Planning the Spring Garden by Patty G. Leander

Posted on February 14, 2016 by Jay White

We are well into the second month of the new year and I am loving the mild winter weather we are experiencing here in Central Texas. It is perfect for the gardener – sort of makes up for all the gardening we must do in the mosquito-infested heat that often starts in late spring and lasts till early winter!

A bed of brassicas – kale, mustard and collards – almost too pretty to pick

The spring gardening season will be here soon and I am giddy with anticipation, itching to plant and obsessed with the weather forecast. January is normally our coldest month of the year yet it has come and gone and now February, a month that can bring snow and sleet and 80°F days, even in the same week, is halfway over…and my winter coat still hangs at the ready, unworn.

Gauge planting time by soil temperature rather than air temperature.

The current 14 day forecast for Central Texas shows a string of 60-80F° days with nights in the 40s and 50s. The weather screams, “It’s warm and sunny, come outside, plant some seeds!” But at this time of year soil temperature is a better gauge of when to plant than air temperature. Direct-seeded beans, cucumbers, squash and other warm-season vegetables have their best chance at germination when soil is consistently above 60°F, which usually doesn’t happen around here until early March. If planted now the seeds would likely rot or suffer multiple setbacks as they struggle to get a start in cool soil. And despite the gorgeous weather we could still get a freeze – if you have lived here long enough you know that Easter tends to be a magnet for freezing weather.

Colorful pottery and fabric pots are suitable containers for vegetables.

Planting too much or too early is a perennial conundrum in spring and it’s best to follow the forecast, monitor the soil temperature and have a plan that takes into account the space available in your garden and how long it takes a crop to reach maturity. Right now the soil in my garden hovers around 45-60°, an acceptable temperature for cool season plants like carrots, beets or broccoli. But those plants take 60-65 days to reach maturity and if planted now they will be taking up valuable space when the time comes for warm season planting next month.

Lettuce and mesclun mixes grow happily in containers, large or small.

As we transition into spring I always wish I had more garden, but one way to extend the cool season harvest without taking up room in the vegetable garden is to grow in containers. I’ve grown lettuce, beets, radishes, carrots, broccoli and more in large clay pots, fabric grow bags and steel tubs. And at this time of year containers are less likely to dry out as they tend to do later in the season.

An excellent example of interplanting from a past season in the Children’s Vegetable Garden located at the San Antonio Botanical Garden. Broccoli and cabbage, planted 6 weeks before tomatoes, beans and squash, are ready for harvest, leaving more space for the remaining crops.

Another approach to squeezing in more is to plant quick-growing, cool season crops along the edge of a bed or in the area between future plantings of warm-season vegetables with larger space requirements. Mark the spot reserved for larger plants, such as tomatoes or squash, then plant beets, Asian greens, turnips, Swiss chard, cabbage or broccoli in the area between the markers. These plants will be ready to harvest before the tomatoes or squash take over. Commonly known as interplanting, this technique will help optimize space in the garden. It also increases diversity, confuses detrimental pests and attracts beneficials.

I share these posts on Our SimpleHomestead Blog Hop. Be sure to stop by. The “hop” has tons of great information from gardeners and homesteaders all over the world!

President’s Day Potatoes

Posted on February 5, 2016 by Jay White

Last weekend I met Chris Corby (Owner of Texas Gardener Magazine) and Patty Leander (co-blogger and staff writer for Texas Gardener Magazine) in Waco for a little writer’s workshop. As often happens with Texas Gardeners that are eating Thai food together (instead of gardening) on a beautiful January Saturday, we began to discuss whether or not to trust the weather and do some early planting. Now we certainly know better. I don’t care that the groundhog didn’t see his shadow, we have all lived here long enough to know that nothing guarantees a late season freeze better than planting an early spring garden. Regardless, this warm winter weather has given all three of us a bad case of the itch that often occurs once one has been bitten by the gardening bug. While we agreed we would wait for the middle of March to do the majority of our planting, we began to talk about the one thing that needs to be planted in the February garden – potatoes!

It is time to plant potatoes! I grow mostly Red La Soda and Kennebec. However, there is a huge number of varieties that do great for us in Texas

There is an old Southern saying that says you should plant potatoes on President’s Day (in Zones 8A through 9B). President’s Day falls on Feb. 15 this year so if you are going to rely on the potato to give you a reason to get outside and do some early gardening you need to hurry. You have less than two weeks left to buy your seed potatoes, get them cut up, scabbed over and planted.

February is not the only time you can plant potatoes in Texas. Save some of your harvest this year and try them in the fall.

There is no doubt that President’s Day is a great time to plant potatoes in most of Texas and the Gulf South. However, after years of growing potatoes I would like to point out that the President’s Day saying is not, in my opinion, completely accurate. It has been my experience that the saying would be a little more accurate if it said something like “President’s Day is the LAST day to plant your potatoes”. Potatoes are very hardy plants and they will grow and produce in all but the hottest of months. If you plant on President’s Day you can be relatively certain that your plants will have time to grow, bloom and produce spuds before our hot weather kicks in. However, that is not the only time you can, or should plant potatoes in Texas.

I planted these Red La Soda and Kennebecs in September of of 2013. I harvested them in February of 2014. As you see I had enough to eat and enough to plant again for my May harvest

The only thing that potatoes will not tolerate is high heat. Because of that, they will do absolutely nothing in the Texas garden from late June to mid-September. However, once temperatures begin to fall in late September, you can begin planting potatoes. Thanks to their cold hardiness, potatoes can survive most of the freezes we get in the Gulf South. If you are willing and able to give your potatoes a little TLC, you can plant your potatoes as early as September (for a winter harvest) and as late as President’s Day (for a spring harvest). Plant potatoes in mid to late September and you can expect a decent harvest in December (as long as you are willing to cover them during cold snaps below 28 degrees). If you plant potatoes in December, in an area that is protected from the north wind (and you can cover them in a hard freeze), they will be ready for harvest before President’s Day (read about my friends at Boggy Creek in Austin harvesting potatoes right now). Growing potatoes this way will allow you to produce up to three potato harvests per year.

Each year Patty Leander loves to experiment with new varieties of potatoes. She is also a big proponent of growing them in containers.

If you have never grown potatoes I highly recommend trying them. You can grow them successfully in long wide beds (click here to see how I grow mine) or you can grow them just as well in containers on your back porch (click here to read Patty’s awesome article on container grown potatoes). Through the years I have learned to really appreciate the humble potato. They truly are one of the most adaptable, and easy to grow vegetables available. While planting on President’s Day is a good rule of thumb, don’t let it stop you from trying to grow potatoes at different times of the year. This year, why not save some of your February planted potatoes for replanting in late fall and early winter? With a little management and just a little extra care you can produce up to three potato harvests per year.

Growing potatoes in containers is fun and easy. Plus harvesting them is a snap!

I share these posts on Our SimpleHomestead Blog Hop. Be sure to stop by. The “hop” has tons of great information from gardeners and homesteaders all over the world!

A Garden Visit With Harry Cabluck

Posted on January 28, 2016 by Jay White

I love this sign that Harry has hanging in the back of his garden

Over the next twelve months we will be visiting with 12 gardeners from all over Texas. They will be sharing some of the knowledge that allows them to garden successfully in our beloved, but climatically challenging state. I have a masters degree in horticulture and I have gardened for years. However, most of my gardening knowledge came from visits with other gardeners. I hope these monthly visits will provide you, and me, with a few tips and tricks that will help us all become better gardeners.

Patty and I visited harry Cabluck and his incredibly well done garden earlier this month. We were blown away by how well down it was. Always humble, Harry gives much of the credit for his garden infrastructure to his good friend Tom Lupton.

Patty and I visited Harry Cabluck and his incredibly well done garden earlier this month. We were blown away by how well done it was. Always humble, Harry gives much of the credit for his garden infrastructure to his good friend Tom Lupton.

Our first gardener is Harry Cabluck. Harry gardens in the back yard of his central Austin home. While his garden is not the biggest I have ever seen, it is one of the neatest and most well managed gardens that I have ever been in. Harry was gardening organically long before it was “cool”. He collects rainwater for irrigation, makes tons of compost, has the nicest cold frame I have ever seen and grows tomatoes from seeds (click here to read how Harry grows his tomato transplants) and then grafts them onto other tomatoes that he has grown from seed.

Garbage bags over tomato plants Thursday, March 19, 2015, in Austin, Texas. ( Photo/Harry Cabluck)

Harry uses a piece of string and a rubber band to quickly and effectively secure his garbage covers to his tomato cages

Harry gives his beloved tomatoes a head start by growing them in an ingenious cage method that he developed. As early in March as he can, Harry plants the tomatoes he started in January in his neatly bordered beds that are extremely well worked with compost. He then takes a 55 gallon trash can liner, splits the end and bunches it around the tomato plant. Then he uses his heavy duty cages to anchor the the trash bag in place. To keep his trash bag liner secured to his cage he uses an ingenious string and rubber band fastener that is incredibly effective and easy to use. With bags in place he is able to easily pull the bags up over his frame at the earliest sign of cold weather, high winds or heavy rain. I was so impressed with this cage method that I seriously considered changing the way I grow tomatoes! Now let’s hear more from Harry:

Cabluck garden on Tuesday, May 13, 2014, in Austin, Texas. ( Photo/Harry Cabluck)

Name: Harry Cabluck

Location: Central Austin. **City garden of three 100-sq. ft. raised beds. We rotate a plot holding 12-15 tomato plants a year.

(Photo/Harry Cabluck)

Years gardening: 43+. First gardened as a child in late 1940’s. My mother had a green thumb and a source for manure, as her father was a dairy farmer. As an adult we have had small plots in Dallas and larger plots in Pittsburgh, Pa., and Columbus, Ohio. We made good use of our Troy-Bilt 6 hp rototiller. Often improved the soil in these gardens by importing soil, manure and/or spoiled hay.

Years in this plot: 20. **Our backyard was once the corral area for a nearby home. When we moved in it was black gumbo clay that would hold ankle-deep water for a few days after each rain. De-ionized the soil with gypsum. Built multiple compost piles 20-feet long before starting to plant in 1995.

Tomatoes under lights Sunday, March 2, 2014, in Austin, Texas. ( Photo/Harry Cabluck)

Favorite crop: Tomatoes. Usually start 60 seeds in trays under lights in the garage in January. This is the first year to use LED’s instead of T-5 or fluorescent lights. Hope to yield 36 heirloom/hybrids along with 18 rootstock for grafting. After starts in trays become root bound, transplant to four-inch pots. Some 12-15 pots stay under lights, the remaining pots are moved to the cold frame. Sometimes need to run an extension cord and heating pad to cold frame. Usually give away the tomato plants that are not planted in our garden. Crop rotation includes basil, green beans, arugula, spinach, marigolds. January crops include greens, carrots, elephant garlic, shallots, gumbo onions. Would like to attempt parsnips. Have never had good luck with sweet peas.

Best tips: Make good garden dirt.

Compost!!! This year’s compost pile of ground leaves, mixed with kitchen scraps, cottonseed meal, bat guano and molasses, seems to be the best ever. In previous years used cooked barley malt (byproduct of brewery) mixed with coffee chaff (byproduct of air roasting). That stuff needed to be turned at least once daily, as it would putrefy.

Harry composts directly in his beds

Although not necessary, we get great results using our cold frame and 800-gallon rainwater catchment. A two-inch rain on our 20X20-foot garage roof will fill the tank. It is usually empty around July 4.

Make use of store-bought soil for seed-starting and transplanting. Happy Frog brand seems best. Don’t waste time and money on cheap tomato cages. Read Bill Adams’, “Texas Tomato Lover’s Handbook.”

Cold frame in Cabluck back yard garden Saturday, March 7, 2015, in Austin, Texas. ( Photo/Harry Cabluck)

Pest control: Havahart traps for varmints. For bugs, mix a one-gallon cocktail containing 50-squirts Tabasco, one ounce of liquid seaweed, one ounce molasses, one ounce fish emulsion, dash of dishwashing liquid…when necessary add BT. I love my Hudson sprayer.

Weed control: We control weeds by cultivating and mulching regularly. **Best stuff seems to be wood chips. Long-tined rake, six-inches wide, four tines.

Biggest challenge: Thwarting the squirrels and leaf-footed bugs. **Would like to have a moveable pergola, because a hoop house is always a challenge to erect and doesn’t look good.

Favorite amendment: Cottonseed meal AND anything with trace elements…especially glauconite, WHICH seems to help blossoms set fruit in heat and cold.

Do we preserve: No. **Not large enough garden, small yields.

Favorite advice: Have a good friend who has great ideas. ***Thanks to Tom Lupton.

What would you like to do better? Would like to learn more about tomato biology. How to ensure more tomato blossoming and fruit set and how to improve brix.

Gardening in a Galaxy Far, Far Away by Patty G. Leander

Posted on January 20, 2016 by Jay White

We began the New Year with three exciting events in our family – our oldest daughter completed her firefighter training, our Red Raider niece married a handsome red-headed Aggie and we took my awesome in-laws (ages 86 and 90) to see ‘Star Wars: A Force Awakens’.

Proud of our courageous firefighter (and valedictorian)!

Bruce practicing his photo bomb technique on our niece’s beautiful wedding cake.

Grammy and Grampy Leander (he’ll be 91 next month) learning to take a selfie at the wedding reception – how cool is that?

During the movie, both my husband and my daughter looked over and nudged me. I get nudged a lot in reference to the vegetables I grow in my garden and I hope I won’t be giving much away if I tell you that cauliflower makes an appearance in the Star Wars Galaxy!

Galactic Gardening – apparently this Romanesco cauliflower grows in other galaxies

You can grow Romanesco cauliflower in your earth-bound garden and January is a good time to set out transplants – if you can find them. You can also grow your own transplants but you’d have to start right away because this galactic brassica does not like the heat. It takes 5-6 weeks to grow a good sized transplant, then another 6-8 weeks to reach a harvestable size. That puts us well into April. If you live in North Texas or beyond you may be able to get away with this, but gardeners in Central and South Texas are better off waiting until next fall to give this one a go. If planted too late in spring the warm weather may cause it to bolt before it has a chance to reach maturity.

A striking Romanesco cauliflower ready for harvest

Put this unique but easy-to-grow cauliflower on your list for fall 2016. Open-pollinated, heirloom seeds are available from Baker Creek (www.rareseeds.com), Sustainable Seed Company (www.sutainableseedco.com) and Seed Savers Exchange (www.seedsavers.org). Or you can opt for a slightly earlier hybrid called ‘Veronica’, available from Johnny’s Seeds (www.johnnyseeds.com) or High Mowing Seeds (www.highmowingseeds.com). And if you or your kids are really into Star Wars, give ‘Skywalker’ cauliflower a try. A hybrid variety noted for bright white, dense heads and cold tolerance; it is well-suited for fall cultivation. Seeds are available from Johnny’s and High Mowing.

Bolting Romanesco – not a pretty sight but still edible

I share these posts on Our SimpleHomestead Blog Hop. Be sure to stop by. The “hop” has tons of great information from gardeners and homesteaders all over the world!

Garden Resolutions

Posted on January 15, 2016 by Jay White

Happy Belated New Year ! I hope your holidays were joyous and relaxing. While not exactly relaxing, our holidays were most definitely joyful! Sally and I spent a whole week on Orcas Island in Washington State. We were there to meet the newest member of our family. Our youngest daughter gave birth to our second grandson. What a joy to visit with her and welcome Bernard to our ever expanding family.

Did you make any gardening resolutions? Personally, I gave up on resolutions several years ago. However, I still set goals. I guess this is kind of like making resolutions. However, thanks to some weird part of my brain, I seem to have less guilt when I fail to complete a goal than when I fail to accomplish my resolutions.

I have set lots of goals for 2016. First, I want to figure out how to spend more time in my garden. I will need to do this since I am doubling the size of my vegetable garden and adding a large butterfly/cut flower garden. I also planted two 35’ foot rows of blackberries back in the summer and those will need tending.

If your daughter is going to live far, far away, pray that she lives in a beautiful place. This view of My. Baker is just steps from daughter's house.

If your daughter is going to live far, far away, pray that she lives in a beautiful place. This view of Mt. Baker is just steps from daughter’s house.

My next goal is to finish several unfinished landscaping projects. I have decided that 2016 will be the year that I finally finish the granite walk paths that pass through the three rose arbors and connect all of my gardens together. The walk paths were on hold so I could run water and electricity out to my vegetable garden. I am proud to say this project was completed back in November. While I am looking forward to finishing the walk paths, I am more excited about the six water spigots that I have added that will allow me to install and use drip irrigation in my ever expanding vegetable garden.

My final goal is to do a better job documenting all of these changes on the blog. In addition, Patty and I are going to introduce a new feature. Each month we are going to visit with gardeners around the state and see what works, and what doesn’t, in their gardens. Each time I visit with a gardener I pick up something that I can apply in my own garden. I hope you will enjoy our visits and I hope you get some tips that will make you a better gardener too.

I was impressed with the number of vegetable gardens we saw on the island. Seems like everyone had one. This one was truly beautiful

Last year was a great year for the blog (click here if you would like to see the “Year in Review” presentation from WordPress). The “Weekly Tips” were incredibly well received. While I am not going to continue this, I will continue to post a weekly tip on my Facebook page. If you don’t already follow us on Facebook please check it out and give us a like.

Thank you all so much for continuing to follow us. We are so humbled that you choose to get some of your gardening tips from our little website. We work hard to provide information that is relevant, useful and (hopefully) entertaining. If there is anything that you would like to have featured or discussed on the blog do not hesitate to send us an e-mail or leave us a comment. Happy New Year!

Week 50 Tips for the Zone 9 Garden

Posted on December 19, 2015 by Jay White

This will be my last post of the year. Thank you all for following me this year as we did our weekly tips. I am going to take some downtime to spend with my family. If you are Catholic you know we are in the liturgical season of Advent. Advent is a time of preparation and waiting for the birth of our lord. I hope you receive many blessings during this joyous season. Sally and I are also celebrating our own personal Advent. We are anxiously awaiting the arrival of a new grandson. Please keep all of us in your prayers!

If you get a break from all of the season’s activities, this week will be a great time to be in the garden. The weather is supposed to remain outstanding until the 28^th.

Grandson number 1 came for a visit last week. Can’t wait to meet grandson number 2 this month! Sorry for all of the maroon but one of his granddads went to the other place so we take every opportunity to makes sure he makes the right decision 16 years from now!!!

VEGETABLES/FRUITS

Plant Herbs – December is a great time to plant perennial herbs like rosemary, lavender, oregano and thyme. You can also plant from seed or transplant cilantro, parsley and dill
Plant peas – My grandmother swore you should plant English peas on the last day of the year. This will ensure a nice fresh harvest for Easter
Fruit Trees – Plant bare root fruit trees now and into January
Spray Fruit trees – I have a real problem with scale insects. Spray fruit trees with dormant oil now to reduce your Spring infestations

Continue to harvest and replant lettuce

ORNAMENTALS

Plant salvias – I love salvias and I grow several varieties. If you don’t have any get some and plant them now. This plants are beautiful and long blooming and they are just about pest free.
Plant iris – Plant iris corms now for an early Spring bloom
Flowers – Plant calendula, or pot marigolds from transplant. You can also plant old fashioned “pinks” (dianthus) at this time.
Move shrubs and trees – Most of our shrubs and trees are now dormant. This is the perfect time to move any that are not thriving or have over grown their space.

You can still plant all radishes in Zone 9. Try something different this season like diakon, rat tail or icicle radishes

I share these posts on Our SimpleHomestead Blog Hop. Be sure to stop by. The “hop” has tons of great information from gardeners and homesteaders all over the world!

Week 49 Tips for the Zone 9 Garden

Posted on December 11, 2015 by Jay White

I hope you have been able to get outside and take advantage of this unseasonably gorgeous weather. Last Saturday, Sally and I took a little horticultural get away to our state’s capital. We had a lovely visit with co-blogger Patty Leander. We toured her amazing garden (she is growing peanuts!) and the extremely well done garden of long-time reader Harry Cabluck. We also took time to visit the new “Lucy and Ian Family Garden” at the Ladybird Johnson Wildlife Center. If you have never been to the Wildflower Center you really need to go. It has always been an awesome place for adult gardeners, landscapers and nature lovers. Now, with the addition of the family garden, the wildflower center is the perfect weekend trip for the entire family.

There has never been a better time to visit the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in Austin. The recent addition of the Lucy and Ian Family Garden ensures your kids or grandkids will enjoy the trip as much as you do.

VEGETABLES/FRUITS

Plant Onions – Last weekend I planted my onions (read how I do it here). I ordered my onions from Dixondale Farms. Dixondale has been growing onion sets in Texas for almost 100 years. Their website is a great resource for onion growers. Not only can you order you plants, you can find recommendations on how to grow them, when to plant them and which varieties to use for your area.
Plant more greens – It is still possible to plant arugula, collards, mustards, lettuce and spinach. In fact, I just planted a container with red lettuce, arugula and spinach last weekend. I love growing greens in containers and keeping them close to the back door. This way my wife and I have ready access to fresh and fabulous salads all weekend
Plant strawberries – December is a great time to plant strawberries. Plant them in full sun and in soil that drains well.
Get row cover ready– Believe it or not, it really is going to freeze sometime soon. Get ready by digging out your row cover and getting moved to your garden.
Spray fruit trees with dormant oil – Dormant oils smother scale insects and other sucking insects that plague peaches, plums, pears and apricots (and crepe myrtles too) in the spring. Most of these are refined petroleum products but you can find dormant oils that come from plants oils. Organic dormant oils should carry the Organic Materials Review Institute (OMRI) seal.

Last year I had cauliflower, shallots and spinach sharing space in my potager garden. You can still plant spinach in your Zone 8 and 9 gardens.

ORNAMENTALS

Plant flower bulbs – My 16 month old grandson is visiting. This afternoon I am going to get him to help me plant 50 daffodil bulbs. If you want spring blooms of narcissus, daffodils, jonquils or luecojum you need to plant them now.

Flowers – After Roger and I finish planting our daffodils we are going to plant larkspur. I put out larkspur seeds in a broadcast manner. You can also plant poppies in the same way. December is also a great time to plant dianthus, pansy and violas from transplants

December is a great time to plant pansy and violas (Johnny Jump-Ups) from transplant

I share these posts on Our SimpleHomestead Blog Hop. Be sure to stop by. The “hop” has tons of great information from gardeners and homesteaders all over the world!

Week 48 Tips for the Zone 9 Garden

Posted on December 2, 2015 by Jay White

Since we are so close to Christmas I thought I would use this week’s post to give you some great gift ideas for the gardener in your life. I use the tools highlighted below extensively in my own garden. Not only are these tools extremely useful, they are extremely durable. Plus, with the exception of the Felcos, they are all made by hand. I really like that and I really like supporting artisans and local entrepreneurs. FYI, I get nothing from any of these companies from recommending these products. I am just a very satisfied customer that is happy to recommend these products to you.

My favorite pruner is the Felco F7. The F7 is $58 and worth every penny!

Felco Pruners – I have heard some folks say that Felco pruners are expensive. While they may be a bit more expensive than the average pruner, their quality is head and shoulders above the others that I have tried. I take my Felcos with me each and every single time I go into the garden. On my most recent trip to the garden I used them to prune roses, clip crepe myrtle suckers, take cuttings from my geraniums and begonias and then clean up dead tomato and cucumber vines. I also used them to cut twine, open several bags of compost and my chicken feed. In short, this is the single most used tool in my gardening arsenal. I like them so much that I have two pair. I feel like the $58 that I paid for mine is the best money I have ever spent on a gardening tool. If you are going to buy pruners for yourself (or as a gift) I recommend the Felco 7 Pruner (F7). This pruner has a rotating handle that allows you to use the tool all day long and never develop a blister.

The CobraHead Hand Hoe is the best weeder/cultivator I have found. At just $24.95 it is a useful gift that won’t break the bank.
CobraHead Weeder and Cultivator – The CobraHead Hand Hoe is a marvelous little garden tool that is produced right here in the USA by a small family owned business. My wife ordered it for me from another family owned business that we often shop with; Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds. I am not a big buyer of garden gadgets. However, when I saw the CobraHead in the Baker Creek magazine I knew it was something worth having. The CobraHead is a 13″ long, curved weeder, cultivator, planter, etc. It has a thin, curved, football shaped head that allows it to work in even the heaviest clays. When I go into the garden my Felcos are in my right back pocket and my CobraHead is in the left pocket. I simply cannot garden without these two tools (ok that was a little melodramatic but I really do love these two tools!)

This dibber and row marker is as beautiful as it is functional. If you would like to get this hand made gift for your own gardener you better hurry. Martha Stewert has picked this up as one of her holiday recommendations.
StumpDust Hand Made Dibber and Row Markers– Here is something that is as beautiful as it is useful. My wife gave me the Combo Set ($45 at http://www.stumpdust.com/shop/) for my birthday. I usually use my fingers to make my holes for planting. I cannot wait to use this beautiful, handmade tool that is made from salvaged materials when it comes time to plant my beans and peas.
MiteyFine Mister – While the CobraHead helps keep my weeds at bay, the MITEYFINE Mister helps me wash my bug problems away. The MITEYFINE Mister is an ingeniously simple tool, made right here in Texas, that does a great job keeping aphids, spider mites and even some caterpillars at bay. The MITEYFINE is a wand that attaches to your hose. The tip at the end is specifically designed for pest control. It applies just enough pressure to knock off the bugs without damaging the plant. Plus, it uses no chemicals, which is really important to me.
Soil Test – While this may not be the sexiest of gifts, it is one of the most important. Most gardeners I know (me included) always plan on doing a soil test. However, they never seem to make it down to the extension office to get the bag. Well, do it for them. All extension offices have these in stock (or they will mail you one. Click here to order). Go get it for your gardener and wrap it up. Once they open it take them outside and gather the sample with them and then take it back to the extension office. I promise they will thank you! A good test will cost about $25 and a great test will be about $100. The information contained in the test results will make you a better gardener!

I share these posts on Our SimpleHomestead Blog Hop. Be sure to stop by. The “hop” has tons of great information from gardeners and homesteaders all over the world!

Week 47 Tips for the Zone 9 Garden

Posted on November 20, 2015 by Jay White

Well the law of averages may actually work this weekend. According to historical data there is a 50% chance of a freeze in my area by November 22. Weather.com is predicting that it will be 33 when I wake up on Sunday, November 22. I would say that is getting pretty close the historical average. . If you still have things in garden I would suggest digging out the row cover and the Christmas lights. Looks like we are going to need them.

VEGETABLES

Lettuce and spinach can be grown in most of Texas from September through early April. Don’t have much room? Grow them in pots and keep them close to the kitchen door!

Plant – Even though it is going to be cool for a few days you can still plant lettuce and spinach in most of the state. If you live north of the DFW metroplex you may need to grow them in a way that will allow you to quickly cover them for temperatures below 24 or the infrequent snow or ice storm. Thanksgiving is about the last time that you can plant fava beans.
Harvest – I don’t know if it is true or not, but I have always heard that collard greens are “sweeter” if harvested after the first freeze. Well, 33 is pretty close to a freeze so I would say this will be a great week to harvest your collard and mustard greens.

ORNAMENTALS

Two of the most loved, and most durable cool weather flowers are pansies and violas. Now is a great time to put them out in most of Texas

Plant – It is finally cool enough to put out dianthus, snap dragons, pansies, violas and ornamental kale and cabbages. Prepare the soil by gently tilling in an inch or two of compost. You can still plant Texas wild flowers from seed in late November and early December. Now is also a great time to plant two of my favorite spring flowers – larkspur and sweet peas. Spread larkspur in a broadcast manner. Plant sweet peas individually about an inch deep. They will bloom now, stay small through the cool weather and then take off when the temperatures begin to warm up in March.
Prune – Some of the finer textured perennials like guara and salvia can be pruned back after the first freeze. I cut mine down to about 6” and mulch them fairly deeply.
Fertilize – Since the soil microbes take longer to break down your compost in the cooler temps it is a good idea to feed your ornamentals with a diluted, water soluble fertilizer for the first few weeks.

Broadcast lasrkspur seed now for to ensure you have lots of these beautiful reseeding annuals in the spring,

I share these posts on Our SimpleHomestead Blog Hop. Be sure to stop by. The “hop” has tons of great information from gardeners and homesteaders all over the world!

Week 46 Tips for the Zone 9 Garden

Posted on November 14, 2015 by Jay White

Thanks to the generosity of a friend, the “dream I dreamed” for my vegetable garden is now very close to completion. Danny Hartley came down last weekend and sloshed around in the sticky, muddy clay and helped me install my irrigation system. It was a big job and I simply could not have done it without his help. Next spring, my garden will consist of 12 rows of herbs, flowers and vegetables that are watered by a soaker hose irrigation system that is feed by my six new water spigots! Thanks so much Danny!

This weekend I will finally get to pull up my okra, tomatoes and cucumbers. One row will be reserved for my onions. The other two will be replanted with beets, turnips, collard and mustard greens. Below are some more things you can do this weekend in your yard and garden.

Thanks to Danny Hartley my dreamsof a “Southern Living” quality garden is one step closer!

VEGETABLES

Plant – One of the great things about gardening in Zone 9 is the ability to plant year round. Even though it is the middle of November you can still plant lots of things. This weekend I will be putting out more beets, turnips, collards and mustard greens. You can also plant sugar snap peas, radishes, lettuce, spinach, Asian greens like bok choi, kale, chard and so much more!!! Do not forget to check out Patty Leander’s Planting guide to see what else you can plant in your November garden
Harvest – If you have things ready for harvest I would suggest that you bring them in. We are fast approaching our average first frost date. While many of our fall veggies can take a light freeze, squash tomatoes and cucumbers cannot.
Fertilize –Heat increases the metabolism of all living things. Because of this, the nutritive value of the compost is “used up” more quickly in the warmer months of the year. If you compost now the cooler temperatures will make your compost “last longer”. Basically, a good heavy application of compost now means you will not need to feed your soil again until April or early May.

ORNAMENTALS

Plant – You can still scatter poppy and larkspur seeds for the next week or so. I have tons of these two flowers and I love them both. They come in several colors so they work in every landscape AND they reseed with abandon. Plant some now and you can realistically have them forever
Prune – It is still too early to prune trees. However, it is a great time to prune ever green shrubs. Since the cool temperatures slow their growth rate for the next few months a good shaping now will keep them looking great until Spring
Fertilize – Just like your in the vegetable garden, an application of compost to your yards will gently feed your lawns until the grass begins actively growing in the spring
Move – If you have made any landscaping mistakes now is a great time to correct them. November is the best time to move (or plant) perennials.

Chicken and Asparagus! Our girls like the fall garden almost as much as Sally and I do.

I share these posts on Our SimpleHomestead Blog Hop. Be sure to stop by. The “hop” has tons of great information from gardeners and homesteaders all over the world!