![ItsAboutThyme_logo[1] by you.](https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2453/3680390926_a47790c3da.jpg?v=0)
It's About Thyme tel: 512-280-1192 Feb 18, 2011
Nursery Notes: This is the time for organic weed control with
corn gluten. We have 40lb bags on sale for $40 (for 4,000 square feet),
or you can buy it for $1 per lb. Vegetable gardeners: we have
peppers and tomatoes, broccoli, varietal lettuces, arugula, cilantro,
spinach and cabbage. Also, geranium and begonia hanging baskets, and
lots of landscape stock arriving this week. Time to get busy again!
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On KLRU's Central Texas Gardener this weekend, Andrea DeLong-
plant solutions; and a visit to Lazy Acres, the garden of Christine and
Pete Hausmann. Saturday, noon and 4 p.m. Sunday 9 a.m. Or click
this link to view it now. www.klru.org/ctg/
In Praise of the Tulip Tree
by Chris Winslow
On of the greatest harbingers of spring is the tulip tree. Also known
as ‘saucer magnolia,’ this large flowering shrub - or small tree -is
related to the southern magnolias that you find across the southern
United States.
The difference is that the tulip tree (Magnolia x soulangeana) is
deciduous, shedding its leaves in the late fall. Around this time
of year, however, it starts to show its tulip shaped blossoms
before it puts on its foliage. This fantastic display announces the
advent of spring.
Tulip trees are hardy in our area. They grow 20 to 25 feet high
with a 10 to 12 foot spread, and have multiple trunks. One of the
most striking varieties is named ‘Jane,’ one of the eight little girl
hybrids made by the National Arboretum. Jane’s flower color is
fuchsia (red-purple).
Plant your tulip trees in a location that’s sun to part shade. Its
moisture requirements are medium and its growth rate is pretty
fast. If you’re fond of flowering trees, this one is spectacular.
(The nursery has a selection of tulip trees, from $19.99 - $49.99)
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A Helpful Calendar for Gardeners
Here in Hays County, a vegetable gardener’s hands are rarely
idle. We are so fortunate because there is almost always something
you can plant almost any day of the year. The trick is knowing
what to plant… and when.
For this, a brief consultation with Mr. Google is called for. Try
asking him to locate ‘Travis AgriLife Planting Calendar’. . . and
you will arrive at one of my favorite planting calendar websites.
Complied by experts at Texas A&M and the Texas Extension Service,
this free and simple guide tells you what crop to plant for each week
and month of the year.
With February starting to slip towards March, it’s important to
plant those asparagus crowns and seed potatoes. For bulbing
onions (from transplants) time has about run out. For a successful
crop of 1015y, Bermuda, or Southern Belle red, we have about 2
weeks to get them in the ground.
February is also the month to plant spinach, turnips, cool season
greens (mustard and collards), kale, lettuce, leeks, broccoli, cabbage,
cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, radishes, carrots, and English peas.
This is also the perfect time to prepare the garden soil for our spring.
Tomato, okra, squash, cucumber, pepper, cantaloupe, watermelon,
corn, and the eggplant season is just a few weeks away.
If you have the time, stop by the nursery. We will have plenty of
these garden calendars on hand to give away.
Happy Gardening Everyone!
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