Springtime Setbacks

San Marcos — Not many wildflowers along the roadside this year because of the ongoing drought. Sure, the few showers we have had helped green up the vegetation, but the usual scenic display has been seriously cut back.

That probably has a lot to do with the influx of visitors to garden shops in the area. Their colorful displays of blooms cannot help but draw people in just to walk amongst them — and yes, to buy — followed by the inevitable question, "Where do I plant this?"

Planting on the limestone-caliche outcropping of the Edwards Escarpment and Plateau in Hays County is difficult at best. It is easier to build up rather than dig down. By using the rocks that inevitably find their way to the surface and then rescuing additional ones from construction sites, raised beds can be constructed and filled with good planting soil. Rocks can also be used to build terraces for landscapes with steep slopes and backfilled with good garden soil. Both caliche and black clay soils, which are predominating in the area, require the addition of good mulch mixed in for drainage.

After constructing a garden and landscaping around your home, the next item on the list is irrigation. A sprinkler system is a must because we are usually either in a drought or flood. This year we are still behind in rainfall, a holdover from the last two years and continuing since January.

In order to maintain even moisture for plants to survive, water must be applied after 8 p.m. and before 10 a.m. Only an irrigation system with a timer can supply moisture during those hours. A sprinkler system can also supply needed moisture during the dry winter months as well. More turf dies during the cooler, drier months of the year than in the summer. During rainy periods, sprinkler systems with a moisture sensor cut-off will not operate. It is well worth the investment.

For vegetable gardeners, the first week of April is the time to plant sweet corn, green beans, okra, southern peas, sweet potatoes, melons, cucumbers and pumpkins. Plant melons alongside corn so it will shade them from the hot summer sun. Corn also loves the company of cucumbers, potatoes and squash. Talk about gathering a crowd!

Summer savory herb loves to be planted by any bean. The leaves can be used in salads, coups, dressing and cooked with poultry. Plant yarrow and wormwood as a border around the garden to keep animals away and enhance the production of essential oils in other herbs. Continue to plant any variety of onion. Never can have enough onions. If you don't eat them, the butterflies will enjoy the bloom heads.

Check leaf crops for aphids and other insects. Hopefully you have left a few thistles growing that are housing a crowd of ladybugs is just waiting to devour the aphids. Judging from the number of ladybugs on the thistles in my garden, it is going to be a banner year for aphids. Treat squash plants for vine borers by dusting with BT. Check vegetables, especially tomatoes for spider mites under the leaves. Use a water-soluble sulfur to control them.

As the month continues to warm up and nighttime temperatures hover around 70 degrees, morning glory, marigold, zinnia, begonia and impatiens can be planted in flowerbeds. With the way the weather has been, I'd say go for it before it gets too hot. The mesquite trees are fully leafed out which is the signal that the weather is warming and there will be no more freezes. As nighttime temperatures increase, Bermuda, buffalo and St. Augustine grasses can be either seeded or sod set out.

Mowers should be set at their lowest level to keep spring weeds clipped to prevent seeding. As the weather warms, grass will gradually fill in the weedy spots. When the grass starts to grow well, raise the mower blades to the highest level and fertilize with a slow release nitrogen fertilizer, one pound per 1,000 square feet only after you have mowed grass twice. If you fertilize whatever turf you have before nighttime temperatures warm to 70 degrees, you are just wasting your money, time and effort. The rule of a green gardening thumb is wait until the new green blades are at least an inch for Bermuda or more for St. Augustine.

Broadcast nitrogen fertilizer (ammonium sulfate or ammonium nitrate) on the ground under the limbs of pecan trees at the rate of one cup for a two- year old tree, two cups for a three-year old tree and four cups for a four to seven year old tree. For mature trees, apply one pound per inch of diameter. If you forgot to fertilize your citrus tree a pound of nitrogen in March, do it now. Fertilize second year fruit trees with two cups of 21 percent nitrogen.

Remember Blackland Prairie Clay and Limestone Caliche should not be fertilized heavily with phosphorus. Phosphorus can tie up iron and create severe iron chlorosis on trees and plants in these soils. The Texas A&M University soil lab recommends fertilizing alkaline, heavy black and caliche-laden soils with a slow release nitrogen fertilizer at a rate of one pound per 1,000 square feet for turf and one pound per 100 square feet for beds. Forget that high priced Iron additive from a small bag.

With proper cultivation, and using native and acclimated plants that are alkaline soil, heat and drought tolerant, a landscape can thrive, not just survive. Learn more about gardening from other gardeners in the area. They will be glad to tell you about the mistakes they have made and successes they have had.



• Hays County Master Gardeners: Participants improve gardening skills and knowledge and give back to the community. Classes are held at Hays County Extension Office, 1253 Civic Center Loop in San Marcos in spring and fall. Call 393-2120 for more information.

• Kyle Garden Club: Members study gardening, landscape design and horticulture. They meet the first Friday of each month from September though May at Kyle United Methodist Church at 9:30 a.m. Visitors are welcome. Call 512-268-9981 for more information.

• Spring Lake Garden Club: Members study gardening, landscape design and horticulture as well as floral design for home and exhibition. Meetings are on the second Thursday of each month from September through May and are open to visitors and guests. Times and locations are listed in the San Marcos Daily Record Calendar of Events. Visitors are welcome. Call 512-353-3220 for more information.

• Wimberley Garden Club: Members meet the second Wednesday of each Month September through May in the Wimberley Community Center at 9:30 a.m. They also sponsor an annual garden tour in the area. Call 512-842-8004 for more information.

Visit the Rosemary Gate and see the personal gardens of Sara Holland, 818 Mountain Crest in Wimberley west of Ranch Road 12, Saturdays, April 4, 18 and 25 from 10 am. to 4 pm. to purchase plants and view gardens. Master Gardeners will be on hand, as well as Sara, to answer any questions. Email herblady @austin.rr.com.

Only into vegetables? Drop by the Community Garden behind St. John's Catholic Church. You can usually find one or two gardeners there to explain the ins and outs of gardening by the yard.

It takes finesse, perseverance and patience to make a garden grow, but the end results produce an ever-changing beauty well worth the effort.