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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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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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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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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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…
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Geraniums
Originally discovered in South Africa in some 250 varieties they found their way to America. Give credit to our President Thomas Jefferson who imported them from France in 1786. Geraniums are often the first bright and bold flowers available in Spring preferring the cooler months of March thru May with temperatures between 60 and 80F….
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What is responsible for killing your landscape plants and trees?
A large tree and a beautiful rose were gone in my landscape over the years. The tree was an October Glory Maple (Acer Rubrum). The rose bush was the Knockout Rose (Rosa Cultivar). Let me first describe for you the symptoms of the maple tree that I never noticed. In the early summer, the Maple…
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The Lucky Little Leaf
Every March 17, the world wakes up a little greener. We pin on shamrocks, order green drinks, and suddenly everyone has at least a distant cousin named O’Something. But how did a tiny three-leaf plant become the star of Saint Patrick’s Day? Pull up a chair — this story has roots….. Legend says that back…
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Don’t Cut Daffodil Foliage Until After Mother’s Day
Every spring in East Texas, about the time the daffodils, narcissus, and jonquils finish their show, gardeners start getting the itch to tidy things up. The blooms fade, the leaves begin to flop, and those once‑cheerful clumps suddenly look a little faded. It’s tempting to reach for the pruners. But if you want a strong…
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Waiting for Springtime!
“February is merely as long as is needed to pass the time until March.” (J. R. Stockton) In February most gardeners pass the time planning their future gardens and landscape. Only an ice storm finds them waiting for spring by a fire and sipping coffee. Gardeners track online sources, read gardening books while thinking about…
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February Gardening
I believe 2026 will be full of flowers because I am planting them. The work we put in today will show in spring and summertime, so here are some things you can do to get your garden ready while we are still dreaming of warmer weather. February is a great time to get your seeds…
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An Honest Guide to Christmas Gardening
Ah, Christmas gardening – that glorious time of year when we attempt to impose cheer on plants that would frankly prefer we leave them alone until spring. If you’ve ever decorated a cactus, tried to convince poinsettia to live past New Year’s, or fought a squirrel for custody of your outdoor lights, congratulations, you’re probably…
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Sasanquas are Fall Treasures
When the days shorten and summer’s riot of color fades, East Texas gardeners are rewarded with one of the most elegant shrubs we can grow: the sasanqua camellia (Camellia sasanqua). These graceful evergreens step into the spotlight just as many plants are winding down, offering blooms from October into December. Their timing alone makes them…
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Fall is for Planting
November in East Texas is a season of change. The mornings are crisp, the afternoons are pleasant, and the leaves crunch underfoot as the landscape shifts into its autumn wardrobe. Many folks assume the garden is finished for the year, but the truth is this is the very best time to plant trees, shrubs, and…
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Get Ready for Winter!
As the weather gets cooler we know that winter will be just around the corner. Now is the time to start making plans for the winter months ahead. Here are some suggestions: Pine straw helps provide favorable growing conditions and stimulates healthy plant development by insulating tender roots, conserving soil moisture, eliminating erosion and protecting…
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Pansies and Violas
When the nights begin to cool and the first whiff of fall drifts through the air, I know it’s time for one of the most popular cool seasons flower combos: pansies and violas. These cheerful, cold-hardy flowers have been brightening up Texas winters for generations, offering a welcome splash of color when most other blooms…
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Caladiums
Plant of choice for shady spots in your garden… These shade lovers produce exceptional foliage that can be tucked away in the shadier parts of your yard or garden. Though they are not known for tolerating direct sun, many newer varieties can take some exposure a few hours during the day. Those varieties that have…
