Soil Prep

UNMISTAKABLY BEAUTIFUL ANTIQUE ROSES!

If you want an old fashioned rose, come in and get them while they’re here! Unlike shrub roses, antique roses have a full rich fragrance, and often have a much higher petal count, making for a fuller, more complex bloom. They’re also less disease prone than hybrid roses. Our antique rose selection includes colors like deep red, pale pink, bright yellow and more. So if you want to expand your rose garden, or even start a new one, you’ll want to grab these old-fashioned roses now. –Marta

GOOD, FERTILE SOIL…

Without organic matter, dirt is just dirt. Soil is a mix of minerals (dirt) andcomposted organics. In nature, it might include rotting leaves and branches and bird poop. In a home garden or landscape, it might include composted cotton hulls (Back to Nature Compost or Nature’s Blend with Manure and Alfalfa), composted pine bark, and again with the bird poop (Medina Grow N Green, my favorite), or home-made leaf and branch and vegetable waste compost. Adding composted organic matter helps maintain healthy soil moisture levels (neither too wet nor too dry), fertility (available nutrients), and aids in development of healthy roots and suppression of harmful diseases. –James

ARE THEY LADYBUGS?

No they are Boxelder Bugs. Boxelder bugs are about ½ inch long and 1/3

inch wide. They are browninsh-gray to black with distinctive red markings. Boxelder babies have dull red bodies with black legs. You will find them by the hundreds, if not thousands gathered on the fence, in the bark of trees or hiding in your mulch. Adults deposit their eggs in cracks and crevices of tree bark in the spring, about the time buds begin to open. There are two or more generations per year in Texas. Boxelder Bugs are not considered to be damaging to host plants. Although they feed by sucking plant juices, they seldom cause harm to plants. They are considered more of a nuisance pest. You can choose to ignore them, or if need, they can be sprayed with any insecticide i.e. Cyonara or Triazicide. An organic alternative is Spinosad. –DeAnna

Fall vegetable gardening is right around the corner. It seems too hot to even think about gardening, but you should start now to ensure a successful crop this fall. It is recommended to begin planting tomatoes and peppers mid- August. Many seeds begin the first week of September. I usually plant my tomatoes in September, but the longer you wait to plant, the bigger you need to buy.

First, you need to pull up the last of the tomato plants from your spring garden. Any other veggies that are looking summer worn need to be pulled also. They will never recover for a fall crop anyway.

Next you need to weed the garden. You could try covering the garden for a few weeks with plastic to solarize which will kill most weeds, but this usually is done earlier in the summer for a couple of months of solarization. Hand hoeing or tilling can be done depending on the size of the garden.

Be sure to thoroughly water the ground a day or two ahead to soften it since we have had no rain for weeks. Once all the old plants and weeds are removed, it is time to work in compost. The more compost the better. And you know what that means if you have ever dug in our soil. Heavy clay soil is not conducive to rapid root development. The better the soil prep, the better the plants grow.

The more roots a plant develops, the easier it is for the plant to take up valuable nutrients and water. Be sure to use a good quality compost. We carry Cotton Burr Compost, Natures Blend Compost. I have always said,” You need a $50.00 hole for a $5.00 plant.” Life does begin with the soil, so always spend a little extra time, effort and money when it comes to soil prep. Your plants will reward you.

-DeAnna

Last week, I shared my before & after soil prep of our veggie garden at home. I tried to plant before last Friday’s rain but did not make it. Good thing, as I realized I had a few areas holding too much water. So after some shoveling to correct the problem, we planted our hearts out Saturday evening and Sunday afternoon. We planted by transplants, tuscano kale, seabor kale, redbor kale, broccoli, cauliflower, green cabbage, red cabbage, bright lights chard, rubarb chard, tango celery, thyme, dill, and an artichoke for fun. Then we sowed Botanical Interest seeds of cherry belle radish, purple top white globe turnip, cilantro, kuroda carrots, carnival blend carrots, gourmet blend beets, and red sails lettuce. Before seeding in our root beds, I mixed Bio-tone and Rocket Fuel in the soil. Both of these are very beneficial in root development. As we planted transplants, we added just Bio-tone into the hole, mixed it with the soil, and then planted. This is because we foliar feed with Hasta Gro which helps with both root and plant development. Our last step was a few bales of pine straw to help with water, weeds and looks. Now we say a blessing and a prayer that our garden will be bountiful with plenty to share!

-Debbie

Growing Fresh Food – Part I

So now that you’ve done all your decision making and soil prep, let’s talk about planting. Most spring veggies love warm days and cool nights. 70’s and 50’s are perfect for all spring veggies and herbs. South Texas spring starts early and ends early as the heat of summer takes over. To maximize your planting, plant early in the season but be prepared to protect warm weather plants in case of late season cold fronts.

Seeds & Transplants

Most all edibles grown here can be started from seed. Again it is an experience everyone should try. Some plant seeds sprout in several days and some just a few. Our Botanical Interest Seeds are non GMO and many are organic. The link to our hand out from last week gives you some ideas of what can be grown from seed with good success. You can start many of your seeds in small containers (even those old egg cartons), so you can keep an eye on them before transplanting in your garden space. Use a good seed starting soil mix like Fertilome Seed & Cutting Mix. Keep them in a warm, sunlit area with moist soil. Label what you plant, so you can remember who’s who. Once they are up with their first set of real leaves, they can be planted. I have also started many of my gardens with seed sowed directly in the soil. Again making sure to mark what is where not to confuse tiny sprouts with weeds. Some of my favorites are pole beans or bush, swiss chard, squash, turnips, beets, carrots, collards, cilantro, basil, cucumbers, and okra.

Transplants give you a head start on some of the edibles that can take time to start from seed. Tomato, peppers, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, and onion are just a few you will find in our nursery during spring. Most herbs are found in transplants as well giving you instant flavor with a snip of a sprig! Herbs and most leafy greens can and should be trimmed on as you want them, allowing the mother plant to be a continued source of food and flavor throughout the season.

Ready to Plant

Lay out the plants with room to grow. Give yourself room to be able to harvest your food. This also allows air circulation to help prevent disease and bug issues. Dig your holes only as deep as the transplants or follow the planting depth on the seed package. Mix a little Rocket Fuel, adding Plant Tone or Bio-tone to the hole, mix into the soil, place your seed or plant, firm up soil around them, water, and repeat. When you’re all done, mulch the area to help with water retention and weed prevention. I like the pine straw as it’s fluffy and aids in supporting the new tender plants.

Spring Veggies & Herbs

Tomatoes are America’s favorite home grown edible. Picking a handful of cherry tomatoes or one ripe slicing is all the enticing you’ll need to try your hand at growing them. Starting them now allows the plant time to get to size & begin to bloom so they will set fruit before night temps get too hot. Hybrid varieties are bred for disease resistance and better fruit production. Heirloom varieties are flavorful and have unique colorations. They are not as resistant to many of the diseases tomato plants can get. All tomatoes need to have some support. A cage or trellis works great. This helps support the plant when they are heavy with fruit. There are basically 2 types of tomatoes, determinate and indeterminate. Determinate produces most all its fruit at one time and indeterminate produces less but over a longer period. Many of the cherry type tomatoes are indeterminate.

Others to plant now:

Since it is still winter and cold is probably not done yet, you could start a few of winter fav’s like broccoli and cauliflower. Neither takes too long to produce so worth planting.
Seed potatoes and onion sets should be planted now. Being a root plant they both like very good drainage. Planting them in raised beds or large containers work great. Other root edibles like beets, turnips, radishes offer double the bounty; you can eat the tops and the roots.
Leafy greens like Swiss chard, lettuce, kale, spinach can tolerate some cold weather. Your garden can be your smoothie bar with just a few of these growing!
Cucumbers, beans, peas, and climbing spinach are vining plants and will need support. You can use your fence, build your own with poles and heavy twine or simply add a trellis to your garden.
Peppers, okra, eggplant, and most melons need more heat and will not tolerate much cold. These are better started later in spring for better success.
Herbs for spring include basil, cilantro, mints, thymes, rosemary, oregano, parsley and sage.

Now that everything is planted:

Water everything well and check your garden area daily for water needs. Your young plants and seeds will need to stay hydrated but not drowned. They may even need 2 waterings a day when our humidity is low, winds are high & sun is shining.

After a week, fertilize with Hasta-Gro plant food. It’s organic and safe. I use the hose end to make it easy. It mixes for you. You should do this once to every other week.

Finally, I like to take a picture of my newly planted garden and then again each week to see how fast everything is growing. You will be amazed!

-Debbie