landscape design elements and improving your property. Now’s a great time to start planning new projects like patios, walkways, pergolas, outdoor seating and dining areas, new raised beds, and new layouts accented with smart plant choices. Think low-water Texas native plants, big statement cacti and agaves, replacing lawn areas with native groundcover plants like Frog Fruit or Wooly Stemodia…we’ve got options!

We’ve finally had some great sunshine! So, with the time change this weekend and cooler temps, it’s the best time to get your fall and winter flowers planted. Planting now gives them time to grow and bloom! Your family and friends will be super impressed with your green thumb and your beautiful flowers for the holiday season.

There are many varieties to choose from for sun and shade. Here’s a few of our faves.

For shade gardens, nothing blooms better than New Guinea Impatiens and Begonias. Both will give beautiful color to brighten up your shade areas. They last all winter with not much care.

Plant in the shade: Begonias, New Guinea Impatiens

For sunny areas, try Petunias, Violas, Dianthus, Calendula, Ornamental Cabbage and Kale, Geraniums, Stock, Snapdragon, Alyssum and Pansy. All have dazzling colors that will bring your landscape to life.

Plant in the sun: (Clockwise from top left) Alyssum, Calendula, Pansies, Stock, Ornamental Kale, Dianthus

Here’s a few tips for planting for your best success:

Prepare the soil. Most annuals have fine hair-like roots that require rich loose soil with good drainage. Turn the soil with a digging fork or tiller, add Cotton Burr Compost and mix, rake area, top dress with Natures’ Blend and you’re ready to plant. The Nature’s Blend acts as a natural fertilizer and helps with controlling certain disease possibilities. If you are planting flowers in containers, use a good potting mix like Landscapers Pride Potting Soil.

Start planting! It’s important to know how close or far apart to plant your flowers. Most annuals need some space between each plant so they can grow to their potential. We can help you determine the plant spacing when you come in. Set out the plants in a zigzag pattern, equal spacing between each plant, to fill the area. Use Bio-Tone in each hole as you plant. It really helps the roots to grow and be very healthy! Healthy roots-healthy plants.

Mulch, water, fertilize. Mulch makes your new planting look great, helps with weed control and reduces watering. Water the area well with a gentle shower of water; you don’t want to beat up your new young plants. Fertilize with Hasta Gro every week or Rose Glo every month.

Check your new planting every day for water for at least the first couple of weeks, cutting back as the plants grow and temps cool down. If you get worried or just not sure, we are always here and ready to help!

Happy Gardening!

-Debbie

It’s time to think about getting your fall bulbs.

Amaryllis is one of the easiest bulbs to grow that will bloom for you year after year. They can be planted in a perennial bed or grown in pots. When planting them in the ground, pick a location that receives morning sun and afternoon shade. Every three years in October you can dig up and divide these bulbs as they multiply underground. Cooler temperatures in the fall will encourage your bulbs to bloom. Feed regularly with a water soluble plant food every 2 weeks or Hi-Yield Bone Meal every 4-6 weeks. Each plant will send up 1-2 bloom spikes with 4-6 blooms per spike. Holiday blooming Amaryllis are always a treat!

Another great holiday bulb is Paperwhite Narcissus. These can be grown in a vase with water or in a pot with soil. Most are forced in decorative vases in water for the holidays. All you need is a clear vase or bowl, small pea gravel to stabilize the bulbs and water. Pick your container, add several inches of pea gravel to the bottom. Nestle the bulbs side by side into the gravel and add water just to the bottom of the bulbs. Roots will emerge into the water and gravel. The bulbs will grow and bloom faster if refrigerated for 4-6 weeks prior to planting. We have them under refrigeration now. If they are potted Thanksgiving weekend, you should have pretty budded and blooming Paperwhites for the holidays. An optional tip to discourage tall floppy plants is to water them with 8 parts water to 1 part Gin or Vodka. That is approximately 4 cups water to ½ cup spirits. Both Amaryllis and Paperwhite Narcissus make for beautiful holiday gift giving.

Paperwhite-Img

-DeAnna

If you are like me, then the day after Thanksgiving is when the Christmas decorations come down from the attic. Of course, at the bottom of the box are ornaments that for some reason or another don’t end up getting used. Instead of throwing them out or repacking them for another year, use them in your garden! Plastic ornaments glued or wired onto green bamboo stakes can be put into any container to spice up an evergreen plant, or you can use clusters of them in those empty pots you’ve been meaning to replant. It’s a quick and easy way to add some Christmas cheer!

-Marta

A beautiful holiday plant, the Christmas Cactus blooms at Christmas and also sometimes around Easter if cared for properly. A month prior to Christmas you will be able to watch the tips of the leaves beginning to grow. The tips grow darker as each day passes, until a bud forms. At Christmas time, as if by magic, the buds open to a beautiful flower that will add color and warmth to any holiday season. Keep the plant in a well lit location (like near a window) away from direct sunlight-too much heat and light can stunt the growth and burn the leaves. It should also be away from drafts, heat vents, or other sources of hot air. A Christmas Cactus is a tropical cactus, not a desert cactus. If the soil gets too dry, the flower buds will drop, and the plant will wilt. Feel the soil with your fingers; if it is dry, it’s time to water. When watering, thoroughly water the plant. Before watering again, check to see that the top inch of soil has dried thoroughly first. Using a moisture meter may help you determine if it is time to water again. Mist leaves as well as watering the soil. After the holiday season you can trim off any old blooms and move your plant to a shady patio once the weather warms up for Spring. Use a water soluble fertilizer every 2-4 weeks to maintain the health of your plant.

-DeAnna

With cooler months finally upon us, now is the time for planting some of my favorite winter annuals, one being the ever vibrant, versatile and easy to grow Nasturtium. Here are some things you may or may not know about this lovely little flower:

Nasturtiums are edible, flowers and leaves. The flowers make a beautiful addition to the top of any salad and add a peppery flavor. During the mid-twentieth century people used nasturtium seed pods as a replacement for pepper by drying out the seeds and grinding them. The bloom can be dusted with sugar and used to decorate a holiday cake.

Nasturtium Salad c/o Sunset Magazine

They’re not picky and grow well in any type of soil. They love sunshine and don’t like to stay wet.
They make a great companion plant. They help deter aphids, white fly, squash bugs and other pests. Plant alongside veggies like tomatoes, cabbage & broccoli.

Gill Garden Guide: Fall & Winter Annuals

-Whitney

We know it’s still early November, but we couldn’t resist! You have to see all the cute cute cute holiday decor we have coming in… happy (almost) holidays!!!