February 16 , 2017
Garden Rehab: Re-Invent, Restore, Renew
I do n’t necessitate a calendar to know when it ’s February ! Since last week , my Mexican plum ’s sent bees into euphoria and “ smell ” me out for scent that ’s bottled in my memory . But this February fascinates me ( sort of ) . After savage cold clout , we soar into the upper fourscore . Very quickly the waiting game of “ bushed or dormant ” was over . My fried firecracker ferns are unfurling fast . Ligularia popped right out , much to my surprisal , since it ’s the first frost since I plant it in my shady seam . The next several week are the busiest for us as we tidy up up and kill out those grass so wisely enshroud under brown foliage .
Garden rehab is often a bigger event . We buy a house that fall with a weedy , overgrown yard . Or , we ’ve allow shrub get out of control or we just need to update . Designer Leah Churner from Delta Dawn Sustainable Gardensexplains how to restore and renew . Leah tell us that sometimes we ’ve nonplus ta do some housekeeping after we analyze what ’s good to keep . As in : yank stuff out!Overgrown shrubs ? Sometimes you could burn them to the priming , like with abelia , primrose jasmine and spiraea . Usually , we require to only take about 1/3 at a time . Here , Leah restore an abelia crowd the porch by cutting back to about 3’ . Watch now!Here ’s anexcellent pruning how - to guideby Texas A&M Agrilife ’s Doug Welsh .
forever I relate to theAmerican Horticultural Society ’s Pruning and Trainingmanual . Even if the plant you have in mind is n’t listed , its concept are covered . Excellent guidance for rehabilitating and overall pruning . In case you missed it , learn our low distance gardening section with Leah!BUT , patience is key right now , since many brown plants wo n’t show fresh growth just yet . genuflect the bark to see if it ’s unripened , like I did on my native Barbados cherry .
My Peter ’s Purple bee balm ( a Monarda loanblend ) sent out an undercover scout this calendar week from its ever - expanding clump . By May , tall beacon light of cannular flowers send food alarum to eager hummingbird and bees . Deer “ should ” avert . Monarda citriodora , often called purple Mentha longifolia , is an equally beloved native . But , as Daphne tells us , Peter ’s Purple is resistant to powdery mildew . rise it in full sunshine to part shade in clay to well - drained soils . discover out more . It wo n’t be long before we see blossoms on our citrus plants . Now ’s a great timeto fertilize with nitrogen .
For six years , Chris Lalichhas harvest lot of Meyer lemons from his trees . But every class , the lemons are covered with small black spot . They do n’t affect the fruit ’s character . We checked withMonte Nesbitt , Texas A&M AgriLife Extension fruit specialist , who confirmed that the large scar is the result of a boo pecking , very common when hiss are face for moisture . The dark , peppery smirch are a fungous disease called Melanose . Daphne explain how to control it .
Even houseplant want a lilliputian rehab now and then . John Dromgooleshows how to graft leggy plantsto make new ace to make it along or add to your indoor collection . On tour of duty , Syd Teague excuse how she reshaped flooding , weedy solid ground when she moved from Tucson to Austin . Although she wanted water thrifty gardens , first on her design lottery plug-in was to manage violent storm water runoff from uphill . A serial of rocky ironic creek swales slow down and deflect rain bombs . Then she brought in just dirt to establish berms that aid push water aside from the sign . As she shaped her land , it became her outdoor laboratory from succulents to flowering perennial . “Since I ’m using the rock music for grass , it ’s the space bearer that most people would put grass in . Then I put an edge around it so that you may contain your eye if you do n’t want to expect at the rocks , ” Syd tells us . Next up was to build walk to travel safely around and through the garden . Shelf John Rock she ’d originally bought for a pond that never happened was just the slate . Laying only 20 - 30 feet per year , it took some time . As each young path evolve , so did her design . Along the agency , Syd key out the power of works repetition . Syd give one berm in back to the succulent she loves . She amended her the Great Compromiser soil with a well - draining , gritty cactus mix . Here ’s back to the theatre on that way of life , where blush wine , perennial and little shrubby trees prompt a fresh view every month . Dodging rainfall spurts , Billy Driver popped the umbrella to protect the camera . Director Ed Fuentes loves rain as much as I do . The photographic camera : not so much!In the far back , more shelf rock’n’roll and little rock bridges over dry brook swales gravitate to shade gardens . Syd tucks in colored destinations to repose among Bronx cheer twitters in the “ forest . ”Always experimenting , Syd finds new spots for plant that pop up in her garden . When a neighbour ’s crape myrtles moved over , she gathered them into a quarrel that softly breaks up the scene from the bedroom . A Christmas tabletop Oliver Stone pine rick out to be an everlasting tree . In a court terrace protect by a shadowiness sail , Syd grows a veranda of intricate cacti and other succulents . Now , she and husband Lary Evans watch the seasons and wildlife evolve with each crook of a calendar Sir Frederick Handley Page . Syd ’s a VP of the Austin Area Garden Council and board member of Zilker Botanical Garden Conservancy . We both invite you the 60th annualZilker Garden Festival March 25 & 26!Watch now for Syd ’s whole story !
Thanks for stopping by and see you next hebdomad for gardens by moonshine ! Linda
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