With Mother’s Day approaching next weekend (writes Chris W.),
please allow me to make the following observation: mothers love to
garden! A few gift ideas for readers:
Mixed plantings of culinary herbs Pick a beautiful ceramic pot or
hanging basket. Fill it with good potting soil, and then plant four 4”
potted herbs. Pick some that will cascade from the top of the pot.
Creeping herbs like thyme, oregano and rosemary can also be mixed
with popular, upright herbs like parsley, sage and chives. Then tie a
bow around the top of the pot.
A European basket Start with a nice woven basket with a handle.
Then place potted flowering herbs and tropical plants inside. Add
some packets of flower seed, a hand trowel, and some colorful (and
useful) gardening gloves, some ribbon, and a card. Another beautiful
home-made gift.
A living rose bush There are some magnificent roses available that
bloom all year and require little attention. Look for the knock-out
series, and home run. They'll add beauty to the landscape all year long.
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Thanks to Mark Bradley for his bee-keeping lecture last Sunday. He
spoke in vivid detail about the effects of colony collapse disorder,
and urged us to help bees by replacing our turf grass with native plants.
Top choices? Red yuccas, yellow bells, Russian sage, sedums, prickly
pear cacti, hollies and salvias. Other ways to help include supporting
Central Texas Gardener KLRU TV. Million bells, shrub daisy and
hot lips salvia are among the plants Jeff Yarbrough (Emerald Garden
Nursery) talks about with host Tom Spencer. On tour, Robin Howard
Moore reminisces about her family business - Howard Nursery - and
suggests gardeners work with repetitions and groupings to build up
a design for their gardens. Sat. noon, 4 p.m. or Sun. at 9 a.m.
www.klru ___________________________________________________________________
Austin Bakes for West Citywide Bake Sale will be held tomorrow
(May 4) 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. to help victims of the fertlizer explosion
in this small Texas town. Over 100 bakers, bloggers, and businesses
are joining together to raise funds for AmeriCares relief efforts in
Hot Lips Salvia! This evergreen with distinct two-tone flowers, is popular with
butterflies and hummingbirds. Available at the nursery:1 gal. $7.99; 3 gal $14.99.
The Garden in May
by Chris Winslow
1.Plant flowers: This is a perfect time for flowering annuals and
perennials. Begonias, zinnias, marigolds, moss-roses, purslanes,
and vinca are all good choices. Perennials might include lantanas,
salvias, and verbenas.
2 Vegetable garden care: Water deeply to encourage a deep, drought
tolerant root system, especially after last year’s heatwave. Still time
to add a few warm season crops: sweet and hot peppers, green beans,
okra, eggplant, and black-eyed peas. Fertilize tomatoes.
3. Mulch: Place around all plants to conserve water and keep the
temperature around the plant roots comfortable. Mixing some compost
with the mulch will help replace nutrients as the plants grow.
4. Care of roses: Dead-head spring flowering roses to encourage a
new flush of flowers. Apply fertilizer to produce new flowers. Watch
for powdery mildew, black spot and western flower thrip. Treat with
organic sprays: Neem oil and wettable-sulphur.
5 . Move houseplants outside: Put them out for a spring breather.
Move them slowly towards their new light exposure. Too much sun
too fast will burn the leaves. This is also a good time for transplanting.
6. Insect control: All this new spring growth is attractive to every
kind of critter imaginable. Be nice to the environment (and to your-
self) and only use organic sprays. If you have larvae (caterpillars)
eating holes in your plants and trees, look for products that have B.T.
as the main ingredient. If sucking insects like aphids, spider mites,
whitefly, scale, and mealy bug are the problem, use Neem oil or
Spinosad.
7. Maintain irrigation: If you own an automatic sprinkler system,
it would save water and money to have it tuned up. Set the controller
for deep, infrequent watering to encourage a deep, drought-resistant
root system. Install rain sensor.
8. Fertilize lawn: Use an organic blend with a 3-1-2 ratio. Ten pounds
per 1,000 square feet of turf area should be adequate.
9. Feed the birds: lots of new birds in the area, keep those feeders full.
10. Grow basil: The top herb for the summer months is basil. With the
nights getting warmer (except for the few recent chilly nights this week!)
this wonderful herb should finally have the temperatures it needs to take
off. Happy Gardening Everyone!
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