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You may find
gardening in this climate to be different from what you have been accustomed to
in the past. With that in mind, here are a few tips to help you be a
successful Gulf Coast Gardener.
After you have unpacked the boxes, hung pictures, and rearranged the furniture once or twice, you can finally take the time to assess your newly acquired landscape.
If you're lucky, the previous owner (unless you're in a newly built home) did a great job, and you won't want to change a thing. On the other hand - you may have definite ideas as to what you want in your landscape - plantings that conform to your taste and life style.
If you previously lived somewhere with a different climate and soil structure, here are a few things that you may want to know about gardening in our area:
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DRAINAGE
Our water table is high, so good drainage is essential for any type of
planting. Raised beds accomplish this quite effectively. Use
bricks, landscape timbers, rocks, or low growing border plants to retain 6
or 8 inches of organic matter. If you decide on a solid border, be
sure to leave small gaps for water to drain from the bed rather than
overflowing. |
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LAWNS Forget the fescue or thick zoysia carpet you may have previously called a lawn. St. Augustine grass is without a doubt the best grass for our soil and climate. |
St. Augustine spreads by stolens or runners. Set your lawn mover to "High", thereby allowing the blades of the grass to provide shade to the stolens. This prevents the sun from burning the stolens, resulting in a scorched, brown lawn. This shading also helps to conserve moisture in the soil.
Watering your lawn early in the morning is the most beneficial and economical time to do so. There is less evaporation and more absorption when the temperatures are still relatively cool. Late evening watering encourages fungal diseases.
Don't fertilize your St. Augustine lawn until after it has had its second spring mowing. Any fertilizing prior to that time will only benefit cool weather weeds. NEVER use a fertilizer that promises to feed your lawn and kill weeds simultaneously, regardless of what is printed on the package! These fertilizers are combined with broad leaf herbicides, and they cannot differentiate between broad leaf weeds and your landscape trees! Many newly planted, and even older established trees are poisoned each year by "weed and feed" formulations. If you keep your St. Augustine lawn in a healthy state, it will eventually crowd out unwelcome weeds.
Consider not bagging your grass clippings. If left on the ground, they become an excellent source of fertilizer. Annually, clippings can supply nutrients equal to one or two applications of fertilizer. This method is much less expensive than chemical applications, and much friendlier to our environment. Inexpensive mulching blades, available for many brand-name lawn mowers, provide a smart option for homeowners who want to reduce yard waste, not to mention the dependence on lawn chemicals.
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TREES The highest order of plants and an important part of our landscape, they increase the value of your property and are a visual asset to the neighborhood. |
Shading your home from the summer sun, trees help to lessen your air conditioning expenses. Deciduous trees (those that drop their leaves in the fall), planted on the south or southwest side of a dwelling can reduce your air conditioning expenses by as much as forty percent during the hottest months of summer. Sipping a frosty lemonade on a shaded patio or deck is much more pleasant that sitting on a sunny one.
After you have established the planting location and the variety of tree suited to that spot (be sure to check with your County Agricultural Extension Service for a list of suitable trees for your area), visit a reputable local nursery. Avoid the mail-order catalogs from distant states with dissimilar climates, as their offerings are not suitable for our location. Drive around the block and see what types of trees are doing well for your neighbors. This is a good indication as to what you should be considering for your own landscape. You may have your heart set on a particular variety, but if you don't see any of them growing in your neighborhood - they probably won't.
Container-grown trees are the easiest to plant. Their roots are quite often coiled around one another in the container, so you will need to split the lower half of the root system and spread the roots horizontally to encourage new root growth.
Dig the hole twice as wide as the container diameter, but no deeper than the soil level in the container. Place the top of the soil ball at a slightly higher level than the surrounding soil. The finished planting depth (after the soil settles) should be such that the plant is exactly the same depth after planting as it was when grown in the container.
After positioning the root-ball in the prepared hole, backfill with the soil taken from the hole. DO NOT ADD ORGANIC MATTER. By backfilling with native soil, the plant is immediately forced to establish new roots in the backfilled soil and beyond.
Fall is the ideal time to plant trees, and our mild winters allow them to spend those months establishing a healthy root system. Moisture is essential to accomplish this, so don't put away the garden hose just because it's winter.
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VEGETABLE
GARDENS Have you ever been lucky enough to live in an area where
you could plant two vegetable gardens a year? We have the ability to
produce both spring and fall vegetable gardens. Visit your County
Agricultural Extension Service for a list of vegetable varieties suitable
for your area and the dates on which to plant them. |
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FRUIT & NUT TREES/BERRIES Perhaps you would like to plant a fruit tree or two, and maybe some berry vines. You can forget the Jonathan apples, black walnuts and raspberries, but many types of fruit trees, nut trees, and berry vines can be successfully grown in your back yard. |
A major factor that has to be considered is "chilling hours." Many fruit crops have built- in mechanisms for measuring the length of a winter. These mechanisms monitor the number of hours that the temperature is between 32 and 45 degrees Fahrenheit. These temperatures are cumulative - not consecutive. When the required number of chilling hours has been met for a specific variety, the next warm spell will bring forth blooms.
In February of each year, the Galveston County Master Gardeners' Association sponsors a fruit and nut tree sale. They offer varieties specifically suited to our location, and the members are very knowledgeable in the areas of planting, pruning, fertilization, etc. They also offer suitable berry varieties for our locale and can help you with any questions you may have about planting and maintaining any of the above in your landscape.
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BULBS If you formerly resided above the Mason-Dixon Line, you fondly remember crocus poking through the snow heralding the end of winter, and tulips reappearing each spring along with the robins. It won't happen here. It doesn't usually get cold enough for those bulbs to achieve dormancy during our mild winters, so they will not give you a repeat performance. You will need to replant each year. Here is a list of common bulbs you may wish to plant and dates on which to do so: |
Christmas through New Year's Day - tulips*;
Easter - caladiums;
Halloween - crocus*, freesia, Dutch iris, anemones, ranunculus;
Thanksgiving - daffodils, hyacinths*
*Pre-chill in refrigerator for 6 to 8 weeks before planting.
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AZALEAS, CAMELLIAS, & MAGNOLIAS Our soil is alkaline, but we manage to grow some beautiful flowering shrubbery. You haven't lived until you've seen the azaleas bloom in spring, inhaled the lemony fragrance of a southern magnolia, or seen a camellia so flush with blooms that the branches touch the ground. These shrubs thrive in an acid soil. |
Our local nurseries carry several types of organic and chemical acidifiers. If you have a pine tree or two, the needles make great mulch for these plants with the added benefit of providing some acid to the soil.
There are very specific rules regarding azaleas as to where and how to plant, so check with your nursery before you begin.
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MULCH Other than moisture, mulch is the best friend your plants can have. Mulches conserve moisture and control temperatures both hot and cold, thereby protecting tender roots near the surface. Mulches discourage weeds and keep the soil from packing, thus eliminating the need to cultivate. |
As previously stated, pine needles are an excellent mulch, especially when used in conjunction with oak leaves which have been at least partially broken down in a compost pile. Both are acid forming and help to maintain the acidity of the soil.
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COMPOST
Leaves, grass clippings, kitchen scraps (no meat products), small twigs,
weeds, etc., are the basis for a cost-effective and practical method of
converting green matter into a nutrient-rich soil amendment. You can
construct a confined situation out of landscape timbers, concrete blocks, or
wire fencing, but a loose pile works just as well. Toss on a handful
of fertilizer, a sprinkle of garden soil, keep evenly damp, and turn it with
a spading fork occasionally to incorporate oxygen. The more you turn
it, the faster the decomposition. If you turn it every 3 or 4 days,
you can have a finished product ready for use in 4 to 6 weeks.
Remember that if leaves are shredded, they decompose more readily. |
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FERTILIZER Every granular or liquid fertilizer that you purchase has three numbers printed on the label. |
The first number represents Nitrogen. This is a stimulant, and promotes green, lush growth. If your plants seem to have yellowish leaves, they are suffering from a lack of nitrogen. Natural sources of nitrogen are cottonseed meal, rotted manure and blood meal. A chemical source of nitrogen is ammonium sulfate. But be careful, an excess of nitrogen produces rank growth at the expense of flower and fruit production.
The second number represents Phosphorus. Phosphorus stimulates root growth, promotes maturity, and encourages fruiting and flowering. Weak plants, weak stems, and few flowers or fruit indicate a lack of phosphorus. A natural source of phosphorus is bone meal; a chemical source is superphosphate.
The third number represents Potassium or Potash. Potassium promotes a plant's general well being. It helps plants to resist diseases and insects, increases root systems and strengthens stems. It also increases the development of flowers and fruits. A natural source of potassium is wood ashes; a chemical source is potassium chloride (muriate of potash). Potassium deficiency causes weak stems, insufficient root systems, and plants become more prone to diseases.
Always use the minimum amount of fertilizer necessary to do the job. Over fertilizing actually encourages certain insects and diseases. While a little fertilizer is good - too much is actually detrimental not only to your landscape, but also to Galveston Bay. Most drains in our locale empty into the bay, and excess fertilizer runoff pollutes not only the bay, but also ultimately the Gulf of Mexico.
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PESTS & DISEASES We have our share - maybe more. They can't be eliminated entirely, but they can be controlled. |
Brown patch and chinch bugs may appear in your lawn. cabbage loopers will chomp away at your broccoli. White fly may infest your citrus trees, and powdery mildew will probably appear on your crape myrtles. Your first defense is to identify the problem. Invest in a gardening book written especially for our locale and make friends with your nurseryman and County Extension Service. These are the people with the answers to your questions.
We hope the preceding information makes it easier to establish the landscape that is right for you. Don't hesitate to contact the Texas AgriLife Extension Service when a problem arises. You can speak with a Certified Texas Master Gardener at the Galveston County Office of the Texas AgriLife Extension Service at (281) 534-3413, ext 1, 1 or e-mail at galv3@wt.net.