Brighten Your Spring Garden with Fragrant Kedron Daffodils
Discover Daffodil Kedron! Known for warm apricot-yellow blooms and a sweet scent, this easy-care jonquilla daffodil thrives in beds, borders, and pots.
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What Makes Noonday Sweet Onions Texas’s Favorite Crop?
Discover the secret behind Noonday Sweet Onions! Learn their rich history, unique Spanish origins, and where to buy these iconic Texas sweet onions.
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How to Restore & Protect Mature White Oak Trees in East Texas
Discover how a Texas landowner saved a 400-year-old white oak tree from soil compaction and borers using expert arboriculture and land stewardship practices.
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Oxblood Lilies: Toughest Heirloom Bulbs for Texas Gardens
Discover oxblood lilies! These resilient heirloom Texas bulbs bloom in early fall, thriving in heat and drought with zero maintenance for generations.
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Smith County: The Birthplace of America’s First County Agent
Discover how Smith County, Texas made history in 1906 by appointing the nation’s first county agent, laying the groundwork for agricultural extension.
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How to Care for Orchids: Simple Tips to Make Them Bloom
Learn how a $4 grocery store orchid grew into a 4-foot masterpiece with easy tips on potting mix, outdoor light, and the right slow-release fertilizer.
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Why Less Water is Better for Your Lawn
Learn why less water creates a healthier lawn. Follow step-by-step instructions for the catch can test and build deep, resilient roots.
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Gladiolus Care and August Heat Gardening Tips for East Texas
Learn how to grow gladiolus, protect plants from August heat, and prepare your East Texas garden for fall vegetable crops with expert tips.
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Three Sisters Garden: Easy Companion Planting
Try an ancient companion planting method! Grow corn, beans, and squash together to naturally boost soil fertility and keep garden maintenance low.
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Vertical Garden Tips: Growing in Small Spaces
Short spaces cannot stop you from gardening! Learn to grow vegetables or herbs on a balcony without frequent bending with these vertical garden tips.
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Summer Gardening Tips: Keep Veggies Thriving
Keep your East Texas summer garden thriving! Water deeply, trim tired flowers, and use mulch as air conditioning to protect your plant roots from July heat.
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Texas Succulent Care: Grow Them Year-Round
Bring the joy of gardening indoors! Low-maintenance succulents survive Texas heat and thrive in winter. Learn more about succulent care here!
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La Niña – How a Warm and Dry Winter Adjusts the Garden Clock
Winter in Smith County is arriving with a different rhythm. During this La Niña season, nights are unusually warm, frost is rare, and rainfall is unpredictable. These shifts have coaxed early blooms and subtle new growth from many gardens. The garden clock seems to be ticking ahead, and attentive care will help gardeners keep pace…
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Spring Forerunner, the Azalea in Korea!
An azalea is a forerunner of spring in Korea. An azalea flower gives Koreans two things connected with happiness: the beauty of the mountains and plenty of sweet treats. When the azalea starts to bloom, the mountains are blanketed with the pale pink color of the flowers. Specifically, the azalea is the first flower to…
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Zowie Zinnias!!
Sure, “Z” may be the caboose of the alphabet, but when it comes to garden glamor, zinnias charge in like fireworks at a summer festival—bright, bold, and impossible to ignore. My own love affair with zinnias began when I was ten. We had just moved into a new neighborhood, and I remember riding past a…
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Fruit Woes
It’s been a tough year for fruit trees. Here’s an excerpt from my friend Dr. Tim Hartmann’s Texas Fruit Newsletter. Tim is our Extension Fruit Specialist in the Department of Horticultural Sciences at Texas A&M University: “As we approach the end of the spring season, it’s becoming more and more evident how yields are shaping…
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Petals of Remembrance
As late May settles over Tyler and the last of spring gives way to the first true hints of an East Texas summer, Memorial Day arrives with both warmth and weight. Here in the Piney Woods, flowers are more than decoration – they are part of how we remember. From quiet country cemeteries to shaded…
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How To Clean Gardening Tools
Cleaning your tools is probably one of the most neglected aspects of residential gardening. However, it is necessary to prolong the useful life of your tools, maintain their appearance and performance, and prevent the spread of pathogens in your home garden. Soil, contaminated water, and plant-borne pathogens (such as bacteria, fungi, nematodes, and some viruses)…
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How to Avoid Periwinkle Blight
Periwinkles have long been one of our most dependable summer bedding plants, brightening East Texas landscapes with months of cheerful color. For generations, gardeners counted on them the way we counted on bachelor buttons and zinnias. Because they evolved in a hot, dry climate, they thrived in heat, tolerated drought, and bloomed without complaint from…
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Time Well Planted
Mother’s Day in East Texas doesn’t arrive quietly – it comes in full bloom. By mid-May, the soil has warmed, the azaleas have shown off, and just about every porch in town seems to have a pot or two bursting with color. It’s the perfect backdrop for celebrating the women who, much like a good…
