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We’re back this Saturday at 10am with another event here at Gill’s! Since fall is the ideal time to plant trees, we’ve invited John Wood, owner of The Tree Amigos to give a talk on proper tree planting and tree care. John is a certified arborist and our go-to local expert for tree advice. He’s got lots of critical information to share to make sure you have long term success with the trees you plant this fall. Check out John’s invite video below and don’t miss this talk! p.s. – if it rains (fingers crossed!) we’ll move the talk indoors.
This event is free and open to everyone, plus we’ll be doing some gift card and other giveaways! Can’t wait to see you all this Saturday!
Have you set your 2024 new year’s gardening resolution?! January is time to get moving and set yourself up for big success this spring and beyond. Beds need prepping, veggie seeds need starting, citrus trees need feeding, and YES you can get a head start on planting too! Here are our top must-do’s (and don’t do’s!) this month.
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. Plan and Prep Beds for Spring Planting
January is our month to plan and prep for spring. Clean up, remove weeds, and most importantly, prep your garden beds by adding some compost! We love Nature’s Blend Compost for veggie and landscape beds, including raised beds. A good ratio is 1 bag per 12 sq. ft. of bed space. If you make your own compost, that approximate ratio works well. It doesn’t have to be exact. If working out is part of your new year’s resolution, get outside, grab your garden forks or a shovel, and turn some compost into the first few inches of soil!
2. Feed Your Citrus Trees
Fertilize your citrus trees in January for more blooms, again in May/June for better fruit set, and again in September/October for nutrients. We recommend fertilizing with Espoma Citrus-Tone – all organic and highly effective. Remember to fertilize trees, including citrus, at the drip line. That means spread fertilizer in a circle where the rain naturally drips down from the leaves, not right up against the trunk.
3. Wait to Prune!
Remember – wait to do any major pruning of most plants until February! We can be tempted to want to do too much pruning in January, but you don’t want plants to think its time to start putting on new growth since we still may have another cold snap. Even if we do get a cold snap that damages some foliage, wait to prune because that damaged foliage will help insulate against more possible cold weather.
Ornamental grasses, like Pink Muhly or Purple Fountain grass, are a January exception. They should be cut back this month. Trim them straight across (no cupcakes) 3”-4“ from the ground. Use a bungee cord or piece of rope to gather them up, then cut straight across with your shears.
4. Start Veggie Seeds!
January is time to start tomatoes, kale, chard, onions, carrots, beets, parsley and more from seed. We carry seed-starting trays, peat pots, and Espoma Organic Seed Starter soil for starting seeds indoors or on a protected/covered patio. A good rule of thumb is that once the seedlings have made their first true set of leaves, they are ready to be transplanted into a larger container outside or directly into the garden bed.
Check out our full Spring planting guide here. And stay tuned because we’re planning all kinds of cool events for 2024, including a seed starting workshop this month!
5. Grow Potatoes and Onions!
January is prime time to plant potatoes and onions! We carry Red La Soda and Yukon Gold potatoes because they are better suited for South Texas growing conditions than larger varieties. Watch Matt’s video guide to planting potatoes here!
Plant onions in a row every 3-4″ then thin them by plucking every other green top as they grow. This will allow the onions to grow to full size. Keep in mind that both potatoes and onions need well-drained soil. Great for raised beds!
6. Adjust Lighting and Water for Houseplants
Generally, most houseplants will need more light and less water this month. A moisture meter will come in handy to be sure you’re not overwatering. Experiment with moving houseplants to sunnier windows, and take them outside for a sunny day or 2. Keep their leaves clean to help them take up sunlight and prevent bad bugs. We like using a very light solution of Neem oil + water to wipe down leaves here at Gill’s.
7. Yes, You Can Plant It in January!
Why wait?? Trees, shrubs, and blooming perennials planted now will build healthy root systems during their winter dormancy making for stronger, healthier plants in spring and summer. Not to mention all kinds of cool season flowers and veggies that love our January weather. Keep an eye on the forecast, but remember that new plants are easy to cover with frost blankets if we get a cold spell.
As of right now, NOAA (our preferred source for weather forecasts) shows cold weather starting Sunday night (1/14) through Wednesday morning (1/17), with temperatures dipping below freezing Monday and Tuesday nights. That means we’re busy preparing to protect plants here at Gill’s! We want you to be prepared too – here’s how.
1. Water all plants well. It sounds counterintuitive, but watering will help keep the ground temperature warmer by filling tiny air pockets in the soil.
2. Cover cold-sensitive/tropical plants (like Dracenas, Ti plants, Crown of Thorns, Schefflera, Ixora) and tender new plants. Cold-tolerant plants that were recently planted in the ground (like trees, Boxwoods, Hawthorns, etc.) do not need to be covered, just watered well.
- Gather supplies now, but wait until Sunday afternoon/evening to cover your plants. Keep your eye on the weather – it could change!
- We have pre-cut frost blankets and frost protection cloth that can be cut to your desired shape, or you can use quilts, bedsheets, towels, etc.
- Make a tent to capture ground warmth. Wrapping plants like a lollipop will not be effective. Make your tent and use whatever you have to weigh down the edges, like anchor pins, bricks, firewood, garden hoses, rocks, etc. Remember – the most important thing is to capture ground warmth. The ground temperature will remain warmer than the air. Watch Wyatt’s demo video below!
- Consider cutting back tall shrubs. If you have taller shrubs like Esperanza that would be difficult or impossible to cover, consider cutting it back to a few feet tall so you can cover it.
3. Bring in potted plants. Since potted plants don’t have the advantage of retaining ground warmth, they are more susceptible to cold temps. Bring them into the house or garage if you can. If they are too big or heavy, water them well, lay them over on the ground, and cover the whole plant (pot and all) with the tent method.
We can’t cover all of the information about freeze protection here, but you can give us a call or stop by if you have questions. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram where we’ll continue to post how-to’s and updates.
Click to Watch – How to Cover Plants for the Freeze!
The freeze certainly damaged some plants, but chances are a lot of them are still alive and will be just fine, even though they look rough right now. Here are a few tips for assessing damage and moving forward into spring!
The Scratch Test
Use the scratch test for most blooming perennials (like Turk’s Cap, different salvias, and Lantana) and woody plants (like Bougainvillea, Esperanza, and Hibiscus). Using your thumbnail, a dime, or pruners, start at the tips of branches and lightly scratch through just the outer layer of bark. If the cambium layer underneath is brown, keep working your way down the branch. Once you see bright green cambium under the bark, you know the plant is still alive! This also tells you where to prune when the time comes (not yet!). See Harry’s video below for a demonstration.
Don’t Prune Just Yet
Since we still have a chance for more cold weather, your best bet is to wait until mid February to cut back the freeze damaged parts of most plants. The ugly freeze-damaged foliage helps insulate the plant against any additional cold snaps. Plus, pruning signals to the plant that it’s time to start putting on new growth. Since that new growth is the most susceptible to cold damage, you want to wait.
What About “Mushy” Plants?
If you have succulents or plants like Purple Heart or Elephant Ears that turned to mush after the freeze, go ahead and cut away the mushy parts. Leaving those slimy, mushy parts can encourage fungus. When you cut the mush away, you can apply Dusting Sulphur to help seal the wound and prevent fungus. Even a lot of these plants are expected to come back! Time will tell.
Click to Watch – How to do the Scratch Test!
Join us this Saturday, February 10th at 10am for Low Water Landscape Design with Harry Villarreal. If you know Harry, Landscape Designer here at Gill’s, you know he loves pokey plants! Yuccas, different Agaves, Mangave, and cacti can all serve as features and focal points in the landscape, but they’re far from the only plants that can help save water. Harry will cover lots of ideas for using drought tolerant blooming perennials, Texas natives, water-saving colorful tropical plants, reducing lawn space, and lots more. Conserve water and achieve your design goals! Click below to watch Harry’s video preview. See you Saturday!
We can’t wait to see everyone! Stay tuned here and follow us on Facebook and Instagram where we’ll continue to post updates about talks and events. We have lots more to come throughout the year!
Join us rain or shine this Saturday, February 17th at 10am for Spring Kickoff with Gill’s founder and Master Naturalist James Gill! We’ve made it to mid February…that means Spring is here!! It’s time to cut away the brown and bring on the green. You’ve probably already noticed new green growth and new buds – the plants know! We’re so excited to have James back this Saturday to discuss proper pruning, planting, veggie gardening, designing your landscape, native plants, lawn care, and lots more. You’re sure to hear some good gardening stories. Bring your questions! Click below to watch James’ video preview. See you Saturday!
We can’t wait to see everyone! Stay tuned here and follow us on Facebook and Instagram where we’ll continue to post updates about talks and events. We have lots more to come throughout the year!
Join us this Saturday, 2/24 at 10am for our final February garden talk! We’re so excited to host guest speaker Zach Halfin for his talk, Perennial Color: Tricks of the Trade. Zach is the lead grower at Green Lake Wholesale Nursery in San Marcos, TX, one of our go-to growers of gorgeous blooming perennials like salvias, native Turk’s Cap, lantana, ornamental grasses, and much more. Zach will share tricks of the trade from an expert grower’s perspective on how to grow showroom-quality plants in your landscape.
Join us for a great talk + more prizes and giveaways! Click below to watch Zach’s preview video:
We can’t wait to see everyone! Stay tuned here and follow us on Facebook and Instagram where we’ll continue to post updates about talks and events. We have lots more to come throughout the year!
