The Shovel-Ready Garden

Winter harvest

2012-02-19T23:01:00.004-06:00

Hi! I'm still here, still gardening, just crazy busy. Here's a peek at what I harvested this weekend. What do we have here? Packman broccoli side shoots (the heads eaten last week), Sugar Snap peas (producing like a BOSS), Bloomsdale spinach (leaves few and far between) and three lettuces: Garnet Rose, Red Oakleaf and Baby Romaine. More soon! Words and photos © 2009-2012 Caroline Homer for "

A few words about Internet censorship

2012-01-18T10:46:00.002-06:00

I support efforts to stop copyright infringement and online piracy. Unfortunately, the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the Protect IP Act (PIPA) will not accomplish their stated goals, at least not as they are now written. Even worse, they open the door to Internet censorship. Visit the Electronic Frontier Foundation to find out more.

Foliage Follow-Up: January 2012

2012-01-16T11:47:00.010-06:00

On the 16th of each month, Pam Penick at Digging hosts Foliage Follow-Up, to highlight the importance of foliage in the garden. This month she posted a photo of Moby, her Whale's Tongue agave, partially lit by the morning sun, shadows playing along its grooved and studded leaves. A beam of sunlight shining through her bottle tree adorned Moby with a swath of cobalt blue. The effect was that of

Farewell to fall

2011-12-04T22:51:00.007-06:00

My urban garden has managed to avoid the handful of freezes my suburban and rural friends have endured, but now that we're into December, it's only a matter of time. I've been quite pleased with the peppers, squash and eggplant my fall garden produced, though the beans and cucumbers were a bust. And although my remaining tomato plant (Chocolate Cherry) is lush, full, healthy and loaded with

Homegrown microgreens

2011-12-03T12:47:00.015-06:00

I don't know about you, but I hate thinning seedlings. I know proper spacing is crucial to growing healthy vegetable plants, but I can't help but feel like I'm snuffing the life's purpose out of those tiny, leafy babies. Last weekend, as I pulled gobs of lettuce seedlings out of a raised bed, my thoughts flashed back to a $5.99 package of organic microgreens I'd seen at Central Market. That's

The luckiest lime tree on Earth

2011-11-27T22:19:00.004-06:00

Regular readers of this blog know how much I love and baby my in-ground lime trees. I know, I'm crazy, the lengths I go to! But there's nothing like a fresh homegrown organic lime for making Margaritas. Last year, despite our best efforts we lost the key lime in the February freeze. The Bearss lime survived, but suffered severe damage. Luckily, it rebounded in the spring and is even larger

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day - November 2011

2011-11-15T22:51:00.008-06:00

90% of Texas remains in Extreme or Exceptional Drought. Nonetheless, we had a bit of a sprinkle on the 6th and a goodly amount of rain today (1/2 inch in my garden). As a result, I have blooms to share.In the vegetable garden, 'Ichiban" Japanese eggplant continues to bloom and produce small, tasty eggplants.Each purple blossom is a potential eggplant. The sepals of the five-lobed calyx look

Today I Learned (TIL)

2011-10-29T13:00:00.007-05:00

Today I learned how to clone plants. (cue evil mad scientist laugh) It's true -- plant propagation from cuttings is a bit like cloning a plant. By taking a part of a plant and rooting it, I can create a completely new plant, genetically identical to the "parent." Pretty cool, huh?Virtually any plant can be propagated from cuttings. In class, we practiced our newly learned propagation skills

ENDS TONIGHT! Last chance to win nursery gift certificates!

2011-10-26T18:34:00.006-05:00

In honor of Support your Independent Garden Center Month, these eight garden bloggers are holding contests for wonderful prize packages at eight local Austin nurseries. And ALL you have to do is leave a comment on the contest pages linked below. Enter one or enter all eight, but hurry: the contests end TONIGHT at 11:59 p.m. Sharing Nature's Garden -- $50 gift certificate from Emerald Garden

October GGW Picture This! Photo Contest - "Fill the Frame"

2011-10-23T17:06:00.004-05:00

This is my entry for Gardening Gone Wild's Picture This! Photo Contest for October. This month's theme is "Fill the Frame" and the judge is Saxon Holt.Plumbago auriculataYou can enter a photograph, too! But you'd best hurry -- the deadline is 11:59 PM Eastern time on Tuesday, October 25. Words and photos © 2009-2011 Caroline Homer for "The Shovel-Ready Garden". Unauthorized reproduction is

The secret life of insects

2011-10-23T12:52:00.004-05:00

Today I Learned (TIL)

2011-10-18T19:01:00.007-05:00

Today I learned how to tell the difference between bacterial plant infections and fungal plant infections.During our 6 hour class on plant pathology, Dr. Kevin Ong, Director of the Texas Plant Disease Diagnostic Laboratory, explained that both bacteria and fungi can cause blight, wilt and leaf spots, but there are some visible differences between the two, if you can catch the disease early on.

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day - October 2011

2011-10-16T12:55:00.003-05:00

An inch of rain earlier in the month and a good mulching shortly after has brought forth purple, blue, yellow and pink blooms in time for Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day. Normally I would have cut back the salvias in late summer to stimulate blooming, but held off as the plants were under severe drought stress. Turns out there was no need to prune. In front of the house:'Ruby Crystals' grass (

October is Support Your Independent Nursery Month

2011-10-11T00:01:00.008-05:00

Pam Penick at Digging has declared it, and I concur -- October is Support Your Independent Nursery Month. And boy, do they need our support. Orchard entrance at The Natural GardenerIndie nurseries are hanging by a thread and some are closing up shop altogether, as the linked article describes (thanks to Diana at Sharing Nature's Garden for the link). Here are some of the reasons why we are at

Today I Learned (TIL)

2011-10-09T15:43:00.009-05:00

Today I learned that if soil is "worked" (tilled, turned or amended) when the soil is too wet, it turns into a brick-like substance that can take years to rehabilitate. This weekend, Austin finally got a good, slow, soaking rain. So far, my garden's gotten a little over an inch of much-needed moisture, and some lucky ducks in Austin have enjoyed 2 or 3 inches. And after months of heat and

Today I Learned (TIL)

2011-09-28T21:47:00.023-05:00

Today I learned that compost isn't a fertilizer, it's a soil amendment. In other words, compost doesn't feed your plants, it feeds your soil. Yes, soil needs food, nom nom nom. Soil is hungry. Soil needs to eat because soil is ALIVE! Good soil, anyway. Somewhere in the back of my head, I knew this. I've heard about soil microbes. But somehow I had it in my head that the compost I work

Today I Learned (TIL)

2011-09-24T16:06:00.012-05:00

Today I learned that the term "pesticide" includes a lot of stuff that I didn't know were pesticides. I knew insecticides were pesticides, but there's lots more pests than just insects. Other pests include birds (pests to some people! not me!), fungus, weeds, mites, mollusks (like slugs and snails), nematodes, fish (pests to some people! not me! well, ok, maybe Asian carp), animals and

The fall garden...huh?

2011-09-18T22:44:00.014-05:00

No, I'm not crazy, this really is the start of my fall garden. Daytime temperatures remain in the 90's in Central Texas, and my little plot hasn't had measurable rainfall in nearly three months. Since the climate is acting like it's summer, with meteorologists predicting a warm, dry winter (thanks, La Niña!), I decided to plant some heat-loving seeds. And with weekly drip irrigation and daily

Today I Learned (TIL)

2011-09-13T19:04:00.024-05:00

Today I learned how to effectively water a tree. Although many trees have tap roots, most of an established tree's roots are in the top 6 to 12 inches of soil, and extend out horizontally from the trunk, far beyond its canopy or drip line (the area under its branches). April Rose, Executive Director of TreeFolks, likens the relationship of a tree to its roots as "a wine glass sitting on top of a

I am hopeful

2011-09-12T00:01:00.000-05:00

This weekend I decided to heck with the drought, the unrelenting heat, and the stage 2 water restrictions. I will have a fall garden. I must. I limited its size to the area I am willing to water with a hand-held hose or watering can, once we go to stage 3 restrictions: one big 4' x 24' bed. And I'm only planting vegetables Jack and I both like, meaning no turnips, no beets, no cabbage, and no

Today I Learned (TIL)

2011-09-06T21:00:00.019-05:00

Texas ash (Fraxinus texensis)Today I learned that moving firewood kills trees. When people transport firewood from their backyard to, say, a campsite three hours away, they introduce forest pests and diseases from one ecosystem to another. Here's one horrific example of how devastating this seemingly innocuous act can be.Minnette Marr, Plant Conservationist at the Ladybird Johnson Wildflower

Today I embark on a new adventure.

2011-08-30T07:12:00.003-05:00

For the next eleven weeks, I'll be in training to become a Travis County Master Gardener, i.e., trying to fit alllll the information in this great big book into my tiny little brain, with the help of educators and speakers from Texas A&M, Texas AgriLife Extension staff, Master Gardeners and more. Provided I show up for the classes and pass the final, the real fun begins -- as an edumacated

Seattle Garden Bloggers' Fling - Dragonfly Farms & farewell reception

2011-08-29T00:01:00.005-05:00

The grand finale to the Seattle Garden Bloggers' Fling was a cocktail party sponsored by Proven Winners® and hosted by Dragonfly Farms and Nursery on Kitsap Peninsula. We arrived a bit early, so we were encouraged to tour the grounds while the caterers were setting up. Dragonfly Farms' motto is “Where Abnormality is the Normality.” I see what they mean! I neglected to write down the artist

Seattle Garden Bloggers' Fling - Bloedel Reserve

2011-08-28T18:15:00.000-05:00

Apologies for the late post, which I promised last weekend; instead of blogging, I ran off to the cooling waters of Balmorhea State Park, where Internet access was limited. It's been more than a month (!) since the end of the Seattle Garden Bloggers' Fling, but sweet memories linger. On the final day of Fling, the schedule called for a ferry trip to Bainbridge Island, a lengthy tour of

Seattle Garden Bloggers' Fling - Coenosium Rock Garden at the SSCC Arboretum

2011-08-19T20:52:00.009-05:00

On the third day of the Garden Bloggers' Fling, as the sun hit its peak in the blue skies over Seattle, our friendly drivers shuttled us over to our last stop of the day: a visit to the Coenosium Rock Garden at the South Seattle Community College Arboretum. What's a coenosium? It's Greek to me. Actually, it's Greek for "plant community." And this particular plant community features hundreds