For this of you who are new to the Houston area, Gardenline is a radio show on 740am hosted by Randy Lemmon on weekend mornings.  It is and excellent resource for gardening tips in our area.  Just mention the Gardenline show and get your discount.  We’ll see you all out there on Saturday.

I’m sure a lot has to do with the fact that these guys are treated much differently than the other items we’ve planted in the garden.  First off, there is no incubation required…you jut plant the seed directly into the ground and let then do their thing.  Because they get so large, we chose a plot away from the main vegetable garden that gets less direct sunlight.  We also had some hardwood mulch that we used in this area to help retain moisture and minimize weed growth.  I’m sure that the combination of mulch and extra shade has helped the okra during this extra hot summer.  There seed were planted on May 23rd and here is what they looked like on July 1st, just about 5-weeks later.  The delicate stalks are a deep purple color and the leaves are very broad.

Here they are on August 3rd at about 3 feet tall an growing.  The top layer of leaves have taken a different shape than the broad lower leaves.  They are a lot narrower in shape which allows more sunlight to reach the lower layer of leaves.  They seem to be very efficient a collecting sunlight.  We will see the leaves dip in the evening and then perk up in the morning…it’s quite a sight!  If you zoom in on this picture to can see one of the pods growing in the center.  The pods are all producing off of the main stalk right at the junction on one of the leaf arms.  The rule of thumb is to pick them when they are about finger length.  If you don’t they will continue to grow and become too leathery to eat.

Here is a not-so-good picture of one of the flowers that it produces.  If you blink you will miss it because they don’t last but a few hours before they wilt away and fall off leaving the beginning of a new pod behind.  They are not the prettiest flowers I’ve ever seen, but they are still fun to watch because you can almost stand there and watch them go through the full cycle.

This is the first time we’ve grown them and we are having fun with them.  They are easy to grow and fun to harvest.  The next big step is to chop, batter, fry, salt, and enjoy as a side dish for some grilled catfish.  I also found a recipe online for Purple Okra that I want to try which calls for cutting the pods length-wise and saute them with some bacon, onions, bell peppers and a splash of balsamic vinegar. After all of that, if we have enough left (which I’m sure we will at this rate) we’ll be scaring up a monster batch of GUMBO this winter that will make yo’ mama jump back and slap herself!

Non-Rain Clouds at 6pm

Hi folks.  It’s been a while since the last post mostly because it’s been rather DEPRESSING here in northwest Harris county where it seems like it NEVER RAINS.  I think for the whole month of June we got one early evening shower that lasted long enough just to bring the humidity level slightly above miserable.  I’m sure that everyone that lives in other sections of Houston (especially in the Katy area) are saying “What are you talking about?  We’ve had flooding over here!”  We’ll guess what?  We must have an invisible shield over our neighborhood that deflects all of the rain to areas all around us, but leaves us with absolutely nothing.  Here are some pictures of the rain clouds from this past Tuesday that are just passing over our head and heading west without showing us any love.  How rude!

More rain clouds at 6:05pm (but not for us)

And don’t even get me started about THE WEATHERMEN on the local TV stations.  Every time they come on the air my blood pressure goes up a few notches.  Don’t they know that Harris County is the largest county in the country?  If I’m watching Dr. Frank or one of the other bozos and they are trying to tell me that it’s raining in Harris county, I’m thinking to myself “are you talking to the Bellaire residents or the Spring residents, because we might as well be in different states when it comes to the weather!”  I see images of people driving their cars into flooded streets and getting stranded but there is absolutely no talk about the drought we are experiencing in Northwest Harris County.  Maybe when I’m done ranting I’ll leave a comment on the local news sites pointing them to this post and see if we get any air time…NOT!

More rain for Katy, but none for us at 6:10pm

Now don’t get me wrong.  I’m not trying to blame the local weathermen for the lack of rain here.  I just want a little recognition that there are other extreme weather conditions going on within the viewing area other than the rain in areas other than the northwest…like the LACK OF RAIN in the northwest.  OK, enough ranting because it is finally raining here.  It started at about 1pm and it is still coming down at 4:30pm.  Now the garden can get a good health drink of water without all of the additives that get thrown into our local water supply.  We got a notice in the mail about a month ago saying that our water supply is being switched over from ground water to processed water in order to preserve the aquifer and along with that notice was a bunch o warning for people that are on dialysis regarding the purification chemicals that are used.  I figure that can’t be good for the garden either.

Basil Plants - 7/1/10

Trumpet Tree - 7/1/10

Purple Okra - 7/1/10

It’s been a while but now ‘the kids’ are getting a good healthy drink of water and if they had mouths they would be smiling.  Here we have our baby Basil plants that are starting to form nicely.  In the center is our Trumpet Tree that is doing a good job of growing its leaves back after a hungry caterpillar had a 3-course meal, and to the right is the largest of 3 Purple Okra plants.  This is the first time we’re trying to grow Okra because I’m not a humongous fan, but the purple variety seemed like a nice twist to add some color to the garden so we’re giving it a try.  So far so good.

Sorry for the rant but maybe now that the dry spell has broken we see a little more production from the garden (and from me too).

Carpenter Bee

I don’t know if any of you have ever had to deal with these guys.  If you have then you would know.  They look like an ordinary bee THAT JUST ATE A HORSE.  I don’t know how these bees fly around because they look too big and fat to be able to fly.  But that is not what makes these bees so special.  It is their ability to DRILL A PERFECTLY ROUND HOLE in the eaves of your home, garage, trees, stairs, swing sets…anything made of wood.  They make their holes so that they can have a place to live that is dry and where they can lay their eggs so there can be more little carpenter bees to drill more holes in your stuff and lay more eggs, and so on and so on.

Carpenter Bee Hole

Here’s what a carpenter bee hole looks like.  I have a hard time making a hole that looks that nice with my carbide drill bit!  The first thing that you need to know is that the bees DO NOT EAT THE WOOD.  Could you imagine the damage that these guys could do if they feasted on the wood?  There wouldn’t be a structure left standing in the Houston area.  Thank the Lord that these guys only dig deep enough to make themselves a home and are kind enough to leave you with the rest of yours to enjoy.  Never the less, they do create a COSMETIC ISSUE for sure, and if they become too abundant, then you could run into some structural issues.  Here are a couple of solutions we are trying with varying results:

1. SOAPY WATER – This works on all bees.  The soap sticks to their little hairs and prevents them from flying
2. WD-40 – Stick the straw right into the Carpenter Bee hole and give it a squirt.  The live bees get a lethal dose of lubricant and it should still work for a few days for any bees that were out-and-about.  It WILL NOT saturate into the eggs if there are any there, so same problem next season.
3. Expanding Foam – The objective is to shut down the hole and limit the air supply for anything left in there.  The only way we’ll know if this worked is if we DON’T see any new holes drilled out from the inside.
4. Professional Exterminator…when in doubt call a pro that can give you a guarantee!
5. If none of that works, then here is a guy that says he’s got the answer.  Check it out.

Early Girls planted on 3/23/10

Ah yes, it was just like yesterday when we brought home 12 little Early Girl plants from the farmer’s market at Airline Dr. & the I-610 loop.  They look so fragile in their little plastic 6-pack cups, but we were hopeful that with the right ‘parenting’ they would grow into productive members of our garden society.  Here we see one of them right after it was planted in the ground.  It just like a toddler learning to take its first steps.  You provide them with a nurturing environment and the support they need and then you just have to cross your fingers and hope for the best.

Early Girls on 3/30/10

Here we are just 1-week after being planted.  We have our cages in place as you can see.  It’s always easier to set the cages while they are still small so that they’ll have something to grab onto when the time comes, and then you wont have to twist and bend them after the fact which can be quite traumatic for them.  There is already quite a bit of new growth.  The existing limbs have about doubled in size and some new shoots can be seen at the base of the stalk.  If you look closely, you can see that we’ve dusted the plants to keep the pests away.  We’ll give them just one little dusting right now and then another when the fruits start to develop.

Early Girls - 4/4/10

Look at these guys.  They are busting at the seams!  They are just about to reach over the first bar of the cage.  We’re getting some good bushiness working which is exactly what we want.  At this stage and moving forward, the thing we like to watch for is what we call ‘suckers’.  These are leaf growths that come in at the joint right between the main stalk and a defined branch.  We pluck those out the minute we see them because they will never develop into anything, and they’ll just use us the nutrients that we want to save for the fruits.  Now we just need to keep our eyes open for the buds!

Early Girls - 4/13/10

Here we go.  if you zoom in on this picture you’ll be able to get a good look at the little yellow flowers that typically last for about 5-7 of days before they fall off and the fruits come in right behind them.  These buds are showing up on al of the plants in groups of 5 and 6.  As the plants continue to grow we’ll see more groups of buds in various stages.  It wont be unusual to see 20 or more fruits per plant developing before too long!  The limbs are clearly above the first ring of the cage right now and if conditions stay good then these guys can grow to about 7 feet.  Mid April is very sunny and still a bit cool to things are looking pretty good.

First Tomato - 4/18/10

Here it is.  As soon as the flower falls off the tomato starts growing right behind it.  You can see the flowers still attached to the two buds on the lefts and the tomato growing on the one on the right.  We just need to cross our fingers that it doesn’t turn too hot and dry too quickly.  We’re giving the a good soaking of water every 3 to 4 days.  The only plant food that we’ve used is when they were originally planted.  The plant food only helps with the growth of the plant and not the fruit.  Early Girls are also reported and a good breed for dry conditions because the dryer the soils conditions the more they will develop their roots deeper looking for water.

Early Girls - 4/28/10

Here we see an overview shot of all 12 of the plants, each with about 3 to 4 tomatoes growing.  We’re also seeing new bud clusters beginning to develop.  The plant have just about reached the second ring of the cages.  Now I’m sure that you all are wondering what those silver things are hanging from the cages.  These are aluminum stove guards that we’ve chosen as pseudo-”Scare Crows” to keep the birds away who otherwise would come and peck at the fruit.  We like these because they reflect the light and make noise and in general get the job done.  Some people use old pie tins to do the same thing.  These stove guards are a lot easier to work with since you don’t have to punch holes in them.

Early Girls - 5/4/10

This is a nice cluster of 4 tomatoes on a beautiful Tuesday afternoon.  As you can see by the size of these at this early stage that things are looking very promising for an excellent crop.  The winds are starting to pick up and the forecast for the next week is for windy conditions with little to no rain which means that things will dry out faster than usual.  We’ve put in a Weeper Hose as you can see in the background and well be using it daily to keep the plants watered as longs as these conditions persist.  We are very pleased with how things have progressed to far and we don’t want any slight changes in the weather to slow down our progress.

That’s our story for now.  I’ll put out an update when it’s PICKIN TIME or if there are any significant changes between now and then.  Have a great one!

Red Flowering Dogwood Tree

We have a question from TILLER asking ‘what is the secret to having a good dogwood tree?”  Well, it just so happens that we have a new one that needs to be planted so I’m going to run down the the game plan for transplanting it and then we’ll see how things turn out.  The first thing we need to decide is WHERE to plant it.  Dogwoods like good sunlight. Some shade is OK.  The soil should be slightly acidic so pretty much the same type of conditions that you would use for azaleas.  We’re going to pick a place in the yard that will not obstruct mowing too much  and where a lot of pine needles will fall to maintain the slightly acidic soil conditions.

Dogwood Tree Tag Instructions

Here is the planting guide that is on the reverse of the tree tag.  We’re going to follow this guide for the most part, but as you will see, there ae some things that are not spelled out specifically on the planting guide, so I’ll fill in the gaps for you.

Red Flowering Dogwood Tree Tag Picture

With any kind of luck this is what it will look like a few years down the road.  Thanks for your question TILLER.  If you have a dogwood that is already established and you are looking for care and maintenance tips, then we’ll get that on another post in the near future.  GOOD LUCK & Happy CINCO DE MAYO.

1. Change the oil (and be sure to dispose of the old oil appropriately)
2. Change the spark plug
3. Clean or replace the air filter.  Use the sponge type that can be washed out and then place a small amount of oil on it to help it trap the dirt and debris.
4. Sharpen the blades so that they cut the grass without tearing it.  The easiest way for me is to use a grinding stone attachment for an electric drill.  It’s also a good idea to do this when the oil tank and the gas tank are empty to minimize any spillage.
5. If you purchase fuel in any kind of quantity that will be sitting around for a while, then it is a good idea to use a gas stabilizer so that the gas will keep.

If you’ve tried all that and still you are having no luck, then maybe it’s time to blow some of the dust off of your wallet.  I’ve included some links here to help you save on some excellent lawn mowers on sale:

Steele 20″ self-propelled cordless electric lawn mower

Seeds planted on 3/8/10

Since we have so many things going on in the garden this year, I figured that the best way to cohesively show the progression of each type of vegetable is to dedicate individual posts to each of them.  That way you can see the progress and the time line on a single page without having to jump all over the place.  Just another thoughtful service brought to you by the good folks at HG&L (-;  So lets talk about Radishes.  It doesn’t matter whether you love them or hate them, Radishes are probably one of the easiest vegetables to grow in your garden and with the exception of Green Beans they are the closest thing to instant gratification that you can find.

Seeds sprouting on 3/11/10

Just poke a little hole into the dirt with your finger about 6 inches deep and drop in a seed and repeat about every  inch down the line.  Give it just enough water to soak to the bottom of the planter than sit back.  Within one week you should see some life popping out of the dirt.  I’m sorry about the picture quality on this one.  I must have had too much caffeine that day.  Regardless, you can see that there is actual growth happening here and that it is not just some air brushed mock up.  And needless to say, I’m not using what you would consider to be ‘premium’ potting soil either.  From the looks of this stuff, I must have picked it up on clearance from the Dollar store…and yet they grow.

Seedlings on 3/19/10

Here they are just one week later with their wings spread out like they are about to take flight.  The dirt looks like it wants some water badly, but I’m going to fight the urge.  I gave it enough water when I planted them to know that there is enough moisture in the bottom half of the planter for the roots to develop well.  Radishes have a long tap root that wants to go deep instead of wide.  This is why there is no problem with planting them so close together.  Radishes like plenty of sunlight, but they also do best in cooler conditions so the March-April time frame for Houston is about as ideal as it gets for these guys.

3/25/10 - Bumper Crop!

Here we are less that one week later and it looks like they are all out playing around in this beautiful spring weather.  If you click on the picture to see the full screen view, you will notice some spot on the leaves.  No, it’s not any kind of chemicals of pest control powder.  If you’ve been in Houston for at least a year you’ll know exactly what this stuff is.  That’s right, it’s the stuff that every car wash operator and dry cleaner in the city prays for…the nasty yellow pine pollen.  It gets all over EVERYTHING!  No worries.  These radishes think that they’re playing in the snow or something because it sure looks like they are having a good time.

The Teenagers - 3/30/10

We moved the planter to an area that will get our teens some better direct sunlight.  They are moving right along as you can see and it wont be long before we’ll be able to sample some of the goods.  You will know when radishes are ready to be picked when you see the red tops of the fruit poking out of the ground at the base of the plant.  You will want to pick them sooner than later because if they stay in the ground for too long they will start to split.  It is also said that the longer they stay in the ground, the hotter the taste is.  Since these guys grow so fast, we are going to prepare another planter for round two and that way we can experiment with different timings and conditions to see how it effects the growth and flavor.

4/4/10 - Young Adults

Here is a nice top view of these guys that are almost ready for picking.  Rumor has it that you can eat the leaves of these plants also.  I nibbled on one just out of curiosity and all that I can say is that I would need an extra helping of dressing on my salad if these radish leaves were in there.  Not only does it have a very bitter taste, but the texture of the leaves are not meant for the inside of your mouth.  If you feel the leaves with your fingers, they almost have a ‘stickery’ feeling to them.  For those of you that are not from Texas, ‘stickery’ is a legitimate word in these parts.  And also for those of you wondering what all of those brown squiggly things are in from of the planter, those are pollen pods from the pine tress where all the yellow gunk comes from.

4/13/10 - Time for Pickin & Grinnin

Here’s a feller that’s ready to be plucked out of the ground.  As you can see the bright red crown of the radish is clearly exposed at the base of the plant.  We are going to grab the leaves as seen here and pull straight up and we have our first sample of the crop.  We cut the leaves off the top slightly into the red meat of the fruit, just enough to expose the white inside, and we’ll do the same with the tap root on the bottom.  We wash it off real good then cut it in half…half for me and half for my wife because that’s how we roll.  Now just a little bit of salt on top for taste and here we go.  YIKES, we forgot to have a drink on stand-by!!!  That guy was so hot it took our breath away!  OK, maybe we ought to start picking the others right away!

Navel Orage Tree

Please let me apologize for the delay since the last post.  My mother-in-law passed away on April 2nd and things have been hectic around the house as you can imagine.  She was a feisty old gal who had a lust for life that is seldom seen in people half of her age.  After 73 years, her heart just gave out on her.  She will be missed but never forgotten.  My wife has shed a lot of tears in the last month, but is ready to get back to our routine.  She went back to work on Monday and her co-workers had pitched in and bought her a Navel Orange Tree to commemorate her mother.  Wow!!!  What a beautiful gift.  What better way to honor a life than with a fruit bearing tree.  Thank you girls…we love you all.

Nursery Tags

As you can see by clicking on the picture, the tree comes from the Rio Grande Nursery in Brownsville, so we have a native Texan to add to our family.  I only hope that we can do right by it and provide it with a home that will allow it to flourish.  Right now it is about 4 feet tall in the pot and is tied to a stake to keep is standing upright.  Citrus trees are very particular about their conditions and care.  I have seen a number of orange trees here in Houston so I know that with proper planning and a lot of TLC we should be able to set it on the right track for a long and healthy life.  Here are some of the particulars that we’ll need to keep in mind as we move forward with the new member of the family, our navel orange tree.

1. Selecting a Location – The tree needs to be planted where it will get full sunlight.  It needs at least 4 hours of direct sunlight each day.  If it doesn’t get enough sunlight it won’t bloom. The location must have well-drained soil, so don’t consider anyplace where you’ve seen standing water after a hard rain storm.  It should also stand alone away from grass and other plants and growth.
2. Soil Conditions – All citrus trees favor loamy soil with a pH around the 5 to 6 range.  A compost comprised of loam, decayed leaves, grit, sand, and some charcoal will help to provide the perfect soil balance.
3. Transplanting – Transplant only in the spring after the last frost.  Dig a hole about 3 feet deep and 3 feet wide, deep enough to line the bottom with a couple of inches of the compost leaving enough room to accommodate the root ball.  Place the tree in the hole and fill it with water. Allow the water to soak in. Fill the hole with soil and compost mixture and pat down.
4. Watering – Water navel orange trees once a week for 10 minutes each watering. Be sure the soil absorbs all the water while it is young. Once it is more than a year old, water it only once every other week for 10 minutes each watering.  The key is to water deeply, but not frequently.  Additional watering may be required if temperatures exceed 100 degrees or extremely dry or windy conditions exist.
5. Fertilizing – Always use fertilizers that has phosphorus in order to promote root growth while the tree is maturing.  A 10-10-10 formulation is recommended in the late winter.  There are also time released fertilizer spikes available that will work to provide the tree with the proper nutrients throughout the year.
6. Pruning – Prune navel orange trees in the spring while the tree is dormant before any new growth has begun. Remove dead, damaged or crossing branches towards the bottom. Take out irregular growths to make your tree look less crammed and to enhance air circulation.
7. Weeding – Keep any other growth away from the tree do that it does not have to compete for the much needed nutrients.

The Navel Orange tree is a slow grower and is a high maintenance tree in comparison to our native pines and oaks.  Our hopes are that with the proper love it will grow and produce for years to come.  If you have a citrus tree here in Houston and have any other tips to share, please do.  We hope to have our plan finalized and ready to transplant this weekend.  Wish us luck!