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It's About Thyme
tel: 280-1192 Feb 19, 2010
In the nursery this week: a new, big shipment of early spring ever-
greens: flowering quince, bay trees, jasmines, sweet olives, loquat and
camelias. Also lots of top quality fruit trees to choose from: peaches,
pears, plums, apples, apricots, pomegranates, persimmons - all suitable
for the central Texas climate: prices range from $26 - $35. (Camelia
photo above by Julie Blake taken at the nursery yesterday morning.)
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Mix your own Herbes de Provence An inspiring how-to article from
the Epicenter website tells cooks & gardeners how to create the
perfect blend of thyme, chervil, rosemary, summer savory, lavender,
tarragon, marjoram, oregano, mint and bay leaves. Click on the link
below for directions, and also some delicious recipes, including lamb
chops with herbes de Provence and pinot noir sauce:
http://www.theepicentre.com/Spices/herbesdeprovence.html______________________________________________________
Thoughts on Crape Myrtle Pruning: Some folks favor a light
touch... while other gardeners seem to relish sharpening their clippers
and cutting branches back to an almost macabre extreme. Chris
Winslow's views on this subject:
Radical pruning of crape myrtles will scar them terribly. You create
knuckles that will be visible for the rest of their lives.This arboreal
amputation should be against the law!
The only pruning a crape needs is to cut back the suckers that appear
around the base and off the major stems. If you need to cut one back
that's too large or tall for an area, simply plant a shorter variety, such as
Acoma (white), Hopi (pink), or Tonto (fuschia). Fully mature, these
varieties stand less than 10 feet tall.
So choose a suitable plant, go for a light touch with the pruning sheers,
and let’s all stop butchering our wondrous crape myrtles!
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Some hard work has been done this week on the nursery's new
showcase garden. It is in front of the gift shop. In the photo, Van and
Eric, with Diane Winslow, pour the rocks for a dry river bed. Diane had
set her staff the challenge of using only hardscape material already at the
nursery. Ever resourceful, they created this Hill Country rock outcropping
with a dry river bed. More photos to follow soon. (photo: Julie Blake)
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Visit the website at
www.itsaboutthyme.com Visit the
nursery at 11726 Manchaca Road, Austin, TX 78748 Tel. 512 280 1192
