KVUE Austin Gardening Adventures

Fall garden

Fri, 02 Oct 2009 18:08:43 -0600

I snapped a few photos in the garden the other day, and I thought I'd share.

I've watched the tomato vines flower for what seems like weeks now. Finally, my family told me there were little tomatoes growing, but in my haste to take pictures, I couldn't find them. Hopefully I'll see them when I'm out in the garden this weekend.

We have basil coming out of our ears. I'm going to have to get creative with basil in the kitchen, and I'm thinking about freezing it when the frost comes.

It will soon be time to prune Limey, our trusty Mexican Lime tree which has put on amazing growth since the rains started. The morning glory has been using it as a trellis, and I planted a fall crop of sunflowers right next to it.

There are cute little eggplants growing here! Yum!

Below, these are some of the cool season crops I'm hoping to grow into the winter, including Chinese cabbage, lettuce and cauliflower.

There's been something munching on the cauliflower, butt it's not too bad. I've been trying to check the plants often for signs of critters, and so far, so good.

Mmmmm.... chard. I think we'll harvest some this weekend for dinner!

Here are some more of the cool season crops, surrounded by a forest of borage. The borage really is taking hold here, but I think I'd rather have it around the garden -- not in it.

And finally, here's an artichoke I planted from seed pretty late last winter. It made it through the summer, shaded by some sage and a really tall parsley plant. I should have an amazing harvest this fall.

It's alive!!!

Wed, 16 Sep 2009 18:11:58 -0600

I really meant to take pictures today (tomorrow I promise!) because my jaw dropped when I saw my garden this morning.
Those inches of rain we got last week, along with the cooler temperatures, have turned it around! The seeds have germinated, and there are flowers on the eggplants and tomatoes that I nearly gave up for dead!
I'll share photos tomorrow.
In the meantime, want to spread your love of gardening to local schools? The Sustainable Food Center has School Garden Mentor Training on September 26. For $20, you'll learn how you can get started. Click here to find out more.

Rain -- ahhhh, refreshing....

Thu, 10 Sep 2009 15:26:53 -0600

Are you excited about all this rain we're getting? I am.
I could do without the weather warnings, though. It always worries me when I see a flash flood warning go across my screen. Be careful out there, folks.
I'm fortunate to have a bunch of windows around in my office, and sometimes I find myself staring outside, hoping that my garden is getting just as much rain as we are at work.
It's amazing what a little water has done for my garden. I realized when Stage 2 water restrictions went into effect and I went outside to re-program the drip irrigation control that it's been broken for weeks. That would explain why everything was so toasty!
So, a few weeks ago, I decided to start fresh, plant some seeds, and religiously began watering with a hose-end sprayer each morning. After a couple of week, I noticed that the tomato and pepper plants started turning green again. And now that the temps are only in the 90s during the day -- rather than 100s -- they have started setting flowers again. And to think that I also gave up and ripped those plants out!
Now we have new basil, peas, dill, fennel and various sunflower varieties coming up. Love it!

Are you a new gardener?

Tue, 08 Sep 2009 15:25:12 -0600

I was sitting at my dining room table over lunch, browsing through a Newsweek left there and eating leftovers when I stumbled upon an article that said there are now 43 million gardeners in the US.
Whoa! That's 7 million more gardeners than there were last year... that's a lot!
The article doesn't do more than guess that there are a number of reasons why people choose to garden vegetables -- edible gardening, according to the article.
I know that I started because I wanted the convenience of harvesting vegetables from my yard, rather than depending on a store. And it just tastes better in my opinion!
If you're a new gardener, good for you! I congratulate you on taking on what seems to be one of the toughest places to garden in the US -- Texas' seasons soil and weather can frustrate even the most seasoned gardeners. But if you love it, it's all worth it.

It's time to return to the garden

Mon, 10 Aug 2009 14:48:02 -0600

Did you know that we are in the middle of planting time for the fall growing season?
It's TRUE!
And I am way behind. I was just checking out the Travis County Extension Office's planting guide, and I really need to get in gear. My busy work schedule has kept me out of the garden for the past several weeks, and all I've managed to do is drool over reports of my fellow Central Texas gardeners' bounties.
It hasn't helped that today marks the 51st day of triple-digit heat in Austin. 51 DAYS over 100 degrees. It's not unbelievable, but it is insane.
I am turning over a new leaf, however. I plan to reacquaint myself with my lovely garden this week with 3 vacations days. My mom, a gardener in Atlanta, is in town to play with her grandson and she's always up for helping me in the garden. Captive help! I can't wait to hit my favorite local nursery and come home with veggies and fall perennials. I'll take pictures, so stay tuned!

Would you like your grass original recipe or crispy?

Mon, 03 Aug 2009 18:03:53 -0600

I have stubbornly refused to do much more than water my vegetable beds by hand and set up the sprinkler for one really deep watering a month for the benefit of that huge pecan tree in my yard.
As a result, most of the grass is my front yard is now crispy and the backyard grass is all but dead.
SIGH.
Part of me feels disdain for the grass because it goes against my desire to be water-wise and go native. But the other part of me longs for the smell of fresh cut grass and soft turf under bare feet like I experienced when I was a young-un in Virginia.
So now I'm on the hunt for a groundcover to replace the St. Augustine that just isn't surviving the summers. I need one for my front yard that will surround my kitchen garden and one for my backyard for my little one to run and play games in.
Any ideas? Leave a comment below...

Planting blueberries?

Fri, 31 Jul 2009 12:11:34 -0600

My mom called me this morning to brag about her most recent purchase...
"Cindy! Guess what I bought today! Three blueberries!"
"Gee mom, that's pretty pitiful. Usually I get more than that in a pint from the grocery store."
"No! Three blueberry PLANTS."
LOL. That's me just being a smart alek... and I know why she's bragging. I absolutely love blueberries, but because of their needs, I have so far not been able to plant them in my landscape.
The man at my mom's local nursery in Atlanta told her blueberries are good for a raised bed she has that receives mostly shade but some sun. She was sent home with compost and a soil amendment that will help turn the soil in that bed acidic.
The soil in my yard is far and away the least acidic soil you can get -- it's very alkaline. It would require a lot of work to create the perfect environment for blueberries without encouraging the roots to grow in circles.
Blueberries in Texas grow best in in the eastern part of the state -- in the piney woods where the soil is naturally acidic. I know there is a huge blueberry farm up near where my in-laws have some land -- near Jefferson, north of Longview. I remember my mother-in-law coming back with a giant bag of the hugest, sweetest, bluest blueberries I've every seen.
In Austin, I know people who've planted blueberries in their landscape -- my neighbors come to mind. Poor things are dried and withered now in the intense summer heat.
I've always wanted to try growing them in containers, which seems like the best solution. With containers, it's easier to control the acidity of the soil, and when the bushes grow, you can pot-up, avoiding a tangle in the root ball.
The worst thing you can do is dig a hole and put acidic soil in the hole. If you do that, you encourage the roots to grow in circles rather than reach out into the surrounding soil. It's the same reason why you shouldn't amend the soil for a tree. The tree should be fertilized and watered as it becomes established, but it should be encouraged to send roots out far and wide.
Here I go rambling again -- but then, again, trees are my special interest.
So, yes, I am jealous of my mom's blueberries, and if I can get my act together one day to care for container plants again, blueberries are tops on my list. But my mom doesn't have blackberries, and mine are going like gangbusters.

In love with olive trees

Fri, 17 Jul 2009 18:29:48 -0600

I have been a neglectful gardener of late.
We have now had about a month straight of triple-digit temperatures, and as I've mentioned in previous posts, the last thing I want to do is be in the garden.
That doesn't mean I'm not, but I'm sure not spending as much time as I would like it didn't feel like a sauna.
Everything looks crunchy outside, but I am amazed at those plants that seem almost cheery in the garden -- like my olive trees.
These appear to be the most vibrant specimens in my garden. We planted them more than 4 years ago. They were so small when they were planted -- barely to my waist. Now they tower over my husband. An arborist once told us that olive trees, which are native to the Mediterranean and parts of Africa, are really suited to Central Texas. They love the soil and the heat. They nearly doubled in size the summer we had all the rain -- 2007. And it seems like every time it rains they grow even more. If the tag from the nursery is right, it will begin making olives in three years.
Olives are really fascinating trees. Find out more on Wikipedia.

Stayin' alive... stayin' alive

Thu, 09 Jul 2009 17:15:16 -0600

I apologize for neglecting my blog of late, but it's been so darn hot lately, that I've avoided doing much of anything outside, let alone gardening.
The only time I like to garden when forecasters like KVUE's Mark Murray say it's going to be 105 in the afternoon is in the morning. At least then, the temperatures are only in the upper 70s or low 80s.
I love it even more because the sun is just coming up, and it feels like the landscape is coming alive. The early birds have been chattering for an hour, but everything else wakes up as the sun comes over the horizon, and I can feel the energy from the daytime critters and the plants around me.
Our drip irrigation that runs through the vegetable beds comes on just before 7 a.m., and it's almost like you can see the relief in the plants. I usually break out the hose sprayer and water the vegetables by hand every other day, but in the event that I'm too busy (which happens inevitably), the drip irrigation saves me.
That's probably why only some of my plants are toasted this time of year. The beans, corn and strawberries all bit the dust -- but those tend to do better for me in the spring anyway. Our tomatoes seem to be holding their own under the bird netting, and I'm hoping that they and the peppers make it through the long hot summer.
I'm really glad I mulched, and I know that this weekend I need to feed, because all of the plants are stressed by the heat. It feels like a blast furnace! And only the sunflowers appear to relish the heat.
Yep, this is the time of year I'm striving only to keep the plants alive -- well... just the vegetables really. My woody ornamentals and perennials are holding their own, thanks to choosing drought-tolerant and native plants. So at least that's one good thing.
Which reminds me... the desert willows I planted last winter are in bloom and thriving! I'll have to take photos and share!
In the meantime, stay cool!

A plethora of peppers

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 16:50:43 -0600

My friend and co-worker Micah has been telling me about the bounty in his garden, and today he shared these photos with me. I thought I'd share them with the workld -- they are just so beautiful.

They look gorgeous -- much better than my crop. He's going to have some delicious salsa!

Name that critter!

Thu, 11 Jun 2009 16:34:24 -0600

KVUE's Amy Johnston brought my hard evidence this week of a critter nibbling on her tomatoes. This is a photo of the tomato she brought in. I say an animal -- like a squirrel is chomping on them. She says she's not so sure, because all of the holes are on the bottom.
What do you think?

Mystical moonflower

Tue, 09 Jun 2009 12:18:50 -0600

I absolutely love when people talk to me about gardening. It's so satisfying to see my friends, colleagues... even strangers!... light up when they tell me about their successes in the garden. Recently, one of KVUE's photographers, Lex, shared this photo from his balcony garden.

Lex says he first got this cactus 4 years ago and it was in pretty bad shape. He nursed it back to health, and it is now 7 feet tall and blooming for the very first time. The really cool thing? It only blooms at night.
Lex took these photos one night using a long exposure, and the flowers are striking!
Do you have a garden you're proud of? Share your photos on KVUE.com and leave a comment to let me know about it!

Summer bounty

Thu, 04 Jun 2009 12:22:33 -0600

How is your garden going? Mine is going strong, and I'm excited to hear my colleagues here at KVUE tell me about their gardens.
One of our producers is growing his tomatoes, herbs and peppers in pots outside of his rental home, and he tells me everything is growing well.
And KVUE's Amy Johnston, who just started her own garden this year, surprised me at work the other day when she brought veggies to share.

Are those onions beautiful or what?! She also brought me tomatoes, but I didn't have a chance to take a picture of them before they were quickly devoured by my tomato-eating son. We enjoyed all three tomatoes in an egg scramble the same night they arrived, and they were sweet, juicy and delicious.

These are some of the ripening tomatoes in my garden. I haven't been able to bring any of them inside yet. As soon as they ripen they have been eaten... by my tomato-loving son. So I'm not complaining. He's enjoying them.

Sorry about the poor picture quality, but this was the best shot I got of my peppers. I was shocked to find nearly all of my plants have at least one pepper on them -- even the scrawny ones I started from seed that barely grew 6 inches. These peppers are poblanos I think -- definitely not jalapeno.
I guess is just goes to show how easy peppers are to grow. And I didn't get a good picture -- but the tomatillos are going crazy. They are covered with little husked fruit. Thiose are so easy to grow, they're practically weeds. I found a volunteer over the the strawberry bed -- and it has fruit. MMMMMMMMM... verde salsa.

This is another veggie that is producing a lot and none of the fruit has made it inside -- green beans. My son hates them cooked, but he's thrilled to eat them off the vine. It's fun for him to find them and pull them off. And that's good enough for me.

And check out that tiny little ear of corn. It probably won't be big enough to do much with -- but it's growing! So fun.

Tue, 02 Jun 2009 18:20:00 -0600

A woman told me months ago that artichokes have the most stunning purple flowers if allowed to bloom. Well, I had to see it for myself, so I let one bloom.

I would classify that as gorgeous. My son's babysitter is absolutely amazed by it, and with good reason -- it's huge.

I didn't pounce on the buds early enough to harvest and eat. This is my first time for growing artichoke. but I have to say, I'm not disappointed. They are fairly easy to grow from seed, and I plan on planting more in the future. And if this is what I get when I don;t harvest, then I'm one happy camper.
If I ever do harvest the blooms, I plan to try out a recipe I saw on Good Eats years ago.

Spread the mulch!

Fri, 29 May 2009 17:16:42 -0600

It's getting hot out there here in Austin. Working out in the garden this weekend, my family was fried before 11 a.m. Now is the time of year to make sure to put on a hat and sunblock and strive to finish garden chores in the morning and evening hours.
It's time to check on the plants, too, and make sure they are weathering the heat. I always make sure to water in the morning before 10, that way the water has time to be absorbed before the sun can evaporate it.
And if you haven't already mulched those garden beds, hop to it! I have been a little lax, and I have not had a chance to put mulch down, but it's definitely time. A nice mulch, like shredded cedar, helps keep the soil cool, squelches weeds and keeps the water from quickly evaporating. As a bonus, it keeps mud from splashing up up on the veggies and keeps protects them from possible soil-borne diseases. It also breaks down nicely, adding more nutrients to your soil.
So what are we waiting for?