tel: 512 280-1192 Thursday, March 20 2014
Nursery Notes: Beautiful 4' x 4' raised beds on sale for just $60;
made of western red cedar they're rot resistant and repel insects.
Lots of antique and modern roses in stock - the thornless Lady
Banks rose, some David Austins and much more. Veggies crowd
our greenhouses, and we're so proud of our selection of 30 varieties
our greenhouses, and we're so proud of our selection of 30 varieties
of tomato. Peppers are plentiful too: for heat-seeking chefs, we
stock the notorious ghost peppers, Trinidad scorpions and some
Jamaican Scotch bonnets. Our citrus section is huge at the moment,
and the fragrance of the blossoms will transport you. Don't forget to
mark calendars for next weekend's Zilker Garden Festival.
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Flowers in ice cubes: this novelty for the summer months ahead
comes to us from Austin resident Georgia Pellegrini and her book
Modern Pioneering. All that's required are some ice-cube molds,
distilled water and edible flowers such as nasturtiums and violets,
or herbs. From a recent issue of Garden & Gun.
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Ten Secrets for a Successful Spring Vegetable Garden: Skip
Richter, who believes everyone has a green thumb, lays out the
basics, covering sunlight, drainage, soil, plant choice and nutrients
in this informative article from Texas Gardener Magazine
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Central Texas Gardener: Chris and Bill Reid from Reid's Nursery
pick pollinator favorites to get the garden humming with bees. On
tour, a visit to the beautiful wildlife garden of Dani & Gary Moss.
Sat. noon, 4 p.m. or Sun., 9 a.m. www.klru
My Favorite Olive Trees
by Amanda Moon
Every garden should have an olive tree. They are so beautiful… the
way their narrow gray foliage dances in the wind – and, they’re per-
fectly suited to our hot and dry climate. Olives are hardy, drought-
resistant evergreens, and are as easy to grow as crepe myrtles.
They have been in this country for hundreds of years, from Georgia
to California (and in between in Texas of course). Originally hailing
from the Mediterranean regions of Europe, they were brought over
to the US by monks stationed at the Spanish missions throughout
the southern part of our country.
However they fell out of favor for a while due to cheaper crops and
loss of labor from the many battles fought on our soil in the 1700s-
1800s. But in the early twentieth century olives were planted again
in south Texas.
These are still thriving along with other olive farms that have popped
up all over south and south central Texas. Many are now selling
their olive oil at local farmers’ markets such as the original, Texas
Olive Ranch, and the Central Texas Olive Ranch in Georgetown.
Mission is the original olive tree grown in this country and it is
thought of as an American olive. It is a hardy olive tree for much
of Texas with a relatively quick growth rate. This variety takes some
time to set fruit, but is considered by most to be self-pollinating.
It is used both as a table olive and pressed for oil. Other oil vari-
eties that do well here and produce earlier, if fruit is your objective,
are Arbequina, Arbosana, and Koroneiki (which helps pollinate
the other two).
The Missions typically grow to a height of 15’-20’, while the other
varieties tend to stay smaller. They prefer full sun and excellent
drainage. It’s best if you can plant the tree in a south facing location
as they can be knocked back in extreme winter temperatures.
In 2010 the Mission at It’s About Thyme froze back a little with an
extended period of below freezing temps, but popped right back out
when the weather warmed up. The low teens the year before that
did not faze it at all. Aside from the occasional die-back they’re ever-
green most years.
If you like the look of an olive but don’t have much room or desire
for fruit you have to do something with, then an option is a dwarf
variety called Little Ollie. It is grown as a 3’ shrub instead of a tree
so would be a great addition to a smaller bed.
Olives are great xeric specimen trees that require little follow up care
once established and do not suffer from many pests. The biggest
problem I have had on mine (and they are still low to the ground in
pots) has been from leaf-chewing insects.
Because they are usually evergreen and grow relatively fast they’re
very effective as a quick growing screen along fence lines or to block
your neighbors’ second story windows.
Just driving around I am now seeing olive trees in so many landscapes,
parks and backyards – and it is so good to see that olives have earned
their place (once again) in Texas landscapes.
Happy gardening everyone!
Visit the website: www.itsaboutthyme.com Visit the nursery:11726 Manchaca Road, Austin, 78748 Like us
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