July in the Garden
“It’s July”… What needs to be done
PLANTING
- Plant tomatoes and peppers from 4-inch pots. Visit http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/vegetable for recommended varieties.
- Early July is the time to plant small and medium pumpkins for a Halloween harvest.
- Plant heat-tolerant annuals that have been acclimated to hot, sunny conditions. This includes moss rose, purslane, trailing lantana, purple fountain grass, firebush and copper plants.
- Lawn grasses can be planted this month, but you will need to water twice daily for short intervals to keep soil surface moist until the grass has established good roots, usually in two to three weeks.
FERTILIZING AND PRUNING
- Fertilize plants that bloom on new growth, such as crape myrtles, tropical hibiscus and roses with a high-nitrogen fertilizer to promote late-summer growth and fall blooms. Apply the same fertilizer to boost summer annuals and fall-flowering perennials.
- Light pruning of erratic spring growth may be done to maintain the natural form. Dead and diseased wood from trees and shrubs should be removed. Major pruning should be postponed until mid-winter.
- Deadhead all blooming plants. Remove dead leaves and spent blooms from container plants.
GARDEN WATCH
- Be a “plant health” detective! Plants respond in various ways to heat and drought stress. These symptoms are often misdiagnosed as an insect or disease problem. Correctly identify the problem before turning to a pesticide.
- Galls on leaves of oaks, hackberries and other trees are caused by many species of gall-forming insects, and are result of the female stinging the leaf tissues as she lays her eggs. Galls are harmless since the insect doesn’t feed on plant tissues.
- Watch for lawn pests. Dry, light-colored areas in sunny parts of St. Augustine are probably the result of chinch bugs (small black insects with a white diamond on their backs). Apply Merit (imidacloprid) or other labeled insecticide. Grub worms are the culprits if the turf turns brown and easily comes up when pulled on. Treat with a granular insecticide.
- Rapid death of established landscape plants and orchard trees during the summer may signify the presence of cotton root rot, a soil-borne fungal disease common in our calcareous clay soils. Since there is no effective control, verification by the Plant Disease Diagnostic Lab at Texas A&M (http://plantclinic.tamu.edu) will help you know what plants can be used as replacements.
EXTREME GARDENING TOPICS:
Extreme Pest Outbreak — The hot dry summer of 2018 brought on an abundance of insect problems. Landscapers noticed one bug being more “buggy” than usual. The wooly aphid is a small reddish-purplish, wingless or winged insect covered with wooly, bluish-white wax masses making them look “wooly.” Masses of these insects infest the underside of leaves causing the leaves to turn pale green and curl. Heavily infested trees become stunted and may die. Their target of choice: hackberry, apple, hawthorn, mountain ask, elm, pear and quince.
Original Article By: Monty Grearner
Grow Your Own Jack-O’Lantern For Halloween
Most pumpkins take from 90 to 120 days from planting to harvest, so for a Halloween Jack-O’Lantern you need to plant your pumpkin patch in June or early July.
A Pumpkin Patch needs up to 200 sq. ft. or a 10’ by 20’ garden of loose, well drained soil amended with compost. They need at least 6 hours sun each day. Gardeners often plant pumpkins once spring crops are harvested. Pumpkin vines can also be tied to climb a fence if support (a sling) is provided under pumpkins as they gain weight. Plant in hills with 3 to 6 seeds per hill. Water well. Seeds take 5 to 7 days to germinate. After about 10 days, when the plants have their second pair of leaves, thin each hill to the two most vigorous plants. If there is no rain, water about once a week through the growing season. Use a complete fertilizer soon after thinning and again at four-week intervals.
You will need pollinators for pumpkins, so you may want to locate your patch near flowers to attract bees. You can pollinate by hand with a small brush or Q-Tip. Put pollen from the male flowers into the female flowers. Both male and female flowers grow on the same plant. Male flowers have pollen; female flowers have a bulge at the base. Flowers fade at mid-day, so hand pollinate early.
- Pie Pumpkins – 10-20 lbs. – Connecticut Field, Rouge d Etamps
- Mini pumpkins – Bred from small Asiatic squash. – Baby Boo, Munchkin and Lumina are small ornamentals good for decorations. Jack-be-Little and Munchkin are popular baked whole.
- Small Pumpkins – 6-10 lbs. — Small Sugar, Triple Treat, Spookie, Baby Bear, Jack Be Little, Mystic
- Medium – 10-16 lbs. – Jack O Lantern, Autumn Gold, Funny Face, Bumpkin
- Large – 16-30 lbs. – Howden, Happy Jack, Ghost Rider, Aladdin, Fairytale, Magic Lantern, Merlin, Prizewinner
- Mammoth – 50-200 lbs. and up – Atlantic Giant, Big Max, Big Mac
Leaves protect pumpkins from sun scald. Keep watch under leaves for squash bug, cucumber beetle and pickleworm eggs. If the leaves show powdery mildew, remove them before it spreads or use a fungicide. Take care to read and follow the labels of any insecticides or fungicides used since some pumpkins will be eaten and others will be handled in making decorations.
Pumpkins are ripe when the skin is hard (resistant to a fingernail) and the stem dried. Cut stems and set aside for wounds to heal. Do not leave pumpkins out to freeze.
Recent Blog Posts
Silverleaf Nightshade
Silverleaf Nightshade, Nightshade Family (Solanaceae)
Solanum eleagnifolium Cav.
Region: 1 through 10 (Ellis County is in Region 4)
Size: 1 – 3 feet
Blooms: March through October, Perennial
The stems and leaves of this prickly plant are covered with tiny stellate or star-shaped, hairs that give it a silvery-green or gray-green appearance. Leaves are one and one-half to six inches long, with shallowly wavy edges. The five petals of the blue to purple flowers unite at the base for about half their length, then separate into five wide lobes. They look a little like fat, one-inch stars. Flowers are centered with very conspicuous, erect, yellow anthers. Silverleaf nightshade is considered a problem plant by farmers. The wild flower enthusiast, however, can appreciate the beauty of the blue and silver plants growing in masses along roads, in pastures, and abandoned places. This relative of the tomato is highly toxic to livestock and humans. Its fruit, a half-inch yellow berry, is sometimes used as a substitute for rennet in making cheese.
Article By: Melinda Kocian
Recent Blog Posts:
Gardening Guilt. What is wrong with me?
By Dottie Love, Master Gardener Intern
I have a flower garden. That’s the “Ornamentals” category of horticulture. Criteria for success? Pretty. Yeah yeah yeah: design, scale, harmony, variety, “mood”; it all comes down to “Pretty”.
But all I can concentrate on is all the work I haven’t done because I’m lazy and no-account. I can’t be trusted to shop responsibly and I’ve wasted my money by not keeping up with anything. New plants planted? No, and they’ll die any second. Hose leak fixed? No, and the water bill will be ecstatic. Pruning, fertilizing, weeding, dividing, etc., etc., etc.? Uhh, no…uhh, I’m thinking of a nap.
Drooping leaves accuse me. You call it ‘hydration’ and haul around a $40 mug. We call it ‘life’, lady. Mounds of pulled weeds and twigs slyly snicker. It’s fine, just ignore us. We’re busy killing your grass and dropping seeds for next year. The thistles stand tall and laugh and laugh. Sure, kick us over. We’ll be right back. The trumpet vine is silent; it’s occupied strangling anything alive or dead.
The only gratitude I get is from the fire ants.
Last night I made iced tea. I nonchalantly strolled to the patio and pinched off a dozen spikes of spearmint. But of course! Don’t all gardeners have herbs at their back door? The tea was marvelous. After the ice melted, I noticed an odd shape in the glass. No, not a crawly bug. It was a bagworm cocoon.
Yes, I need help. But I can’t trust a helper to not cut down my smooth-leaved sumac saplings, spread willy-nilly by rhizomes. Or my lantana cuttings entwined with the grass that needs pulling. And my Mutabilis rose just might come back, you never know!
My garden is my albatross. I created this monster. Now it’s that vine that eats people in that movie. Back inside, in my chair with my heating pad, I Google: Gardener +lazy. +bad. +lame. +loser. +spendthrift.
+overwhelmed.
We’re putting June’s newsletter to bed.
Watch for the conclusion of this editorial next month.
Recent Blog Posts:
Try These Culinary Herbs for Grilling
Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis) This is an easy to grow herb for our area. Grow it in a container because, as a member of the mint family, it will spread. It is a perennial in our area and spreads by seed. Lemon Balm will grow in sun or partial shade. This herb is good in herb teas served either hot or cold and the leaves are good in fruit and green salads, cold soups and vinegar. It also works well with citrus juices and spices as a marinade or sauce. Try a few leaves in pesto for a lemony surprise.
Mexican Mint Marigold (Tagetes lucita) Neither a mint
nor a marigold, this Texas native is our substitute for French
tarragon which doesn’t grow well here. Plant from transplants or sow seed after danger of frost has passed. Depending on the severity of winter weather, it may come back in the Spring. Use this herb in dishes that call for tarragon or when you need a sweet, anise-like flavor. Enjoy the yellow flowers in late Fall.
Coriander/Cilantro (Coriandrum sativum) This annual plant is easy to grow from seed but doesn’t like to be transplanted. It is attractive to pollinators in the garden. The leaves are the herb Cilantro which is a go-to herb for Mexican food. Use it with your salsa or pico de gallo. As the Summer heats up, Cilantro turns bitter and goes to seed. Let it do so because the seeds are the spice Coriander. Use ground coriander in Middle East and Asian foods or in curries and pickling spices. It is also a good addition to your favorite grilling rub.
Thyme (Thymus spp.) This perennial herb comes in a variety
of types, each subtly different. It makes a great container
plant if grown in a sunny location. Use sprigs to flavor sauces, marinades and oils, or scrape off the small leaves to use in rubs for grilling, salads or stuffing. Try English, French, Lemon, Lavender, or Nutmeg thyme. One favorite recipe is to pan sear a steak in butter with garlic and several sprigs of thyme then finish in the oven.
Recent Blog Posts:
Grillfest Recipes: Grilling Fruits and Vegetables
Following are the fruits and vegetables grilled by Master Gardeners at the Waxahachie Farmers’ Market Grillfest:
Okra
Washed but not trimmed- skewered together in a “raft” for ease of turning on grill.
Grill then season with a mix of Garlic Powder, Salt, Course-ground black pepper and parsley.
Carrots
Cut diagonally at ½” and slightly parboil before grilling
Season after grilling with Citrus Pesto:
- Juice and zest of one each: lemon, lime, grapefruit and orange
- Lemon Balm – 1 cup packed leaves
- ½ Cup Olive oil
- 1 cup Pepitas roasted and salted
Pineapple
Place rings on grill and brush with Ginger Butter:
- Ginger paste 3 tsp
- Light brown sugar 1 cup
- Melted butter ½ cup, browned
Tomatoes
Slice to ½” slices
Season with
- Basil 1 cup chopped
- Oregano 1 cup chopped
- Freshly grated parmesan 1 cup
- Pinch smoked salt
Recent Blog Posts:
Prairie Bluebell – Gentian Family (Gentianaceae)
Region: 1 through 10 (Ellis Co is Region 4)
Size: 1 – 2 feet
Blooms: June – September, Annual/Biennial
Texas has two species of Eustoma. Both have paired, smooth, bluish green leaves that clasp the stem. Bluebells (E. exaltatum) are difficult to distinguish. Flowers are cup-shaped, with five to seven blue to deep blue-violet petals, although the color can vary from pinkish to light blue or white. A dark, purple blotch surrounded by a light halo is centered in the cup, as is a prominent two-lobed yellow stigma. Flowers are two to four inches across. These handsome plants are available in nurseries. They were first cultivated by the Japanese, who recognized their horticultural merit more than thirty years ago. Bluebells prefer seasonally stands, such as roadside ditches, meadows or prairie swales. Sometimes a single plant or only a few are seen at one location; in other places, bluebells may blanket many acres.
Recent Blog Posts:
2024 Scholarship Awards - Did you know that Ellis County Master Gardeners along with our annual Expo sponsors provide scholarships for Ellis County High School Seniors? As of 2024, we have provided $114,100 in... Read More →
Growing Blueberries in Ellis County - Blueberries are about as American as apple pie; however, I never cared for the taste until I went blueberry picking at a farm in east Texas. I popped a berry... Read More →
Rainwater Harvesting Incentive Programs - I attended a workshop on groundwater catchment on Apr. 13, 2024, at the Prairielands Groundwater Conservation District in Cleburne (prairielandsgcd.org). I was interested in the incentive programs for installing rainwater harvesting systems... Read More →
Peggy Martin Rose - The Peggy Martin rose is a beautiful, thornless, climbing rose with clusters of pink blooms. They are disease resistant and quite easy to care for. These roses can grow over... Read More →
Growing Plumeria (Frangipani) in Texas - Plumeria trees (also known as Frangipani or the Hawaiian lei flower) can be a gorgeous, unexpected addition to any spring and summer landscape, even here in North Texas. The beauty... Read More →
Companion Planting in Your Garden - Companion planting is a method to enhance the health and productivity of your garden by placing plants close to each other to achieve an identified benefit. This article examines some... Read More →
Ask a Master Gardener: Four O’clocks
Master Gardeners Ask a Master Gardener
We found flowering shrubs at the Learning Garden that we didn’t recognize. Can someone tell us what they are?
Four O’Clocks (Mirabilis jalapa)
Mirabilis means wonderful in Latin and Jalapa is the state capital of Veracruz in Mexico. This plant made its way to Spain and then to England. Thomas Jefferson grew it when it was known as Marvel of Peru.
This is a very easy plant to grow. It produces large tubers which make it a Perennial for most of our winters. It also produces lots of seeds which have a high germination rate. It will wilt but perks up after watering. Despite the wilting, it is drought tolerant. It also isn’t picky about soil.
The tubular flowers come in purple, magenta, white, yellow, pink and stripes. They open in the evening or earlier on cloudy days. Hummingbirds and moths like them.
They are excellent flowers for children or for the young at heart. The flowers only last a day, so they are great to pick for making leis or crowns.
You can find packets of seeds easily or go by the Master Gardeners’ Demonstration Garden in Getzendaner Park in Waxahachie to see them growing. Feel free to take the seeds which are loose and black when ready to be picked.
For the Young or Young at Heart!
Recent Blog Posts:
Learning Garden Workday in May
Power washing and pergola painting at Getzendaner Park.
Thanks to Josh Hershey the wooden bridge at Learning Garden is now power washed, clean, and ready for wood staining.
Also, thanks to Mary Ann Mezzapelle and her husband Chris for handcrafting cedar signs for the pergolas and making the Learning Garden a place where everyone is welcome to learn and grow.
We also had help from Julien Ramos, a 6th grader, who took care of painting the hard to reach lower parts of the two pergolas.
The Learning Garden appreciates all of you!