Tag Archives: Brenham

Planting the 2012 Spring Potager

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March 15 is the ultimate go date in the Zone 9 garden.  At this point there is an almost 0% chance of a freeze.  Because of this you can now plant just about everything.  I have to admit, I am a little behind the curve this year.  The rain, while much needed and much appreciated, has seemed to come at times that have interfered with my time off.  Who would believe that after last’s year’s drought, I would be delayed in my planting by rain?

A "found" Cherokee rose that I propogated from cuttings now spills over the fence of my potager

As soon as it dries up a little, I am going to plant the potager.  I love selecting and designing with the plants that are going to go into the potager.  Each year I replant it gets a little easier.  I learn which plants do well and I also figure out their size and scale when mature.

A lot of my outside beds are now filled with perennials.  I have lots of salvia, roses and dianthus.  I also have lots of herbs like rosemary and Mexican Mint Marigold (Tagetes lucida).  There are also Egyptian Walking Onions, larkspur and hollyhocks.  The only thing that will need to be pulled this spring is the garlic.  In the open spaces in these outside beds I am going to plant several herbs.  On a recent visit to Texas Specialty Cut Flowers, my wife bought several varieties of peppers.  I have also grown some pimento peppers and Napoleon Sweet Bell peppers from seed.  These will go toward the back of the beds with a few varieties of basil that we have saved from seed.  Along the front, we will be planting parsley, oregano, lavender and thyme.

Salvia and daiseys in last years potager

The center beds are going to be all for vegetables.  The look of the triangular beds will not change dramatically.  As a “spiller”, I will replace the spinach and lettuce with Contender Bush beans.  Beans are a pretty quick crop so when they fade around June 1, I will pull them up and replant with purple hulled black-eyed peas. For my “filler” I will divide the shallots that are there now and leave a few behind the beans so they can divide for replanting in the fall.  Finally, I will plant Black From Tula heirloom tomatoes that I have grown from seed as my “thriller” on the trellises in the center of the beds.

The last bed in the potager is the center diamond shaped bed.  Right now it is full of byzantine gladiolus.  Once these bloom and fade I will plant a lovely red okra.  The okra needs to be planted in June anyway so this work out well for me.  I selected okra for this bed because it grows a pretty, nice, tall and structural plant.  Okra is in the hibiscus family.  Because of this, it produces very large and lovely flowers that look just like hibiscus.

The hibiscus like flowers of okra

Right now is a great time to be outside.  The martins have returned, the bluebonnets are in full bloom and the fruit trees are in bud.  Why not get outside this week and plant your garden?  Below is a list of some of the veggies that you can plant now.

Five Must Grow Tomatoes by William D. Adams

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I am truly blessed to be able to call many of the top horticulturists in the country friend.  My work at A&M has exposed me to so many people that are truly experts in their fields of study.  I call these people “Masters of Horticulture”.  I started this blog because I was so inspired by these experts and all they were teaching me that I wanted to be able to document it and share it with others.

Today’s guest author, William (Bill) D. Adams, is one of these Masters of Horticulture.  He and I became aquainted through a theater group we both support.  Soon after we met, Bill read a little article that I had written for Hort Update.  He encouraged me to write more and even acted as my sponsor for the Garden Writer’s Association.  The rest as they say is history.

Bill spent 31 years honing his craft as an extension specialist in Harris County.  Upon retirement he set out to learn everything there was to know about the tomato.  His efforts have resulted in the publication of the “Texas Tomato Lover’s Handbook“.  This best selling, comprehensive work tells you everything you need to know so you can grow the best tomatoes possible in the difficult and unpredictable Texas climate.  As you will see when you read his book, Bill’s extensive research (which means growing EVERY tomato he mentions) has made him the UNDISPUTED tomato king of Texas.  Because of this, I am thrilled to share this article about the best tomatoes for your Texas garden from the King himself.  Enjoy!

Five Must Grow Tomatoes by William D. Adams

Tomato varieties come and go but the ones with great flavor, a juicy, melting flesh and healthy, easy-to-grow vines are the ones we treasure.  Narrowing the list to five is almost impossible for a true tomato lover so forgive me if I throw in a few alternates.

Medium to medium-large slicer—a tomato that will make you burger zing, your BLT complete and your neighbors envious.  Champion Hybrid is still at the top in this category but you could make do with Celebrity, Talladega or Tycoon.  Any of these tomato varieties makes the grade when it comes to nice acidity (though not just sour), complex sweet tomato flavors and a melting to firm flesh (no grainy or brick hard tomatoes in this bunch).

Here is a pic of Bill in his 2010 trial garden. He grew, tested, compared and documented 89 varieties that year!

Medium size and so scrumptious you will lick the juice from the plate.  Momotaro, a Japanese pink tomato was the hit of the tomato patch in 2010 (one of eighty nine varieties in the authors test garden-only tried about 50 varieties in 2011).  This tomato had acidity, sweet tomato flavor and a wonderful melting texture.  It’s as good as any heirloom with less cracking and more production.

Persimmon is an heirloom that my wife Debbi insists I grow every year.  It is a big, orangery-red, persimmon colored tomato that will lap over a burger.  Total yield isn’t that great but we don’t care.  This year we are growing it grafted on hybrid rootstock to see if we can produce more of these delicious beauties.

Plant one of the Black tomatoes or a yellow, green or white one just to be different.  The black tomatoes—often referred to Black Russian tomatoes are very tasty—they are often described as “having Smokey undertones”.  They also have some acid zip and a depth of flavor that the most accomplished wine connoisseur will be challenged to describe.  Recent favorites include Cherokee Purple, Black from Tula and Black Sea Man.  The plum-shaped Nyagous has been a hit in previous years.  Green Zebra is refreshing, Flamme is an orange “golf ball” with lip smacking flavor and Snow White cherry is sweet and mild (best when pale yellow).

Cherry tomatoes are typically delicious but one of the best is Sweet Chelsea.  Sweet 100, Sweet Million, Rite Bite, BHN 624, Sun Cherry and Sungold will also wake up your taste buds.  Don’t set out too many cherries or you’ll be picking fruit every night until dark.

Watering in several “Black From Tula” seedlings that I started from seed.

2012 Bluebonnet Season is Here!

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Once again, I am pleased to announce that bluebonnet season is here.  Below is a pic of the first one to bloom in our yard.  It will be interesting to see how well they do this year.  Because of last years drought, I was initially afraid that it was going to be a bad year.  However, the January and February rains may have come just in time. 

Photo by Sally White

In my own yard, we have knee high foliage around the trees.  That is because we were pouring the water to those trees to keep them alive last summer and fall.  Until about a month ago I thought the bluebonnets under the trees were going to be all we got at the White House.  However, with the help of the winter rain, the rest of my yard is now covered in foliage that is about 6″ tall. 

If you live more than 100 miles north of Houston, your bluebonnets probably look like this now. Photo by Sally White

Like everything else, bluebonnets bloom at different times based on their latitude.  If you live within 50 miles of Houston, you are already seeing the highways show color.  If you live further north than that, your blooms will come in a week or two.  BTW, you want to hear an interesting horticultural fact about why bluebonnets in particular, and wildflowers in general, bloom along the highways before they do in your yard?  It’s because of the pollution produced by the cars.  One of the major components of car exhaust is ozone (chemical symbol O3).  Ozone is a colorless, odorless gas that causes plants to grow faster and bloom sooner.  That’s why blueboonets always bloom first along the road.  Now before you get too excited thinking “WOW!  This is a cool side effect of pollution”, remember ozone works on ALL plants.  Things like dandelions and ragweed will also grow faster and bloom sooner under its effects.

So, based on the bluebonnets in my yard, I am happy to announce that once again it is time to load up the family and the camera and head out into the country for some more bluebonnet pictures.  In spite of last year’s drought, the recent rains make me confident that this will be another great year for you take hundreds of pictures of your kids nestled among the big, beautiful mounds of blue that are supplied to us by the best state flower in the country!

If you want to learn more about the history and botany of bluebonnets, check out last years post at https://masterofhort.com/2011/03/bluebonnet-season-is-here/

“A Year in Flowers” by Debra Prinzing

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This is the second post on MOH by a guest blogger.  This one is by another of my incredibly smart, talented and beautiful daughters.  Whitney White is an incredibly talented floral designer in Dallas, Texas.  She is currently employed by “Bows and Arrows”. Bows and Arrows is a truly awesome design shop in downtown Dallas.  Their awesomeness was recently recognized when they were named the Best Florist in Dallas.  Their work is often featured in Martha Stewart and Style Me Pretty as well as in countless other local, state and national blogs and publications.

Whitney recently spent a Saturday with best selling author Debra Prinzing.  Debra is a true Master of Horticulture.  Not only is she a very accomplished author, she finds time to support other garden writers by serving as the current President of the Garden Writer’s Association.  Below is my daughter’s account of a day that was truly life changing to her.

Debra Prinzing with her team in Dallas. On the left is Joy Ijams, Education Director at the Dallas Arboretum. Debra Prinzing holds the bucket. Next to Debra is Cynthia Alexander of Quarry Farms. She grew and provided most of the floral material we used in the class. And finally there is me!

This past weekend I got to meet one of my heroes.  Debra Prinzing (http://www.debraprinzing.com/) is a pioneer and advocate for the “locally grown and sustainable fresh flower market”.  As a floral designer that dreams of one day owning my own business that creates the finest floral designs using locally grown fresh cut flowers, hearing Debra speak about this movement was truly a rewarding experience.  Debra is highly respected author and expert in the locally and sustainably grown fresh cut flower movement.  Her latest book, “The 50 Mile Bouquet: Seasonal, Local and Sustainable Flowers” visits with many of the pioneers that are redefining the way the American public buys flowers.  By growing seasonal crops that are appropriate for the region in an ecologically sustainable way and then selling them locally (often the same day they are harvested), these pioneers are reinventing an industry that has traditionally relied on homogenous product grown overseas at great cost to the environment.

A slightly fuzzy pic of an arrangement I made for my Dad with only things from his yard. How local is that?

I attended Debra’s lecture entitled “A Year in Flowers” at the Dallas Arboretum.  During this talk, she encouraged people to rethink the way they look at floral bouquets.  Her lecture encouraged us to ask the following questions when buying or making a fresh bouquet for our home, office or event.

1.  Must a bouquet always contain flowers?

2.  Why not use many stems of one kind of flower?

3.  Is the arrangement full of life?

4. Does it shine at the end of its blooming season?

5. Is it fleeting?

6. Does it borrow from the orchard?

Debra’s mantra is “Buy flowers in season, locally and often”.  This was a common thread throughout her lecture.  “A Year in Flowers” educates participants on what she calls the “field to vase movement”. The “field to vase” philosophy states that environmentalism and ethical buying choices should apply as much to the floral world as it does to the food movement.  Just because we are not eating the flowers (at least I hope not) we should still be concerned with the chemicals we are bringing into our homes and dispensing to our loved ones.  Besides, buying from your local flower farmer is not just good for you; it is also good for the environment.  Local growers care about more than producing the highest quality flowers at the lowest possible cost.  They want to do this while still caring for the earth.  Because of these, the flowers they grow have been produced with a lot of love and very few, if any, chemicals.  Their organic methods ensure that when the time comes for them to allow the next generation to produce flowers, the earth will actually be in better shape than when they started.

Another local arrangement I made for my Dad

After the lecture, Debra gave a demonstration on how to build beautiful bouquets using locally grown floral products.  You cannot imagine how thrilled I was when Debra asked me to stay and be her assistant in this demonstration.

Debra discussed many of the benefits that come from buying your flowers from local producers.  First, you can develop a relationship with the grower.  This relationship allows you to see the face of the farmer you are supporting in every daffodil.  You can smell the generations of care in every garden rose and you can appreciate the bounty of the seasons when you see blooming branches at the first of spring.  On more than one occasion an elderly man or woman has wandered into my work place to ask me why roses don’t smell any more. This is depressing. Most flowers don’t smell good anymore because they are grown by people in lands far away that don’t care how they smell.  They only care about how well they ship from where they are to the U.S.  While it may sound simple, the ability to actually stick your nose in a flower and smell it the way it is supposed is a huge reason to buy local!

You can order Debra's new book by clicking on the link in the sidebar of this blog

What is a florist anyway?

One point that Debra made during the presentation is that a florist used to be someone who raised their own plants and flowers for the arranging. Wouldn’t it be nice if that were a rule for being a florist now? If the floral designers and florists of today acted like they did in the past, we would live in a much prettier place and takes much less of a toll on mother earth. This is why I am now completely enamored with “My Luscious Backyard”, a Toronto based florist (in every sense of the word) who plants and maintains urban flower gardens in other people’s back yards. It doesn’t get any better than that folks. This lady even bicycles her deliveries (Learn more about “My Lucious Backyard” at  http://www.mylusciousbackyard.ca/about.php ).

Another thing I learned in Debra’s lecture was how bad Oasis flower foam is for the environment.  I had no idea up until this lecture that Oasis (floral foam) is plastic based.  Because of this, it never completely decomposes in a landfill. This is big news since I use it almost every day and have been using it for almost a decade. Great…..

But lucky for all of us, Debra has gathered tips of the trade from all over to use in place of Oasis. This video shows most of the techniques she demonstrated to us in the class this weekend (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZLKacMtjJUY). I was happy to be sent home with the left over wood fibers to play with in my own designs.

The 50 Mile Bouquet

“My Luscious Back Yard” is one of the many talented and forward thinking florists Debra highlights in her newest book, “The 50 Mile Bouquet: Discovering the World of Local, Seasonal, Sustainable Flowers”.  Debra teamed up with photographer David Perry to showcase some of the nation’s hard working ladies and gents in the flower farm industry that are dedicated to producing the most gorgeous hand grown, handpicked, flowers you have ever seen. The book comes out April 1st.  I haven’t been this excited for a book release since the last Harry Potter novel had its midnight debut.

I truly love Debra Prinzing.  She is so sweet and so very, very talented.  It was a huge thrill for me when she called me “friend” when introducing me to the class.  I will always treasure that moment. Even though we had just met, her open and gracious personality allowed us to become fast friends. This simple act sums up my entire impression of Debra: utterly genuine and full of gumption.  Debra is a woman with a passion for farmers, the environment and an eye for design.  She is destined to be the face of the field to vase movement just like she is already the face of smart garden design. Even with her vast repertoire of knowledge and publications, she is so down to earth.  I truly look forward to working with Debra again and hope that you will use your voice to demand locally grown flowers. Go local!

TEXAS LIVE Magazine

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I am very proud to announce that I have joined the team of the very talented writers, photographers and editors that bring you TEXAS LIVE magazine.   I will be doing a regular garden column that focuses on the organic growing tips that will allow you to grow the best plants possible in the very tough and unpredictable Texas climate.  My first article explains the “hows” and “whys” of soil preparation.  It also includes suggested planting times for the most commonly grown flowers, veggies, perennials, fruit trees and berries in the state.

TEXAS LIVE is an incredibly beautiful and informative magazine that covers the very best of “All Things Texan.”   My wife and I devour every issue.  We particularly love the Home and Garden section (no surprise there).  Each month, this section allows us to peek inside some truly amazing “country homes” that have been decorated by some very talented Texas designers.  Since Sally and I have been remodeling our own “country house” for the past five years each of these featured homes are an invaluable source of ideas and inspiration.

This month's issue of TEXAS LIVE features "Farmhouse Round Top". This is one of the beautiful guest rooms remodeled and styled by Beverly and Mike Corte.

When we are not gardening, remodeling or decorating we love to travel.  If we get the chance to run away for a few days we can count on TEXAS LIVE to tell us where to go, what to see, where to shop, where to stay and what to eat once we get there. 

The “LIVE” part of the TEXAS LIVE name is actually an acronym that stands for Luxurious, Informative, Vibrant, and Entertaining.   Those four words perfectly capture the essence of this beautiful and entertaining magazine.   You can find TEXAS LIVE in many of the businesses that are featured in its pages.  You can also buy it at your local HEB, Super WalMart, Books a Million, Barnes and Noble, and the Austin airport. The magazine usually sells out on newsstands, so go ahead and subscribe to ensure that you don’t miss a single issue.   

The writers at TEXAS LIVE are dedicated to finding the best of everything that Texas has to offer.  However, since Texas is a really big place it is impossible to for this small group of dedicated reporters to find and report on all that is wonderful in the greatest state in the America.  So, if you have an idea for a story, or you would like to contribute, feel free to drop them a line.  They are always looking for new story ideas, writers, and photographers.

Radishes – The Perfect “Prepper” Plant

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Yesterday I harvested a big bunch of radishes.  My wife usually gets excited when I bring things in from the garden.  However, radishes are an exception.  You see, she is a radish hater.  I have found that she is not alone.  If I ever have anything left over from the garden I generally have a list of people that are ready to take it.  Not so with radishes.  Seems like the world is full of two types of people:  those that love radishes and those that don’t.

A very lovely bunch of radishes from the fall potager. Photo by my lovely wife

I am proud to say that I am a radish lover.  I love how easy they are to grow and I love the way they taste.  I love the way their crispy texture and pungent flesh add a spicy little surprise to my salad.  I love to pour a mound of salt into the palm of my hand and dip raw radishes directly into it just like I did with my dad when I was little.  Heck, I even like radishes for breakfast!  One of my favorite breakfasts consists of a boiled egg, a big slice of sharp cheddar cheese and a handful of French Breakfast radishes.

As much as I love radishes, I will be the first to admit their uses are somewhat limited.  Google up radish recipes and you will not get too many interesting results.  I discovered this fact while trying to figure out what do with my latest harvest.  This lack of results got me to thinking.  What could I come up with to elevate the status of the lowly radish?  Something that is this easy to grow, tasty and good for you should be more celebrated.  Then it hit me.  Radishes posses a ton of traits that make them the perfect plant for “preppers”.

 

Every part of the radish is edible, even the greens. Photo by Sally White

Are you familiar with the “prepper” movement?  “Preppers are people that believe there is a very high probability that something really bad is going to happen to the U.S.  in the near future.  Whatever this really bad thing is (asteroid, nuclear attack, economic collapse), it is going to be bad enough that it will force all of us that want to survive to be a whole lot more self reliant.  In order to be prepared for “the undefined really bad thing that is most likely going to happen sometime”, preppers do things like stock pile food, water and seeds to ensure their families can survive the rough times. 

If you are a “prepper”, I believe radish seeds should be a pretty important part of your initial survival kit.  Below are three really good reasons why I believe radishes are the perfect “prepper” plant:

1.  Easy to Grow – Radishes are so fool proof that I truly believe their seeds have a 100% germination rate regardless of variety.  To grow radishes simply place the seeds about 2” apart in a sunny location and cover with about ¼” of soil.  Water in and keep moist until germination.  After germination, continue to apply about 1” of water per week.  The plants will go from seed to plate in as few as 30 days. 

One quick note, radishes are generally a cool season crop.  Most of the short cycle radishes will not grow during the hottest times of the year.

2. Nutritious – Every part of the radish is edible and every part is good for you.  Radishes can go from seed to seedling in 10 to 15 days and then to full grown root with edible top in two more weeks.  The “greens” and roots are high in Vitamin C (ascorbic acid), folic acid, potassium, vitamin B6 and calcium.   With their high germination rates, rapid growth rates and high nutritional content, radishes will allow you to quickly supplement your food stores with fresh greens and veggies.

3. Storage – Since radishes are root crops they can be stored in root cellars for very long periods of time.  The ascorbic acid in them is not depleted in storage and will fend off scurvy just as well as citrus.  Radishes can also be pickled to further extend their shelf life.

So there you go!  Radishes are tasty, healthy and versatile.  Their ease of cultivation and rapid growth rate make them a great plant to have with you if you need to quickly be able to start feeding yourself and your family.  I hope preppers every where take my advice and finally give the lowly radish some much deserved respect!

A mature radish next to radish foliage ten days after planting. These young sprouts are very tasty and very nutritious

 

 

Growing Asparagus (Asparagus officinalis )

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Asparagus is an extremely long lived perennial.  A friend of a friend has a bed that has been producing for 36 years!  Now that is an extremely long time but it is not uncommon to find beds that have been in production for over 20 years.  Asparagus is tough, reliable, attractive and a joy to eat. So, if I am going to grow it, I am going to have to make a long term commitment to it.

I have never grown asparagus before.  But since my wife and I love it so, we have decided now is the time to get started.  Like most of you, if I don’t know how to grow something I do research.  I have been reading about how to grow asparagus for over year.  However, all of the research in the world is no substitute for having an actual expert to talk with.  I am lucky enough to be very close friends with an outstanding asparagus expert and grower.

(WARNING!  The next three paragraphs contain EXTREME nostalgia. If you are not interested in tales of high school romance and rebellion, feel free to skip to the growing section )

Bobby Mitchell and I have been friends for more years than either of us thought we would live.  We became friends in Junior High and have stayed in touch ever since.  In high school, I had a 1955 Chevy Pick Up.  Every time Bobby got in that truck, something broke.  When we were 15, Bobby convinced the head varsity cheerleader (she was a senior and he was a sophomore) to go “parking” with him.   The problem was, he had neither car nor license.  Somehow he talked me into driving them out in the country and then sitting on the tail gate while he and the cheerleader “made out” in the cab.  For some reason, this sounded like really big fun so I agreed.

The quarterback and the cheerleader did a great job of steaming up the windows of my 55.  I enjoyed my first “dip” of Copenhagen snuff (which turned out to be a really bad thing in hindsight) while they enjoyed each other.  Since my dad worked the 3 to 11 shift I knew that if we got home before 11:30 no one would be the wiser.  So at about 11:00 I broke them up. Once we defogged the windows we headed home.  Everything was going great.  We had won the football game, Bobby had “scored” and I picked up a really bad habit.  The night could not have been better.

When you are 15 you don’t yet have the maturity to understand that when things are going this good, something has to go wrong.  After dropping the cheerleader off we headed home.  It was about 11:15 and we were only five minutes from home when the drive shaft literally fell out of the bottom of my truck!  Needless to say the rest of the night was almost as memorable as the first part of the evening had been.  My dad was not the least bit impressed with our performance that evening.  In fact, he was so unimpressed that I didn’t get to drive my truck for a month.  However, it was worth it.  This was the first of many, many memorable experiences that Bobby and I shared in that old pick up.

 

Growing Asparagus – I visited Bobby last summer and was very impressed with his 70’ row of asparagus.  When I told him I wanted to grow my own he was happy to share his experience with me.

Bobby recommends planting year old crowns.  Since it takes three years to get asparagus from seed, these older roots allow you to enjoy asparagus in year two.  To plant them, dig an 8″ to 12″ round hole (or trench) that is about 8” to 10” deep in full sun.  Place your plants about a foot apart.  Put two or three inches of high grade compost in the bottom of the hole.  The compost should be slightly mounded in the center.  Spread the roots of the crown out over the mound like an octopus.  Once the roots are in place, cover lightly with compost and gently water in.  Research has shown that if you plant asparagus too deep, your yields will be reduced so try and keep the crowns no more than 6″ below the soil level.

Keep the roots damp and in a few days the first little shoot will appear.  As that sprout grows, slowly add soil and compost to the hole.  Be careful not to completely cover it up.  In the first year you can expect each crown to produce 2 to 5 sprouts.  These early sprouts are small and delicate.  Bobby recommends letting 3 sprouts grow above soil level before completely filling in around them. You may also want to stake these young shoots to make sure the wind doesn’t break them off.  Once these three sprouts are a few inches above the soil line you can finish back filling the hole with a soil/compost mixture.  Asparagus is a heavy feeder so do not scrimp on the compost.  Tamp the soil in firmly to support your young sprouts.

 

A great picture that clearly shows how I prepared my beds and planted the crowns.

The first year the stalks will be pretty puny looking.  Continuously weed your beds and apply about an inch of water per week.  By the second year you will get a 3′ to 4′ tall plant with very attractive fern like foliage.  Asparagus foliage is so thick that it shades out most of the weeds in the second year.  In the first year, you can expect your roots to produce two to five shoots.  In the second year that number will double.  This is when you can begin to do a light harvest.  By year three you can expect to have 25 to 30 sprouts per root system.  After year two  let the first couple of sprouts of the season grow up and grow foliage.  You can start picking shoots after that. Once the mature plants start producing, the spears come pretty quickly.  If you wait too long to cut don’t worry.  Just let the stalk produce foliage.  There will still be plenty of stalks to pick

The first spears of the year in Bobby’s garden. Photo by Bobby Mitchell

Asparagus start producing in early spring and can be harvested for four to six weeks.  Do not over harvest.  Make sure and leave enough canes to make a large, healthy plant.  The foliage will feed the roots, which will in turn, store the food to put into shoot development next year.  Once you stop harvesting, “mulch” or top dress your plants with three to six inches of compost.  Top dress again in the fall.  The foliage will last until first frost.  You can prune throughout the year to control height.  Once a frost hits them, cut the foliage off at the ground and apply more compost.

A mature asparagus plant produces about ½ pound of asparagus per year.  If you like it as much as we do, four to five plants per person should be adequate.  There are several varieties of asparagus that do very well for us here.  I am planting some New Jersey sterile (all male hybrids) and Mary Washington (a popular heirloom variety).  The Jersey hybrids produce large, flavorful spears and will not spread.  Mary Washington produces yellow flowers and red berries.  The spears are very tasty.  However, it spreads so you will have to do more “weeding” with this variety than you will with the all male hybrids.

Hollyhocks (Alcea rosea)

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In my opinion, if you are going to have a cottage garden, you have to have three plants: roses, larkspur and hollyhocks.  While many other plants will fit nicely into the cottage plan, these three are what I believe most people picture when they close their eyes and imagine a cottage garden.

Hollyhocks, with their tall upright stalks and big showy flowers, are the perfect plant for the back of a bed or border.  They come in a variety of colors and flower types (singles, semi-doubles and doubles) and will grow in just about any type of soil.  Some people say that the plants with deep colored flowers prefer sandy soils while the pinks, whites and other lighter colors prefer a clay soil.  So, wherever you live, there is a variety of this flower for you.

Here I am in May with three different varieties

Hollyhocks are members of the mallow family (Malvaceae).  This family includes the shrub Althea (Rose of Sharon) and hibiscus.  The flowers are edible and some folk remedies suggest making a tea out of them to treat “throat problems” and digestive issues (diarrhea).  Hollyhocks have been popular with gardeners for centuries.  They are believed to have originated in Asia but were brought to Europe by the 1400s.  The English really took to them.  In fact, the name hollyhock comes from the old English “Holyoke”.  Maybe this is the reason that my grandmother grew them and I love them so.  Since we are of good English stock I guess something in our genetics predisposes us to these lovely plants.

A volunteer hollyhock in my potager

Not all in my family have wonderful hollyhock memories.  My Aunt Sarah loves to tell the story of how my Uncle Bubba pulled up a hollyhock and used it to give her a whipping.  She still cannot look at a hollyhock without remembering what her brother did to her 70 years ago.  According to my Aunt Sara, hollyhocks were not just for corporal punishment at my grandparent’s house.   Evidently, my grandmother grew hollyhocks to hide their outhouse.  Their tall structure (some varieties can get 8’ tall) did a great job of camouflaging a very necessary but often maligned out building.

I don’t grow hollyhocks to hide anything or punish anyone.  I grow them simply because I love big showy plants that are easy to grow.  Hollyhocks are planted in the late fall or early winter.  They prefer full sun but can tolerate some light shade.  They can also survive temps in the teens for short periods.  The plant takes about six months from the time it first appears until it blooms.  It is also a good re-seeder so once you get it established you will have it forever.

This lovely arrangement featuring hollyhocks was made by my daughter Whitney

Hollyhocks are pretty heavy feeders so they do best in a bed that is well worked with organic material.  They are fairly drought tolerant but do require at least an inch of water per week to be fully productive.  You should not overwater or water from above as they are extremely susceptible to rust.  Rust is a very bad deal in the garden.  If you see reddish, powdery spots on the leaves of your plants, you have rust.  You can try and control it with a fungicide.  However, this is not organic and not always effective.  The best thing to do in my opinion is pull out the infected plants and burn them.  It is also recommended that you not replant in the area where the rust infection was spotted for three years.

It is still not too late to plant hollyhocks from transplants.  Many nurseries have them available now.  Why not pick up a few this weekend and plant them in the back of your beds.  These living antiques will instantly add charm to any bed and their tall form and beautiful flowers will delight you throughout the summer.

The $70 Vegetable Garden

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I recently read the 2009 survey results of the gardening world by the National Gardening Association (http://www.garden.org/).  One of the stats that I found very interesting was the amount of money the average person reportedly spends on their food garden.  According to the NGA survey, the average vegetable gardener only spends $70 per year on their garden.  Now I realize that I am not the average gardener, but $70?  Really?  I spend an average of $30 per month on just compost.  So this got me thinking.  Could I create a vegetable garden (on paper) with just $70 worth of supplies?

There really is nothing better than home grown tomatoes

To do this, I had to make some assumptions.  Using the NGA data, I decided to be average.  According to their report the average vegetable garden in the US is 600 square feet.  Using this I decided to have a 21’ X 30’ (I know that is 630 square feet, but go with me) virtual garden.  This garden would contain 4-30 foot rows.  Each row would be 3 feet wide and there would be 3 feet wide walk paths between the rows.  In this space I would plant the Top Ten vegetables grown in US gardens (based on results from the same survey).  Those vegetables are tomatoes, cucumbers, sweet peppers, beans, carrots, summer squash, onions, hot peppers, lettuce and peas.  I also assume that this $70 experiment only covers the spring garden.  Finally, since I garden organically, my $70 garden will use organic principals as well.

Below are the four rows that I have designed.

Row 1 –English peas the 10th most grown veggie in the American garden.  Normally I plant them in January.  For this garden, I am going to recommend putting them on Feb. 1.  A little late here, but this is just an experiment and they will probably still produce when planted this late (especially if you live north of Dallas).  Carrots can go in at the same time.  Beans are a little less cold hardy so I am going to virtually plant them Feb. 15.

All of these veggies will be planted by seeds.  The beans and peas will be spaced at 6” and I will get three rows in each three foot bed.  To plant this many beans and peas, you will need to buy two packs of seed for each.  I selected “Contender” bush beans from Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds.  They were $2 per pack so the beans will cost $4.  I found 100 “Green Arrow Peas” from Seed Savers Exchange for $2.75. The carrots will be planted in a staggered grid plan at 4” spacing.  You will need 2 packs of seed for this many carrots.  Since the seeds are so tiny it is difficult to get just one seed per hole.  I chose “Danver” from Seed Savers Exchange.  The two packs were $5.50.

Row 2 –Around here, we plant our onion sets in November or December.  For this garden, we are going to assume that we planted 300 10-15Y onions in November.  They are stagger planted 6” apart in three rows that are 20’ long.  This would require two bunches of sets and would have set us back about $6.  Now 300 is a lot of onions.  However, I love them and they keep well so I also plant a lot.  I planted the onions in the middle of the row.  This leaves two 5’ beds on either side.

In both of these beds I am planting lettuce from seed.  I love lettuce and there are a ton of varieties.  All do well in the cool season so you can plant whatever variety you choose.  I always plant two different varieties of leaf lettuce.  To plant beds this size, you will need about four packs of seeds.  At $1.50 each, that is another $6.

Row 3 – This whole row is dedicated to cucurbits.  30 feet is a lot of room for our squash and cucumbers,  especially since they are both so productive.  Each of these plants need about 3’ of space.  I will plant six  hills of squash (2-yellow crook neck, 2 zucchini, and two patty pan).  I will then plant four trellises of Poinsett cucumbers.  I grow these every year and they are awesome!  They are very productive and are great as slicers and for pickling.  I build thee-legged trellises for them out of cedar limbs.  Four trellises will allow us to have 12 vines.  This will be more than enough.  For this row we will be using 4 packets of seeds at $2.50 each so the whole row will cost just $5.

Row 4 –Tomatoes are the stars of most summer gardens.  They are the number one grown vegetable in the home garden. For the last row of our gardenwe will buy and plant six tomatoes, two Jalepenos and two Bell pepper plants.   I usually buy plants because it is much easier than planting from seed in January and then nursing to April.  I always plant my tomatoes and peppers the first week in April.  I usually make sure and plant at least two plants of each tomato variety that I select.  My favorite for slicing tomato is an heirloom called “Black From Tulia”.  I also usually plant a cherry variety and a grape variety.  We also love Romas so we grow a yellow variety called appropriately “Yellow Roma”.  I do not have a favorite Bell or Jalepeno variety.  I typically plant whatever they have at the nursery.  I buy well established tomatoes in quart containers.  Each of these usually cost about $4 a piece so you are going to have to part with $24 for this row.  I buy peppers in 4’ pots and they are usually about $1.5 a piece.

My little experiment has proven that you can have an average garden with the ten most common plants for under $70.  Including the 8.25% Texas sales tax, my total came out to $64.13.  That leaves enough for 5 bags of compost (which I highly recommend).  I know this doesn’t account for water or mulch or about a million others things you can spend your gardening dollars on, but it does prove that if you have decent soil you can have a very nice garden for a small amount of money.  According to the NGA survey, this $70 garden will produce $600 dollars worth of food.  So, this garden is good for both your health and your pocket book!  February in Central Texas means it is time again to go outside and get dirty!  Happy gardening y’all!

P.S.  If gardening stats fire you up then you can read my full analysis of the results of the NGA survey in next issue of Texas Gardener.

The Fall and Winter Potager

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Lately, several people have been visiting my site from Pininterest.com and “pinning” shots of my garden on their pinboards.  I am very flattered when this happens.  If you are not yet familiar with Pintrest you should check it out.  It is a collaborative site where you create “pin boards” of your favorite topics and then post images that you find on the web in them.  Then, everyone on the internet can come to your site and see the things that you have found.  It is really cool and you can quickly burn several hours if you are not careful. 

Right now, my little garden has never been prettier.  The folks from the Central Texas Gardener television program came to film it back in December.  It was pretty then, but it is a lot prettier now.  The veggies are doing great, but the flowers have really matured and look beautiful.  Eventhough the potager is mostly about the vegetables, it is the flowers that make it interesting.  So, for all of you Pinterest users that are fans of small, raised bed kitchen gardens, and my regular readers, here are a few pics of what is currently blooming in my little potager.

Panseys are always a great choice for Texans in the fall.  I planted these around the first of Decemeber.  If you look closely you will notice carrot foliage in the back.  I do companion plantings in all of my beds.  I have a mix of pink and purple panseys that share the center bed with a mix of carrots and vilolas (Johnny Jump Ups).  They are all thriving and look very good mixed together.

My purple panseys.

Violas are one of my favorite winter flowers.  The work great in pots where their pretty little flowers grow rapidly and spill over the side.

Calendula is often called pot marigolds.  Not only is it pretty and a prolific bloomer, the petals are edible.

I love dianthus.  They bloom well into the summer.  Their common name is “pinks”.  People think this is because they are mostly pink, but it is really because their petals look like they were cut with pinking shears.  They come in all colors and all sizes now but I still prefer this old fashioned variety.

This year’s winner in the vegetable department is Comet Broccoli.  This variety is incredible at putting on side shoots.  I have two dozen of these scattered throughout the potager.  Last Sunday, my wife and I harvested 8 produce bags full of side shoots.

Here is a picture of me with a lettuce harvest.  Our lettuce has been outstanding this year. 

One of my favorite things in the potager is not a plant at all.  It is our bottle tree.  While not technically in the potager (it is in the outside border), I still think of it as one of the main things that adds interest and charm to my little garden.

In addition to the flowers pictured above,  I have byzantine gladiolous, crinums, daylilies, two varities of roses, lots of salvia, red poppies, holley hocks, crysanthimums, zinnias and larkspur.  This ever changing pallette of colors and textures is what keeps me excited and watchful throughout the year.