Planting Pretty Ponds and Gardens, Seed Saving Libraries

the show

Planting Pretty Ponds and Gardens, Seed Saving Libraries

air date: May 18, 2024

Enchant your garden with easy-care, wildlife-friendly pond plants. Steve Kainer from Hill Country Water Gardens and Nursery explains how to fertilize and divide. Nancy Hall’s garden started from scratch and grew beyond fence lines with philosophy and art. Prevent extinction of valuable plants right in your own backyard! Landscape consultant Colleen Dieter from Central Texas Seed Savers packages seeds for local libraries to checkout to gardeners. Learn how to get involved and contribute seeds from your garden. Blackshear Elementary student Adler Asher shows why prairies matter to our future.

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Episode Segments

On Tour

One Bed at a Time!

When Nancy Hall bought her house in 1985, the heavy clay soil hosted a lawn and a stark chain link fence. As a new gardener, the plants–both adapted and native–taught her their ways. Gradually, she layered foliage and flowers, accented with artwork from local artists. Then she added a small pond and inviting patio to watch all the wildlife that come visit.

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Interview

Make a Splash with Water Gardens: Steve Kainer

Enchant your garden with easy-care, wildlife-friendly pond and bog plants. Steve Kainer from Hill Country Water Gardens and Nursery explains how to fertilize and divide both colorful and foliar plants.

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Question of the Week

Why Do Prairies Matter?

Blackshear Elementary student Adler Asher explores why prairies disappeared and why restoration now matters so much to our future ecology. Prairies are great at locking carbon in the soil as soil organic carbon. They support prairie dogs that in turn support the endangered black-footed ferret and prairie chicken. Because many prairie plants have deep roots, they help stabilize soil and conserve water. They also provide habitat and food for wildlife and nourish our sense of wonder and beauty.

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Backyard Basics

Central Texas Seed Savers

Landscape consultant Colleen Dieter from Central Texas Seed Savers packages seeds for local libraries to checkout to gardeners. Learn how to get involved and contribute seeds from your garden.

Watch more Backyard Basics videos on YouTube →

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CTG Episode Archive

July To Do List

Plant: ornamental & wildlife

Succulents
Container plants

Plant: food crops

Okra, eggplant, peppers, corn sweet potato slips, pumpkin, summer & winter squash, watermelon
Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Vegetable Planting Guides (Central Texas) http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/travis/home-landscape/edible-gardens/growing-vegetables/

Prune

OKAY to prune red oaks and live oaks until February. Spray immediately with clear varnish.
No need to apply pruning paint to other trees
Dead head flowering plants
Last chance to cut back fall blooming perennials (like aster) that are setting buds

Fertilize

Foliar feed flowers and vegetables with liquid seaweed
Bougainvilla with high nitrogen
Container annuals
Citrus with high nitrogen fertilizer like Citrus-tone. Fertilize every few weeks through growing season.

Insects

Watch for aphids and spider mites. It’s easy to spray them off with a hard blast of water. Be sure to get the undersides of the leaves.
Aphids and other insects can plague crape myrtles and other trees in summer (“raining trees” are due to the honeydew secretions). Blast with water hose on regular basis.
Aphids and other insects can create sooty mold on plants, a fungus that develops from their secretions (honeydew). Wash off the culprits and the leaves. Remove damaged leaves to the trash (not the compost pile).

Lawn

Keep the lawn mower setting up to high. Keep the roots cool by leaving the grass long. Don’t remove more than 1/3 of the top at a time. Leave clippings on the lawn to naturally fertilize.

Prep

Start planning the fall garden. Clean up debris in the vegetable garden. Late month, apply compost to future beds

Other tasks

Solarize areas where you want to kill grass or weed pests for future planting
Collect seeds from summer blooming plants. Clean off the chaff and let dry indoors. Store in jars, envelopes, or paper bags (not plastic) to plant next spring.
Deeply water new plants. Even if rain comes, check the soil to 3” deep to make sure their roots have water. A brief shower doesn’t mean it penetrated to the roots.
Keep a garden journal to note bloom times and insect habits.

Tips

Prune herbs often to encourage new growth
Water fruit and nut trees deeply to avoid fruit drop-off
Avoid over-watering perennials and annuals in hot, humid conditions. To avoid root rot, check soil moisture. Water deeply and then let dry out.

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