tel: 512 280-1192 Thursday, June 16, 2016
Nursery notes: happy father's day to all dads on Sunday, and
happy summer solstice to all on Monday! A few gift ideas for
dad: a small pot of ghost peppers - 1 of the hottest on the planet:
$3.59 - $12.99. Italian sweet basil for $3.59 (4" pot). Four-in-
one apple tree $79 (5 gal.). A legacy oak - we have 6 different
varieties in stock./ Lots of colorful plumbago, esperanza, double
Knock-Outs in stock. Also purple fountain grass: 1 gal for $9.99.
Please drop by for a visit! 🌷
Nasturtiums and the lotus effect: to survive in the jungle, these
beauties have evolved special 'housekeeping' techniques to repell
water, and clean themselves of dirt and dust at the same time. 'The
droplets roll across the surface. . . in effect cleaning the leaves,'
writes Linda Ly in a recent fascinating post in Garden Betty 🌷
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Monique the globe-trotting hen: readers with backyard hens
will be happy to know that your Rhode Island Red could be a
great companion if you ever decide to travel around the world
in a yacht! Two years into his trip, Guirec Soudee from Brittany
reports Monique has been a fine companion, and lays 6 eggs each
week, no matter where they are. BBC News (photo: g. soudee) 🌷
Piet Oudolf's secret recipe? The celebrated Dutch designer
(High Line Park, New York) likes to use the analogy of a fruitcake
when creating his 'enhanced nature' plantings. 70% dough = 'matrix
plants' such as grasses that hold the design together. 30% fruit =
high impact primary plants. From Root Simple 🌷
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Central Texas Gardener: photo-tips for gardeners from Janet
Riley. Plant of the week: golden barrel cactus. A visit to East
Side Succulents, and learn how to make a fruit-based refreshing
Crape Myrtle, blooming beauty!
by Chris Winslow
For a low-maintenance ornamental tree, you cannot beat the good
old crape myrtle. This wonderful flowering tree or shrub (depending
on the variety) provides three seasons of color without a lot of fuss
or maintenance.
They bloom for months on end, and they come in any size you
could imagine. Once established they can hold up with our native
tree species during even the most prolonged droughts. Vibrant
color and water conservation rolled together into one beautiful
tree.
Muskogee, for example, grows to a height of 25 to 30 feet, and
blooms for up to four months! Its blossoms are light-lavender and
have a strong resistance to powdery mildew. Its fall leaf color is
red and yellow and in winter its bark is grey and pinkish-brown.
Another outstanding crape is Natchez. This white flowering beauty
grows from 25 to 30 feet and has the second longest bloom period
of 110 days.
Its fall leaf color is red-orange and its winter bark color is cream-
cinnamon brown. Natchez is resistant to diseases, and is considered
the benchmark that all other varieties are compared to.
For a dwarf tree, one of the best is Victor. This dark red variety
grows to 4 to 5 feet and blooms for 85 days.
For mid-size trees, those growing from 8 to 12 feet there is Siren
Red, Pink Velour, Catawba (purple), and Acoma (weeping
white, pictured above).
For trees between 15 and 20 feet there is Dynamite (deep red), Red
Rocket (red), and Tuscarora ( coral red to dark pink).
And for truly shade size trees, 25 feet and up, along with Muskogee,
Natchez – there’s Basham’s Party Pink.
The crape myrtle (Lagerstroemia indica) has been in the South
since they were first introduced from Asia in 1747. Since that time,
hundreds of colors and heights have been bred.
In the mid 1950s, the Japanese crape myrtle (Lagerstroemia faueri)
arrived and an extensive breeding program began. Horticulturalists
began to mix the color variations of the Asian crape myrtle with
the disease resistance of the Japanese varieties.
The Japanese crapes also had trunk color attributes and greater
cold tolerance. They could now be planted farther north.
As these amazing plants go through their amazing bloom cycle,
we should all give thanks for the bright colors they bring to our
landscapes during the upcoming harsh summer months.
Happy gardening everyone!🌷
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Crapes currently in stock (all $24.99 for 5 gal. pot): Zuni, Catawba,
Red Rocket, Pink Velour, Tuscarora, Pocomoke (pink dwarf),
Basham's Party Pink, Natchez and Acoma.
Please contact newsletter editor Darrel Mayers 🌷🌲 🌿 🌵 ☀️ 
🌻
🌻 with any ideas for articles or interesting links:
internationalrain@yahoo.com (hitting 'reply' to this email won't work)
Visit the website: It's About Thyme And here for facebook
internationalrain@yahoo.com (hitting 'reply' to this email won't work)
Visit the website: It's About Thyme And here for facebook
