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Looking for a Texas-tough Petunia? Tidal Wave series has you covered

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Tidal Wave Red Velour Spreading Petunia has been named the latest Texas Superstar release based on its superior performance across the state, according to a Texas A&M AgriLife Research expert.

The Red Velour joins the tough, durable Tidal Wave petunia series.

What it takes to be a Texas Superstar

To be designated a Texas Superstar, a plant must not only be beautiful but perform well for consumers and growers throughout the state. Texas Superstars must be easy to propagate, which should ensure the plants are not only widely available but also reasonably priced, said Mike Arnold, AgriLife Research horticulturist, College Station.

“Tidal Wave Red Velour’s combination of durability and toughness and the longer growing season than most petunias makes it a great Texas Superstar,” he said. “We always look for combinations for bedding plants that will give contrast in landscapes, and this red is great for that. But it’s also a fantastic container plant because of its trailing habit that cascades over the container.”

Tidal Wave Red Velour

As the name implies, Tidal Wave Red Velour offers dark red flowers that appear as if crafted from rich red velour, Arnold said.

This 12-24-inch tall dense canopied petunia spreads to 30-60 inches in width. Flowering peaks from early spring to early summer and if well-tended can survive Texas summers and return for a significant fall bloom.

Arnold said Red Velour’s heat and cold tolerance are characteristics that give it a long growing season. Its flowering characteristics provide prolific floral display throughout the season.

Tidal Wave Red Velour combines well with its earlier designated fellow Texas Superstars Tidal Wave Silver Spreading Petunia and Tidal Wave Cherry Spreading Petunia to offer great seasonal waves of Texas-tough color, Arnold said.

“The fact that we are considering it to be a companion for the Silver Wave is an endorsement of how tough and durable of a petunia it is,” he said. “Silver Wave is an industry standard and paired together gives even more contrast between the white and red, even in comparison to the Cherry Wave because the reds are darker.”

Maximize and maintain the Tidal Wave Red Velour

Full sun exposure is best for maximum floral display, though partial shade does help in over-summering plants, he said. Growth in patio pots and containers is vigorous and will benefit from occasional shearing.

Tidal Wave Red Velour is typically grown as a fall southern or early spring northern cool- to transition-season annual, but plants can be short-term perennials in U.S. Department of Agriculture Hardiness Zone 8b. Summer temperatures can limit its long-term performance in warmer portions of the state, but Tidal Wave Red Velour is more tolerant of heat than most petunias.

Arnold said to plant to avoid the final frost date typically in late winter or early spring in northern portions of Texas. Plants can be planted in late fall in warmer portions of the state for a periodic winter display.

“It’s pretty trouble free when planted in a good site,” he said. “We treat it as a cool-season plant, but it can go from late winter, early spring through fall under the right conditions.”

Tidal Wave Red Velour can be used as a bedding, specimen or an accent plant in mixed borders; plants also perform very well in containers, hanging baskets and window boxes.

Plants thrive in almost any well drained soil and do benefit from regular fertilization, Arnold said. The plant also performs best under good quality irrigation water.

“It just needs good, clean water that isn’t too high in salt or alkalinity,” he said. “It’s done well here in College Station, which has a little salinity and high pH. The plant also needs a little fertilizer to keep the nitrogen levels at a reasonable rate throughout flowering.”

Where to buy this Texas tough Petunia

Arnold said Red Velour should be widely available at specialty nurseries and major retailers. But he recommended consumers check with local nurseries because they typically have regionally adapted plants.

“We’re always looking for improvements on tried and true plants,” he said. “And adding Red Velour to the Waves series is another improvement particularly for petunias.”

Texas Superstar is a registered trademark owned by AgriLife Research, a state agency that is part of the Texas A&M University System. Plants are designated Texas Superstars by the Texas Superstar executive board, which is made up of nine AgriLife Research, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service and Texas Tech University horticulturalists.

Article credit given to www.agrilifetoday.tamu.edu

 

March Garden Checklist

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**DON’T MISS:
ANNUAL PLANT SALE – March 14, 9-2, 892 Airport Rd, Rockport
BROWN BAG SERIES – March 17, 12-1
Here’s a list of March garden tasks for the Texas Coastal Bend area from the Aransas/San Patricio County Master Gardeners.
— It’s warm enough to move your tender container plants back outdoors.
— The time has finally come for pruning off cold-damaged branches on most trees and shrubs. Once a plant has started to bud out, you can tell which parts are dead and need to be removed. Some shrubs, such as pentas, are slower to grow back.
— Evergreens and summer-blooming trees and shrubs should be pruned by early this month. But remember—spring-flowering varieties should be allowed to finish blooming before you prune them.
— When pruning trees, don’t “top” them. When you cut the top off most trees, the new growth will be weak and spindly. This looks bad, and it weakens the trees.
— Don’t commit “crape murder.” That’s when you prune a crape myrtle down to a few bare trunks sticking out of the ground. Crape myrtles don’t really need to be trimmed, except for taking off dead or diseased wood. If you have limbs that are rubbing against each other, you can remove one of them down to its point of origin. Clip off spent blossoms to encourage lush continued flowering.
— It is too early to prune palms.
— It is too late to prune oaks. The insect that carries oak wilt is active now, and you don’t want to risk your trees getting this deadly infection. If an oak is injured or must be cut for unavoidable reasons, be sure to paint the wound immediately.
— In March, our local live oaks start their yearly transformation—the leaves turn brown and fall off, and the trees flower and bud out with new leaves. Sometimes old or stressed trees take a long time to put on their spring leaves, but be patient: it will happen.
— Spring brings the dreaded “wooly” worms to many live oaks. These are caterpillars of the white-marked tussock moth, and they have white bristles that can cause a rash when touched. Wooly worms and leaf roller caterpillars that drop from the trees are part of a live oak’s natural ecosystem, and they rarely cause lasting damage. Even if they defoliate a tree, there are back-up buds that will leaf out afterwards. You can spray the trees with Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis) while the caterpillars are young, if necessary.
— In March, you can plant most vines, shrubs, annuals, and perennials.
— To keep your plants moist and to reduce weeds, spread 1-4 inches of mulch in your beds. It’s important to keep it a few inches away from stems and trunks.
— It’s not too late to plant most trees including citrus, but not palms yet.
— After mid-month, you can plant most types of tropical plants.
— As the weather warms up and the grass starts to grow, you can start mowing. Sharpen the blade and only take off about 1/3 of the grass height.
— Don’t fertilize your lawn until you have had to mow the grass at least twice—weeds and clover don’t count. This ensures that the grass is active enough to take up nutrients, instead of fertilizing the weeds. Use an organic or slow-release fertilizer, and avoid weed-and-feed products—they can kill your landscape plants and damage your trees.
— Keep lawn fertilizer away from palms. Instead, use a slow-release fertilizer that includes micro-nutrients with a 2:1:3 or 3:1:3 ratio of nitrogen, phosphorus (P) and potassium (K). Most palms in the Coastal Bend area are dangerously lacking in potassium.
— It’s time to set out your tomato, pepper, and eggplant transplants.
— This month you can plant bush and pole beans, arugula, butter beans, corn, cucumber, lettuce, radish, squash, turnip, and mustard greens from seed or transplants.
— It’s time to start herbs, such as oregano, parsley, rosemary, chives, sage, thyme, lemon grass, and lemon verbena.
— Start feeding your roses, hibiscus, and tropical plants once a month. Keep this up through September.
— Don’t mow or cut your wildflowers. They need to bloom completely and go to seed so you’ll have them back next year.
— Avoid overwatering bluebonnets—they are xeriscape plants and need practically no water.
Thanks to Master Gardeners Todd Cutting and Amanda Steves for contributing to this list.

July Brown Bag

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Schizachyrium scoparium, commonly known as little bluestem, is a prairie grass native to Texas. It was one of the dominant grasses of the tallgrass prairies. It typically matures to 2-4’ (less frequently to 5’) tall, and features upright clumps of slender, flat, linear green leaves (to 1/4“ wide), with each leaf having a tinge of blue at the base. Purplish-bronze flowers appear in 3” long racemes on branched stems rising above the foliage in August. Flowers are followed by clusters of fluffy, silvery-white seed heads which are attractive and often persist into winter. Many consider the most outstanding ornamental feature of this grass to be its bronze-orange fall foliage color.

Native grasses such as Little Bluestem can often be a wonderful addition to the low maintenance garden.  Come learn how to identify these grasses so that you can add your favorite species to your flower beds/yard.  Ray Kirkwood, Master Naturalist, and local expert will show you how to tell the difference between the many similar species.

Join us on July 16 from Noon-1 pm in the AgriLife Conference room.  We will be glad to see you and you will be glad you came.

Become a Master Gardener – Free Informational Session July 23rd

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Master Gardeners are members of the local community who provide education on lawns, trees, shrubs, flowers and gardens. They are well-trained, enthusiastic, willing to learn and to teach others. An informational session on the Master Gardener program will be held Tuesday, July 23rd, 3:00-4:30 p.m. at the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Aransas County office. 

What really sets Master Gardeners apart from other home gardeners is their special training in horticulture. In exchange for their training, people who become Master Gardeners contribute time as volunteers, working through the county’s Extension office, on projects designed to bring horticulture and related education to the community. 

The Master Gardener program exists in all 50 states. In Texas, the program is managed by Texas A&M AgriLife Extension with all training and instruction provided by Extension Specialists and Agents and local horticultural experts. Some of the topics include basic botany, lawn care, vegetables, tree care and pruning, composting, plant selection care, propagation, entomology, fruit growing,  irrigation, and attracting birds and butterflies. Class size for the Intern training program is limited. Registration deadline is July 31st and classes are from August 6th through November 19th.  Cost is $225 with $50 being refunded on completion of initial 50 hours of volunteer service. For more information, attend the free Info Session, call Texas A&M AgriLife Extension – Aransas County at 361-790-0103 or stop by the office at 892 Airport Road, Rockport, Monday through Friday 8:00 a.m.–noon, and 1:00-5:00 p.m.  http://aransas.agrilife.org/ or   https://txmg.org/aransas/

Master Gardener Intern Flyer 2019

Master Gardeners’ Held A Very Successful Sale!

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The Aransas/San Patricio County Master Gardeners Spring Plant Sale on April 6 was one of our most successful to date! The cool and overcast weather made it enjoyable for the over 550 people in attendance to shop and enjoy the beautiful Coastal Oaks Demonstration Gardens.  In four hours, we sold the majority of our plants. This money will help fund vital maintenance at the garden and the educational programs presented to the community.


Potted Plants


Hanging Baskets

This year, in addition to the plants, we offered many non-plant related items for sale. Bird/butterfly houses were handmade and beautifully painted by several of our Master Gardeners.  Other Master Gardeners took donated wine bottles and turned them into beautiful hummingbird feeders for our spring/fall migration visitors to enjoy.

We also had drawings for several fantastic items donated by Master Gardeners and community members including a garden cart, quilt, birdhouses, hanging baskets, and more.


Bake Sale


Raffle

A huge thank you to everyone who came, shopped, and supported the Master Gardeners! A special thanks to our tremendous team of volunteers who organized  and worked at the event, crafted and donated our non-plant items and worked diligently to make our gardens beautiful.

March Dinner Meeting and Awards Presentation

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The March dinner meeting was once again a culinary delight.  The Master Gardeners are notorious for being as skillful in their kitchens as they are in their gardens.

Awards are always presented at the March meeting with all of the recertifying Master Gardeners receiving a pin.  Pins are also awarded for reaching milestones in continuing education hours and volunteer service hours.  There is always a long list of gardeners reaching these milestones.

This year we are especially excited about Doree Osmun reaching 300 hours of continuing education and Patty Bidwell reaching the 2,000 Volunteer Service hours level.

Congratulations to all the Master Gardeners receiving awards for the past year.

New Master Gardeners

Volunteer Service Awards

Gardening with Neli

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JANUARY BROWN BAG –
Your Spring Garden and Plants for Pollinators
Neli TeachingMaster Gardener/Master Naturalist Neli Spurrell presented an informative talk about the beautiful plants you can use to attract pollinators to your yard.  Her program – Gardening with Neli pointed out the importance of knowing what plants you need to attract pollinators to your garden.  She also told us about the different pollinators and why they are a necessary part of our gardens. Neli is also the volunteer coordinator for the Aransas Pathways Butterfly Gardens.  Before coming to our area she managed a private butterfly garden in the Dallas/Fort Worth area.

2018 Intern Graduation – Held During the December General Meeting

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2018 Graduating ClassThe December general dinner meeting is always a special event.  Not only is the food fantastic.  But the current years intern class holds its graduation ceremony.

We are pleased to announce that everyone in the class of 2018 graduated

They are Dana Barganski, Ava Brandon, Jama Brandon, Kerry Green, Phil Grunewald, Martha Habluetzel, Rita Hardy, Zim Hoofard, Lynne Kiley, Bobbie Miner, Mary Spencer, Christy Thompson-Hutt, Suzy Williams.

We also had several Interns Certifing this year including:  Glenn DuPont, Rosiland DuPont, Marlene Oldham, Stephanie Redding, Jennifer Williams, Karry Green, Martha Hubluetzel, Rita Hardy.

Congratulations to the graduating class and all of the certifying interns.