tel: 512 280-1192 Thurs, April 24 2014
Nursery Notes: Double red knock-out roses: reg, $24 99, on sale
for $19.99. Fruit trees: buy 2, get 1 free. We have peaches, plums,
apples and figs ($34 each) Bloodgood maples on sale: 5 gal. reg.
$100, sale price $75. (See below for Amanda's article on these grace-
ful trees.) New shipment of wrought iron furniture arrived this
week. Please drop by for a visit!
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Free talk this Sunday: 'Soil Amendments & Organic Gardening:
Putting Together the Pieces for a Productive Garden.' Learn from
expert Amanda Moon about organic soil amendments, fertilizers,
types of compost, and beneficial micro-organisms. 2 p.m. Free
(Next Sun: Diane Kirby on "Layers, Pattern and Contrast.)
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Berry Blanc Punch: mixing together hearty amounts of vermouth
and gin with strawberries, honey, lemon, edible flowers and fizzy
mineral water will give you a perfect 'screened porch sipper,' say
the folks at Edible Dallas/Fort Worth.
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Mosquito Traps & Repellents: by now most of us have had our
first mosquito bite of 2014 - and thoughts are turning to devices
and sprays to get rid of them. From the L.A. Times: mosquitos
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Central Texas Gardener: a preview of the Wildflower Center
garden tour and a visit also to the Center’s new Family Garden. Sat.
noon, 4 p.m. or Sun., 9 a.m. www.klru
The writer's back-porch maples: (l-r) Bloodgood, Waterfall and Tamukeyama
Japanese Maples in Texas?
Yes we can! writes Amanda Moon
For years Japanese maples were an elusive wonderment to me. I
would see beautiful photos of them in gardens from Oregon to Wash-
ington D.C., but thought that it was way too hot and dry here in
central Texas to even try growing them, especially since the costs
can be scary.
Fast forward to the present and I must admit I’ve made a complete
about-face on the subject. My deck is now full of beautiful maples
(I have no soil) and there are a number of fellow gardeners all over
Austin who are successfully growing them in the ground.
There are some simple tricks to make this pretty tree grow here.
And the biggest trick of all is… shade! While in northern climates
and on the West Coast maples grow with abandon in full sun, they
will quickly scorch to a crisp in the 100 degree heat of our summers.
High shade to limited morning sun is the best location for these trees.
Another trick is to work good compost into the soil. There are some
maples growing happily on Brodie Lane in south Austin in rocky
soil, but much of the rock has been removed so the roots don’t have
to work as hard to grow. While acidic soil is not necessary, giving
them a leg up with better soil goes a long way in our temperamental
growing environment.
In addition, providing these delicate trees with even moisture and
good drainage is critical. In the shade the even moisture part is not
too difficult. A deep watering twice a week on an established tree is
sufficient in all but the hottest summers.
Drainage is the one to watch out for. If your yard tends to hold on to
water, planting in a raised bed or working in some granite and organic
matter to loosen up the existing soil may be the answer.
When in doubt, or short of the right spot in a shady location, try
planting your maple in a container. I’ve done this at my house,
and have found that Japanese maples can live long lives and really
flourish on a north or east facing deck. I use Metro Mix for my
maples, and Hasta Grow or HollyTone (an Espoma product) as an
organic fertilizer.
DO NOT use chemical fertilizers on these trees as they are super-
sensitive to chemical burn and do not need heavy feed to thrive.
Japanese maple leaves can tip-burn even in the shade during the
hottest parts of the summer, but by that point we are just a few short
months away from incredible fall color and then dormancy, so I
think a little edge raggedness in late summer is not too big a deal.
There are several wonderful, easy to find Japanese maples worth
trying out here in Texas that tend to be the most heat tolerant.
Bloodgood, the old standby, an upright, wine colored variety and
its predecessor Emperor 1, a maple that holds its color a little better
in the shade, are two great options to start out with. A favorite of
mine is Tamukeyama, a weeping form of Japanese maple that also
bears beautifully graceful purplish-red lacy leaves.
Stock may be a little limited this year due to the March ice storm,
but Bloodgoods are almost always around and a great place to start.
Happy gardening everyone!
Visit the website: www.itsaboutthyme.com Visit the nursery:11726 Manchaca Road, Austin, 78748 Like us
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