September garden time! We are so close to being able to head back outside and enjoy our yards…just after all these fall storms pass! Now is the time in to add some color to your September garden. We have such a nice long growing season that you will get your money’s worth with fall plants. September Garden Care Checklist:  Weed as needed…forever.  Hurricane prep – trim back tree limbs and remove dead limbs. Lawn care: Continue mowing as needed until your lawn goes dormant. Continue your fertilizing schedule until 4-6 weeks before the first expected frost (about Nov. 23, 2018 – so stop fertilizing inRead More →

August garden time! This is the time of the year where I tend to let the garden fend for itself. The heat is not a joke and if you can not get your hands in to the dirt before 10 a.m. or after 5 p.m. it is okay, in my book to let them go until September. Though, you’ll do yourself a favor if you can at least pull off the flowering parts. Now is the time in Houston to plant fall gardens. You will likely be able to find tomatoes and peppers in garden centers but anything else you may have to order onlineRead More →

Lizard in the Garden

July garden time! Who else is excited to get out there?! No?? It’s hot you say. Yeah. This is the time of year to pull weeds early in the morning or after a nice rain shower. It is hot and you need to be careful. If you managed to keep up with your weeding, hopefully it’s not too bad. I’m not gonna lie, we still have way more weeds than I care to admit. At this point if I get them before they flower and go to seed I call it a win! Aside from weekly mowing everything else should be pretty low maintenance orRead More →

Sunflower girl in June Garden

Time to take care of that June garden! Summer is in full force. It is already ridiculously hot. Hopefully, you were able to stay on top of weeds and watering before the heat came. It will certainly help to minimize the amount of time you will need to be out melting. By now flowers are blooming and that yard should be looking thick and green. Though maybe it has some brown patches? Aack!? Well, let’s get to work those gardens won’t take care of themselves. June Garden Care Checklist: Weed as needed Check plants and lawn regularly for problems like fungus or insect damage.  IfRead More →

Heterocampa Moth Caterpillar

Houston May Garden Care – It is heating up and we’re covering everything you need to be doing this month to get your garden in great shape for the year!Read More →

Weeds

It’s April! How is your garden coming along? I am really trying to stay on top of it now so I do not have to be out in the July heat weeding like a madwoman! About half of my mulch is down and, of course, I need to go buy more… Now, I just need to do a calming rain dance so we do not get a typhoon that will wash it all away! But, it is a living growing wonderful thing (or a necessary evil, depending on your relationship with your outdoor space) and, as such, a new month means a new list ofRead More →

It’s March in the garden and looking at all of the dead crispy brown-freeze annihilated leaves is killing me! But, I am staying strong. It is fine to clean up and remove mush but hard pruning needs to wait until we hit the two week mark after that last freeze. One thing that you can do anytime it weed! In fact, now is a great time to weed because their thriving greenery while an afront to my beloved plants is easy to spot and remove. My beds are about 60% weeded. I have too many beds! And, by the time my boy scouts deliver mulchRead More →

Who’s ready to clean up the garden! Me too! I am just itching to go crazy with the pruning shears. Now I need some time…and, of course, the right tools. Having an arsenal of great garden tools makes the work part of gardening much easier and more fun. Great Garden Books for Houston These books are great references to return to year after year for the Houston or Zone 9 garden. You can usually get a good deal on used copies, especially if you beat the spring rush! Neil Sperry’s Complete Guide to Texas Gardening, by Neil Sperry Plants for Houston and the Gulf Coast,Read More →

garden

Oh man, does my yard look rough – time for Houston February garden care (applies to all of Zone 9)! I want to get out there and start hacking. If you are like me you have to restrain yourself. Step away from the hedge trimmers and pruning shears…but soon. Check out the Farmer’s Almanac, our last spring frost date. Plug in a few other Houston area zip codes just to check because they tend to vary by up to two weeks. A good rule of thumb is to wait to do heavy pruning until at least Valentine’s Day, February 14th – the traditional day toRead More →