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We’ve talked about weeding and prepping the soil. You should also have a plan on where to plant since we discussed crop rotation. So now the fun begins. Time to get those tomatoes and peppers in the ground or into pots.

Add Bio-Tone to the soil when planting. It helps promote strong, healthy plants with larger root systems, promotes bigger blooms, and reduces transplant loss. It will make your plants blast off. I was amazed how my plants responded last year.

Then, in 3-4 weeks, begin feeding monthly with Espoma Plant tone to maintain healthy plants throughout the season. It contains feather meal, poultry manure, bone meal and greensand. It also has beneficial bacillus to help fight fungus and disease in your plants. Since plant roots are used for water and nutrient uptake, use Mycorrhizal fungi to improve root growth, soil structure and plant establishment. How can you go wrong?

These few simple steps will get you on your way to having healthy, happy plants. So don’t wait too long to get the garden started. You will be rewarded with those first tasty tomatoes for Thanksgiving dinner.

And just remember, the longer you wait to plant, the bigger the plant you will need to buy. We have awesome 4.5 inch and 1 gal. tomatoes and peppers ready to go.

-DeAnna

Pop Quiz! How often should you change the nectar on a hummingbird feeder? Is red food dye good or bad? How are you supposed to clean it? Don’t worry if you don’t know the answers. We’ve got you covered. A hummingbird feeder is a great supplement for nectar-rich plants like Turk’s Cap and Firebush, but if you don’t take care of them properly they can do more harm than good. South Texas is hot, and bacteria love to grow in warm sugar water, so make sure you take down your feeder, clean it and replace with fresh nectar every 1-3 days. To make fresh nectar, boil 1 cup of water and add ¼ cup of granulated sugar (not artificial sugar please!) then let it cool and Voila! Now red food dye is controversial. Some experts say it is harmful, and there are some specific kinds of dye that are. Honestly, most hummingbirds will be attracted by the flowers painted/molded on your feeder, not the color of the nectar, so don’t bother with it. Cleaning is a breeze if you have the right tools, like a bottle brush and a port cleaner (like a clean mascara wand). You can use weak vinegar or bleach solution to disinfect your feeder after it air dries. Keep your feeder clean and fresh, and your hummingbirds will be sure to thank you!

-Marta

This past Saturday, I gave a quick talk about attracting Hummingbirds into your garden, so I figured I’d give a quick recap of hummingbird gardens in case you missed it! We are lucky enough to have 18 different kinds of hummingbirds in our area when they migrate, so make sure you add these plants to your garden. Turks Cap is my number one pick for a hummingbird plant. It’s nectar rich, native, colorful, and tough as nails. Fire bush is another great addition. Its tubular flowers make it a hummingbird magnet. And don’t forget about Anisacanthus, or Hummingbird Bush. The name really does say it all! It gets covered in bright orange small tubular flowers on a shrub that gets about 3 to 5 feet tall. Always change your nectar on your feeders at least every 1-3 days, especially in the heat, and don’t add food dye or use artificial sweeteners. And enjoy them while they’re here!

-Marta

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.

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-DeAnna

Oak Tree Caterpillars

Be on the look-out for oak tree caterpillars in your oak trees. They cluster together in large groups feeding on the leaves of your trees or you may notice poop under your tree (on your patio or walk.) They can be killed with Thuricide sprayed onto the leaves or with Spinosad. If your trees are too large to spray or you just don’t want to, they will not kill your trees. The tree will leaf back out in the Spring. I have had customers say that early in the mornings they could hear them chewing the hard oak leaves. Crunch, Crunch, Crunch!

Powdery Mildew on Mesquite Trees

With the cooler temperatures, shorter days and rains in the past few weeks, powdery mildew fungus has attacked mesquite trees. Since the trees are getting ready to drop their leaves for the winter, it is not necessary to spray them. They will leaf out and be fine next spring.

-DeAnna

One day you look outside at your lawn and BAM, you notice there are weeds everywhere! Before you start spraying with an herbicide, make sure you read the label. Some weed killers have temperature restrictions and either take longer to work or don’t work at all! A better option for this time of year is to put down a pre-emergent weed prevention like Hi Yield Weed & Grass Stopper With Dimension or Fertilome Broadleaf Weed Control With Gallery to stop the spread of weeds until the weather warms up. It won’t kill the weeds you have now but it sure will slow the weed crop down in the months to come.

–Marta

Last year I planted my hummingbird and butterfly garden with over 30 milkweed, Turks cap, passion vine and native lantana. It grew beautifully in the back corner of my yard, and I pretty much just left it alone. Since now is the time to prune, I rolled up my sleeves, got out my pruners and started to go to town. Oddly enough, as I was whacking back a lantana I noticed in my peripheral vision movement all around me. So I stopped pruning and sat down and started to meditate. After about five minutes of sitting still, I opened my eyes and was absolutely floored! Every bug I have ever seen in my life was there in my garden. There were honey bees and bumblebees, fritillary butterflies and big bold monarchs, assassin bugs, ladybugs galore, orb weaver and large wolf spiders, a praying mantis, mud-dobber wasps, horseflies, house flies and soil gnats. And about 150 monarch butterfly caterpillars! It was like an optical illusion. The more I sat still, the more I saw everything moving around me. Not only were there bugs, but there were toads, lizards, and a bold mockingbird that decided to land not five feet from me. Of course there were aphids and whitefly, but I watched as ladybugs flew down and began to munch them all up, and a praying mantis was going to town on the flies. It was absolutely astounding! All this life was in a 10 foot by 10 foot bed. If you have a section of your garden that you can let be pesticide free and 100% organic, please let it be! You’ll be amazed by what life does in the garden when you’re not looking.

-Marta

(Citrus × meyeri, the Meyer lemon, is a citrus fruit native to China thought to be a cross between a true lemon and either a mandarin or common orange, from Wikipedia)

What do you do when Sally Gill gives you lemons from her Meyer lemon tree? You make Ina Garten’s yogurt lemon cake, of course! And, since Meyer lemons are so big and juicy you’ll have plenty to make fresh lemonade, as well as squeeze and freeze for future use.

Here is a neat tip Sally gave me. You freeze the juice in ice cube trays, then store the cubes in freezer bags or containers ready for the next cake or concoction of your choice.

I’m also experimenting by zesting the lemons and freezing the lemon zest in bags, ready to measure and add to anything needing a hint of citrus flavor.

If you’ve been wanting to plant a citrus tree you won’t go wrong choosing Improved Meyer lemon. Plant it in the ground or in a large clay pot (like the Italians do) in a sunny spot in your yard. Before you know it you’ll be sharing fruit with your neighbors and friends.

-Kathy

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

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