By: Donna J. Ward, Certified Texas Master Gardener (Note: This is a reprint of Donna’s article that appears in the La Ventana del Lago.). Gardeners attempting to follow the timelines set out herein are aware that this newspaper is not published in conjunction with those timelines. The first day of each month of publication, Trowels & Tribulations can be found on the City of El Lago web site: www.ellago-tx.gov.
I thought it would never stop – June’s flood advisories, constant rain, thunder, lightning, and the herds of mosquitos sucking the life out of El Lago residents! June was an expensive month for peanuts. We put a limited amount of peanuts in the feeder and the daily rain promoted mold. Next day empty the feeder – add more peanuts! The rain did wonders for our landscapes. Never had our garden looked so lush. A rusellia meant to attract hummers sat and sulked for two years. June’s rain coaxed forth new growth, and fire engine red tubular flowers gets the attention of the hummers as they make their autumn migration. Adequate rainfall coaxed the crape myrtles to put on a spectacular display in June and even through the first half of August. There was no stopping the spread of a recent (new to me) variety of lantana (New Gold) which could almost be considered a ground cover. Its vibrant yellow flowers are eye-catching not only to gardeners but also to butterflies. Did you know that butterflies prefer ‘flat’ blossoms over tubular ones – as they are an ideal landing pad? No matter how much water comes out of our garden hose or sprinkler system it doesn’t surpass the organic composition of Mother Nature’s rain. Next the dry days of August brought sweltering temps but thankfully decreased the mosquito population. Did you just detect the slightest of cool breezes? Hooray – September……………
O.K., September is still pretty warm, but it leads me to believe that fall is on its way. We’ve not done much gardening for the past few months, so it’s time to dust off the tools and finally do the chores that we neglected. How about planting a new bed of perennials, or even better – a pollinator garden of perennial native plants? If you’re a fan of butterflies, they would love to visit your rock rose, wedelia, frog fruit and Texas lantana. Our native bees will make a ‘beeline’ to button bush, Mealy blue sage and of course, bee balm. Hummers can’t pass up coral honeysuckle, cross vine, Salvia greggii and Turk’s cap. All of these natives are drought tolerant once established. If planted now, they will have time to establish strong root systems before they have to face our inevitable sizzling summers.
If you are growing tropical milkweed you probably didn’t know when you planted it that it harbors a parasite detrimental to our much admired Monarch butterflies. Tropical milkweed doesn’t die back during our usually mild winters, and its leaves contain OE (Ophryaceptis eletkroscirrha), a parasite that when ingested by Monarch larvae is fatal. This can be avoided if in late summer/early fall you cut the plant down to just a few inches tall. OE is found in older mature leaves, so cutting back helps prevent a threat to future butterflies. Better yet, dig the tropical milkweed from your garden and replace it with native which do die back in cooler winter temps. Native varieties are currently much easier to find, as nurseries have become aware that the conscientious, environmental leaning gardener prefers native varieties.
Those faded rose blossoms aren’t particularly attractive, but don’t remove them. They signal the plant that it’s time to begin snuggling in for the winter snooze.
You might want to give the St. Augustine a light feeding later this month to help it recover from the stressful summer we all experienced and prepare for cool winter temps. My preference is an organic 6-2-4 formulation. Note this is not a high nitrogen formula; we don’t want to promote too much tender top growth that could be damaged by a cold snap. This formulation feeds slowly, won’t burn even if you spill some. If memory serves me, a local Boy Scout troop will knock on our door in February to take orders – and they deliver!
Pick up early spring blooming bulbs such as daffodils and plant them now. Purchase tulip, grape hyacinth, crocus and hyacinth bulbs and refrigerate them for planting in early January. Let them rest in the refrigerator in a paper bag away from fruit, especially apples. Fruit’s ethylene gas will encourage the bulbs to rot. Make note to self: Toss bulbs in between shrubbery and plant where they land. If you plant them in a line like toy soldiers, Mother Nature’s landscape police will be knocking on your door.
How fortunate are we in our ability to plant a second veggie garden each year? If Old McDonald is part of your DNA you know that a fall planted crop of beets and kohlrabi is best, and transplants of cabbage and broccoli need to go in your veggie plot now. Plant seeds of lettuce, radish, spinach, and cucumber for your salad bowl, along with pumpkin, collard, mustard, English and snap peas. You can thank me later for the weight loss resulting from the completion of these gardening chores. (^o~) …..