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Find all you need at Victoria County Master Gardener Spring Plant Sale
March 15, 2019
By Barbara David - Victoria County Master Gardener
Edited by Charla Borchers Leon
PHOTO BY BARBARA DAVID/VICTORIA COUNTY MASTER GARDENER
If planning for a composte pile in your new garden, consider sun, wind and rain exposure as well as convenient access when choosing the site. A wooden, plastic or stone structure suitable for 1 cubic yard of material with openings for air movement is recommended. Shown here are various kinds of compost bins including three made of wood constructed by Victoria County Master Gardeners at Victoria Educational Gardens to provide for stages of production of compost as a natural amendment to the soil that will be used in the garden beds.
PHOTO BY JEROME JANAK/VICTORIA COUNTY MASTER GARDENER
Salvia plants come in a variety of colors, sizes and foliages like shown here in a bed alongside a lane at Master Gardeners Jerome and Mary Janak's rural Victoria County homestead. Salvia are drought-tolerant, attract hummingbirds and butterflies and are almost pest- and disease-free. Salvia greggii (Autumn Sage), shown in several colors in this bed, can bloom red, white, salmon, pink and/or bi-color flowers in the spring, summer and fall and can grow 3 feet by 3 feet in size. The Salvia greggii will do well in South Texas and likely be a popular plant choice at the spring plant sale.
PHOTO BY BARBARA DAVID/VICTORIA COUNTY MASTER GARDENER
The 'Little John' Bottlebrush is a dwarf shrub that spreads 3 feet tall and wide, has greenish-gray evergreen leaves and blooms compact, red bottlebrush-like flower. It will be available in both this dwarf size as well as a larger, standard variety at the upcoming sale.
Landscape planting tips
PHOTO BY BARBARA DAVID/VICTORIA COUNTY MASTER GARDENER
When designing a new garden, consider constructing raised beds, like shown here at Victoria Educational Gardens, for vegetable, herb or specialty plants that will do well in a designated area in full sun with scheduled watering and easy monitoring for pests. Other advantages of raised beds include ease in building and maintenance as well as in care for plantings due to size and height, location and potential mobility of a raised bed.
It’s that time of the year for the Victoria County Master Gardener Spring Plant Sale on March 23.
Time to evaluate your garden/yard
It’s also that time of year when we start thinking of what needs to be done in our gardens or yards. What better time than now? The weather will be getting nicer, and it will be more pleasant to be outside.
So take the time to take a good look at your yard and evaluate it. Start by checking existing plants and shrubs. Are they doing well where they are? Which areas get mostly sun or mostly shade or something in between?
Do you have some empty spots where you’d like a plant or two? Do you want to hide something like the garbage cans? Do you want to start a compost area? This year, you may want to start a vegetable garden and think a raised bed is the way to go. Do you want to attract hummingbirds? All these questions and answers might help you decide what you’re going to do this year in your yard or garden.
Once you have made an assessment, it is time do some homework. There are many resources available for you to get more information about various gardening topics.
Members of the Victoria County Master Gardener Association (VCMGA) write weekly columns in the Victoria Advocate offering ideas about plants, flowers, container gardening and more. You can pull up the VCMGA website to see what’s been published.
Go to vcmga.org and look for Gardeners’ Dirt columns. Once you click on it you will see articles that have been published within the last few years – or follow the link and go back to articles when the column began 15 years ago.
You can also check out gardening books at the public library or go to victoria.agrilife.org and click on the various links for information from Texas AgriLife Extension publications and educational programming materials. These many resources can help you determine the plants you may choose as well as give you some ideas you could incorporate in your yard.
Draw a plan
Now you need a plan. Get some paper (graph paper works well) and draw existing structures, like the house, garage, walkways, existing beds and fences. Now you know what you have to work with.
Let’s say you are determined to start a compost area. Refer to the article published Jan. 19, 2018, on the VCMGA website and you will have good information about where it should go and what you need to do to get it going. Then pencil in the compost area on your plan.
Maybe you want to add a raised bed for vegetables or herbs. There’s a great article on keyhole gardening Aug. 24, 2018, which incorporates a compost area. Again, pencil that area on your plan.
Begin the journey
Bear in mind that this plan is not set in stone and having several stages is a good thing. This is a journey, and it can be fun if you’re not overwhelmed by it. So, identify the area that you want to work on now and enjoy the journey.
The fun part is choosing the plants. You may have one in mind so answer the following questions to see if it will work in your yard. Does the sun exposure meet that plant’s sun requirement? How big is it going to grow and how much space does it need?
You can find this information on the plant tag at the upcoming plant sale or ask a master gardener for advice or look it up in Gardeners’ Dirt articles.
For example, there’s a great article on succulent displays in the Aug. 31, 2018, column on Confederate Rose in the Sept. 30, 2011, issue as well as salvias dating back to the June 12, 2008, issue. All of these plants are expected to be options at the upcoming sale on March 23.
The Victoria County Master Gardener plant sale is right around the corner, so take the time to come out with your list of plants and questions.
Included will be several varieties of citrus and fruit trees that sold out at the recent citrus tree sale several weeks ago as well as those known to attract butterflies, hummers and bees. Several, like the leopard plant and bright color bowls, will be back by popular demand.
The Gardeners’ Dirt is written by members of the Victoria County Master Gardener Association, an educational outreach of Texas A&M AgriLife Extension – Victoria County. Mail your questions in care of the Advocate, P.O. Box 1518, Victoria, TX 77901; or vcmga@vicad.com, or comment on this column at VictoriaAdvocate.com.
ph: 361-935-1556
nancyk