AROUND THE YARD
With Reeve Hobbie, Master Gardener
BV/S neighbor and Travis County Master Gardener Reeve Hobbie is glad to be able to offer pertinent gardening subjects in articles throughout the year. This year he'll share some ideas you can apply month by month in a "Do's and Don'ts" approach. Previous years' articles can be found at “Around the Yard” archives.
May & June
It certainly is a different kind of spring this year. With so many of us stay-at-home folks during these unusual times, there is an opportunity to get outside and do some yard work that in years past may have been neglected. So,enjoy your own little park and make it beautiful this spring. You might just have the time, and you could get the kids involved too!Here are tips to help your gardens, lawns, trees and shrubs look their very best by following these “Do’s and Don’ts” to get you through May and June.
DO ...
* Mow your lawn every week. Regular mowing will help snuff out weeds from going to seed or spreading. For St. Augustine grass and perhaps a few other grasses, start mowing at a high setting that leaves your lawn at least 2½ inches high. Bermuda grass, on the other hand,can tolerate being cut a little shorter.
* Let the grass clippings drop down onto the lawn. The clippings are one of the best sources of nutrients for your lawn.
* Water your lawn, gardens and trees at least weekly, when there has been no appreciable rainfall, in accordance with city guidelines.*
* Fertilize vegetables and flowering annuals monthly.This may be done with a liquid fertilizer application.
* Complete the pruning/shaping of spring-flowering shrubs and climbing roses soon after they bloom.
* Plant caladium bulbs. The earth is finally warm enough for them. It’s also a good time to plant other tender plants like coleus, begonias, New Guinea impatiens (forget regular impatiens, they’ve got a blight), pentas and other summer annuals.
* Allow foliage of spring-flowering bulbs to yellow completely before removing their leaves.Apply bone meal around those spent bulbs.
* Pinch the terminal growth on annuals and perennials. This will keep them shorter, more compact and well branched for better flowering later on.
* Apply a good 3-to 4-inch layer of mulch to all your beds if you haven’t already done so. There are so many benefits: water retention, weed control, plant root insulation, organic matter, and overall beautification.If you have the opportunity, put down landscape cloth or other weed barrier before topping with mulch. This will provide an even greater defense against weeds.
* Watch for insect pests. A simple solution of 1 tablespoon liquid soap (can’t be a detergent such as Dawn) to 1 quart water may be sprayed on most infested plants and may do the trick of ridding the pests. Be sure to spray undersides of leaves and stems too.
* Fertilize roses every four to six weeks even when not blooming. Put reminders on your calendar all the way to fall.
* Hand water and fertilize container plants and hanging baskets as needed. They dry up a whole lot quicker than plants in the ground.
* Plant vegetables and fruit like cantaloupe, spinach, okra, Southern peas, peppers, sweet potatoes, pumpkin, winter squash & watermelon.
DON'T ...
* Scalp your lawn during these warmer spring months. Mow high!
* Water your gardens or lawns with hose-end sprinklers or your automatic irrigation system except on your one designated day a week and during very specific hours*. (See third “Do” above and footnote below.)
* Prune oak trees. Just don’t even consider it! To help prevent the devastating oak wilt you must now wait until the hottest days of summer (after July 1) before pruning oaks.The dead of winter is even a better time.
* Plant or transplant trees or shrubs if you possibly can avoid it. Far too much stress on the plants. Winter is the better time to do that.
* Plant sun-loving plants(requiring a minimum of 6-8hours of full sun) in the shade or shade-loving plants in too many hours of sun, especially afternoon sun.
* Allow water to sit days on end in plant saucers, rain gutters, shallow pools or other vessels around the yard where mosquitoes can breed.Change water frequently in bird baths.
*Water restrictions in Austin. See http://austintexas.gov/department/water-conservationfor details of what hours you may use hose-end sprinklers and/or automatic irrigation.
If you have questions about your yard or garden, please call Travis County Master Gardeners at 512-854-9600. The person at the other end of the line may not have an immediate answer, but they’ll research it and will get back with you
DO ...
* Mow your lawn every week. Regular mowing will help snuff out weeds from going to seed or spreading. For St. Augustine grass and perhaps a few other grasses, start mowing at a high setting that leaves your lawn at least 2½ inches high. Bermuda grass, on the other hand,can tolerate being cut a little shorter.
* Let the grass clippings drop down onto the lawn. The clippings are one of the best sources of nutrients for your lawn.
* Water your lawn, gardens and trees at least weekly, when there has been no appreciable rainfall, in accordance with city guidelines.*
* Fertilize vegetables and flowering annuals monthly.This may be done with a liquid fertilizer application.
* Complete the pruning/shaping of spring-flowering shrubs and climbing roses soon after they bloom.
* Plant caladium bulbs. The earth is finally warm enough for them. It’s also a good time to plant other tender plants like coleus, begonias, New Guinea impatiens (forget regular impatiens, they’ve got a blight), pentas and other summer annuals.
* Allow foliage of spring-flowering bulbs to yellow completely before removing their leaves.Apply bone meal around those spent bulbs.
* Pinch the terminal growth on annuals and perennials. This will keep them shorter, more compact and well branched for better flowering later on.
* Apply a good 3-to 4-inch layer of mulch to all your beds if you haven’t already done so. There are so many benefits: water retention, weed control, plant root insulation, organic matter, and overall beautification.If you have the opportunity, put down landscape cloth or other weed barrier before topping with mulch. This will provide an even greater defense against weeds.
* Watch for insect pests. A simple solution of 1 tablespoon liquid soap (can’t be a detergent such as Dawn) to 1 quart water may be sprayed on most infested plants and may do the trick of ridding the pests. Be sure to spray undersides of leaves and stems too.
* Fertilize roses every four to six weeks even when not blooming. Put reminders on your calendar all the way to fall.
* Hand water and fertilize container plants and hanging baskets as needed. They dry up a whole lot quicker than plants in the ground.
* Plant vegetables and fruit like cantaloupe, spinach, okra, Southern peas, peppers, sweet potatoes, pumpkin, winter squash & watermelon.
DON'T ...
* Scalp your lawn during these warmer spring months. Mow high!
* Water your gardens or lawns with hose-end sprinklers or your automatic irrigation system except on your one designated day a week and during very specific hours*. (See third “Do” above and footnote below.)
* Prune oak trees. Just don’t even consider it! To help prevent the devastating oak wilt you must now wait until the hottest days of summer (after July 1) before pruning oaks.The dead of winter is even a better time.
* Plant or transplant trees or shrubs if you possibly can avoid it. Far too much stress on the plants. Winter is the better time to do that.
* Plant sun-loving plants(requiring a minimum of 6-8hours of full sun) in the shade or shade-loving plants in too many hours of sun, especially afternoon sun.
* Allow water to sit days on end in plant saucers, rain gutters, shallow pools or other vessels around the yard where mosquitoes can breed.Change water frequently in bird baths.
*Water restrictions in Austin. See http://austintexas.gov/department/water-conservationfor details of what hours you may use hose-end sprinklers and/or automatic irrigation.
If you have questions about your yard or garden, please call Travis County Master Gardeners at 512-854-9600. The person at the other end of the line may not have an immediate answer, but they’ll research it and will get back with you
March & April
Crazy winter! We had some 70 and 80 degree days in January and a number of freezes in February. Our outdoor plants are totally confused.
March and April has to be warmer than February and our yards be telling us that spring is really upon us, so let me suggest what to do and what not to do. I hope you will find this helpful.
MARCH
Do…
Don’t…
APRIL
Do…
Don’t…
If you have questions about your yard or garden, please call Travis County Master Gardeners at 512-854-9600. The person at the other end of the line may not have an immediate answer, but they’ll research it and will get back with you.
March and April has to be warmer than February and our yards be telling us that spring is really upon us, so let me suggest what to do and what not to do. I hope you will find this helpful.
MARCH
Do…
- bag up or put into compost the live oak leaves that now cover your yard so that your lawn has a chance to green up.
- begin lawn mowing. It might be a good idea to get that straw-like thatch off the lawn by mowing it closer to the ground the first round or two. Add that thatch to your compost pile.
- start watering your lawn and gardens regularly and in accordance with City of Austin guidelines.
- prepare soil for new garden beds or those needing rejuvenation. Add compost and other nutrients and work that into the soil. It’s more important to feed soil than to feed plants.
- plant new trees and shrubs now to give them a good start before it gets too hot. This is just about the last chance to do so until late next fall.
- trim back your evergreen shrubs, hedges and ground cover. I’ve already whacked most of mine back by one third!
- fertilize fruit trees, nut trees, and rose bushes using a 3-1-2 ratio fertilizer. Continue fertilizing roses every 4 to 6 weeks. Rose bushes will grow in the shade, but won’t bloom well unless they get at least 6 hours of direct sunlight per day. Last chance to move rose bushes if you must.
- prune hibiscus this month and begin feeding them.
- divide fall-blooming perennials (mums, fall asters, Mexican bush sage, etc.).
- begin planting warm-season vegetables (green beans, tomatoes, peppers, squash).
Don’t…
- prune any kind of oak tree. PERIOD! To help prevent the dreaded oak wilt you must now wait until the hottest days of summer (after July 1). (Read Nancy Shindler’s article on oak wilt in the February Balcones Living magazine.)
- fertilize your lawn just yet. You must let it green up naturally. That spring application of fertilizer should not go down on your lawn until mid April.
- apply a pre-emergent weed killer to your lawn. It’s already too late (see February).
- prune shrubs that are about to bloom (azaleas, quince, mountain laurel, fringe flower, etc.). Shape them latter after they have bloomed.
- pull out what appears to be dead perennials and shrubs. Despite our crazy winter please be patient for spring to completely arrive before deciding on the fate of your winter-struck plants.
- remove the foliage from spring-flowering bulbs after they have bloomed. Wait until they completely brown out and the dead foliage wants to falls off.
APRIL
Do…
- fertilize your lawn on or about mid-month (Income Tax Filing Day) using a 3-1-2 ratio fertilizer and follow manufacturer’s directions for the correct spreader setting.
- apply a good 3- to 4-inch layer of mulch to all your beds. There are so many benefits: water retention, weed control, plant root insulation, organic matter, and overall beautification.
- lightly prune crape myrtles if you haven’t done so already. Only deadhead last year’s seedpods with small clippers. Bring out the saw or loppers only if you need to remove a complete branch or trunk near the base. Fertilize your crape myrtles with a 3-1-2 or 4-1-2 ratio fertilizer.
- fertilize your spring-flowering shrubs soon after blooming. It’s also a good time to shape those shrubs, but avoid excessive cut backs.
- apply bone meal around your now spent spring flowering bulbs. Work it into the soil.
- plant warm-season vegetables – sweet potatoes, melons – just to name a couple.
- begin planting summer annuals. For some flowers, it may still be too early. Availability of an item in a store does not always mean that it is the proper time to plant it. Hold off on planting impatiens, coleus, begonias, pentas and the like until next month when the soil is warmer.
- watch for insect pests. The presence of pests doesn’t always warrant a spray.
- remove plants you have determined to have died this past winter. If they haven’t sprouted up new growth from their roots or leafed out by now, they probably won’t.
Don’t…
- prune oak trees. PERIOD!
- commit “crape murder,” the bad pruning of your want-to-be tall crape myrtles. Tall varieties can’t be made into dwarfs.
- plant caladium tubers just yet. They need soil temperatures to be at least 70 degrees for best growth. Buy the tubers now, but wait to plant them next month.
- plant sun-loving annuals and perennials in dense shade. Don’t plant shade-loving plants in full sun.
- keep scalping your lawn. Low cutting time is over. For St. Augustine grass, raise the blade to a very high setting (up to 3 or 4 inches in dense shade).
- bag lawn clippings. Let mowed grass fall back into the lawn where its nutrients will benefit the soil.
If you have questions about your yard or garden, please call Travis County Master Gardeners at 512-854-9600. The person at the other end of the line may not have an immediate answer, but they’ll research it and will get back with you.
