tel: 512 280-1192 thursday, october 1, 2015
Nursery notes: we have a big selection of fall veggies for your
garden: lettuce, cabbage, broccoli, Brussels sprouts and some
tomatoes. / Now is the time to spread corn gluten on your lawns
to help prevent weeds. $5 off every $50 bag. / 50% off hanging
baskets of superfood purslane: $7.50 (reg. $15). / 25% off bou-
gainvilleas: reg. $10, now $7.50. We have chrysanthemums -
$7.99 each. bronze, red, yellow and pink. Ghost and scorpion
peppers on sale: $6.99 (reg. $9.99). Please come by for a visit!
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Sheet mulching: from the world of permaculture comes this tech-
nique of creating a healthy garden bed using layers of cardboard,
mulch, leaves, straw, manure, kitchen waste...and much more.
Because of this layering, some folks call it lasagna gardening.
Info on this from Chelsea Green Blog and Mother Earth News.
Broiled tomatoes with basil: this idea for a side-dish from the
the pages of Edible San Antonio is as tasty as it is simple. Slice
tomates in half, fill with a mix of your favorite cheese and basil
leaves, and put it under the broiler 'until cheese melts and starts
to bubble.' recipe
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Central Texas Gardener: Garden Colorwheel for Butterflies. On
Sat., 4 p.m., Sun. at 9 a.m. or follow this link to have access to
all of the shows. KLRU
October Activities for Gardeners
by Chris Winslow
lawn. Feeding now will help the roots through winter dormancy.
Inspect and treat for brown patch, a disease common with cooling,
moist weather conditions.
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2. Plant fall-flowering perennials Look around and see what’s
blooming this fall. Some good choices are Mexican bush sage,
pineapple sage, Mexican mint marigold, Copper Canyon daisy,
and fall asters. Don’t forget to check out fall blooming ornamental
grasses. Tops on my list are coastal, big muhly, and maiden grass.
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3. Plant a tree Choose from central Texas’s great selection of
native and adapted shade and ornamental trees. Plant one of the
many oaks or elms for shade. Or add color to your late winter and
spring season by planting a redbud, mountain laurel, orchid tree,
flowering peach or pear, or a Mexican plum.
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4. Plant a vegetable garden Now is the time for broccoli, cauli-
flower, cabbage, and Brussels sprouts from transplants. Easily
grown from seed are collards, spinach, carrots, radishes, lettuce,
mustard and collard greens, beets, Swiss chard, spinach, and turnips.
Garlic and shallots (multiplying onions) can be planted now with
short day onions just around the corner in November.
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5. Plant snapdragons These wonderful, winter hardy flowers
should be planted now for a showy late winter and spring garden.
They almost guarantee a Yard of The Month sign in April. Other
bedding plants to choose from are dianthus, violas, pansies, stock
and flowering kale, and cabbage.
6. Harvest basil and make pesto Also plant some winter-hardy
culinary herbs. Rosemary, oregano, parsley, cilantro, sage, thyme,
and chives love winter and can provide fresh cut herbs for the
kitchen.
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7. Plant winter grass seed: if you have a bare spot or would like
to get rid of a muddy patch, sow some rye grass or fescue. Rye
grass can also be planted in a vegetable garden area to provide
green compost in the spring and soil aeration. Elbon rye seed can
also be planted over winter in garden areas plagued by soil nema-
todes (a disaster to tomatoes).
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8. Plant wildflowers These need to be planted in the fall. They
will grow leaves and stems while the days are short during the
winter and will flower in the spring as the days get longer.
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9. Plant fall bulbs For spring flowers, some of the best choices
are daffodils, grape muscari, tulips, jonquils, ranunculus, anemones,
hyacinths, and narcissus. When planting, remember to add a little
bonemeal to the root zone for some slow release organic nutrition.
Happy Gardening Everyone!
Please contact newsletter editor Darrel Mayers (pictured above)
with any ideas for articles or interesting links:
internationalrain@yahoo.com
(hitting 'reply' to this email won't work)Visit the website: Its About Thyme facebook
Visit the nursery: 11726 Manchaca Road, Austin, 78748
