Name

Georgette Recker

What year did you become a Master Gardener?,

I became a Master Gardener in 2019.

Do you hold a position in the group?

I am the editor of the monthly newsletter and am thankful for my fellow members who contribute to the task!

What are your gardening special interests?

I help to wrangle a 1/4 acre fruit and vegetable garden with my husband.  I love Texas natives for their beauty, ease of care, and for their gift of creating wildlife habitat.  And, I will poke an herb plant just about anywhere I can find a space.

Is there a particular gardening book you enjoy?

While they are not gardening “how to” books, I would highly recommend Noah’s Garden by Sara Stein, and Second Nature-A Gardner’s Education by Michael Pollan.

Have you had a particular gardening success?

I am particularly proud of the veggie garden.  After 5 years of working the area, the garden provides the majority of our food for the entire year.

What do you enjoy about being a Master Gardener?

I love to learn, and being a Master Gardener keeps my brain active!  My fellow gardeners are always ready with a recommendation, a word of encouragement, a new way of looking at gardening, and plenty of teasing, camaraderie, and love.

Do you have a favorite plant?

I cannot narrow it down to one favorite, but I do love Gregg’s Mistflower for its gift of attracting Queen butterflies.

 

Feeling a little cooped up?

Feeling uninspired?

Feeling bored?

Feeling like spring will never come?

Feeling the need to get your fingers in the soil?

Feeling just plain grumpy?

Don’t despair; Texas A&M ArgriLife Extension can help put that smile back on your face and a spring in your step.  Head right over to the Aggie Horticulture page on Facebook and check out some amazing gardening videos.  You can watch live on Wednesdays and Fridays, but don’t worry if that time table doesn’t work for you.  The videos can be accessed anytime.  Coming up-

Planning

___ Increase humidity for house plants by placing on trays of pebbles with water added being careful that water does not touch the bottom of the pots.

___ Plan your vegetable garden.

Planting

___ Plant/transplant perennials, roses, shrubs, and trees. Do not plant right after rainy weather or before a freeze in the teens.

___ Start Spring vegetable seeds indoors.

Watering

___Water perennials as needed only if temperatures have been mild/dry.

___ Thoroughly water new trees after planting.

Pruning

___Cut back and remove dead upper portions of perennials.

___ Prune fruit trees such as apples, pears, peaches, and plums.

Fertilizing

___ Fertilize heavy feeder, cool season vegetables such as broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, collards, and other greens.

 

Month-By-Month Gardening in Texas by Dan Gill & Dale Groom

 

Christmas, for me this year, is for the birds.  It might be easy to assume I am feeling a bit hum bug about this most glorious time of the year, but that is certainly not the case.  With Christmas gifts bought and sent to my family many miles away and plans made to visit with them on the 25th via technology, I find myself with pre-Christmas time on my hands.  I do have my beloved husband and his sister here with me, however, they do not provide the same holiday bustle and excitement brought by children and grandchildren.  So, I am spending much of my Christmas attention on the birds.

 

You see, I love birds.  I read about birds, look at pictures of birds, follow bird sites on social media, feed and give water to the birds, and spend every morning drinking coffee and watching the birds.  Perhaps most importantly though, I garden for the birds.  If you came to my home this time of year, you might question the fact that I am a Master Gardener.  Instead of a perfectly tended yard, mine is filled with piles of sticks and twigs to lend shelter, faded flowers that have been left without a winter trim, and, I have to admit, I just mowed the front of the property for the first time since the beginning of the year. All of this untidy mess for the sake of the birds.

 

I love living in rural Texas where I can enjoy the company of so many birds all year, but there is something magical about birds in December.  The robins with their red breasts have shown up en masse and the cardinals have increased in number sporting their very best Merry Christmas red.  The holly berries are being enjoyed, and I have strung garlands of cranberries and oranges to hang outside.  I have even created a special Christmas tree made of juniper boughs full of berries, holly branches, natural garlands, and a hanging feeder full of seed.

 

 

Christmas, for me this year, is for the birds.  They bring me peace and joy, and that is what I wish and pray for every one of you.  Christmas peace and joy.  Be kind to the birds and be loving to others.

Merry Christmas!

 

 

by Cindy O’Quinn

Somervell County Master Gardener

 

 

The United States imports over ten million amaryllis bulbs every year from Holland and South Africa.  Growing Christmas amaryllis is a fun and easy way to add colorful blooms to your holiday décor!  The bulbs are readily available at local gardening stores or online.  You will need to plan on planting them between the middle of October and the first of November for blooming during the holidays.

You will need a six to eight inch pot, some good potting soil, and your bulb.  Plant the bulb with point up with about 2/3 of the bulb in the soil.  Water the pot so that the soil is good and wet but not soggy.  Place the pot so that it gets indirect sun and keep it moist.  Once the stalk grows to about two inches keep it watered well.  When your blooms open you will need to add a stake for support and keep it out of the sun to prolong the blooms.  You can enjoy your Christmas amaryllis in the pot or use them as cut flowers.

After the holidays you can save your bulb for next year.  You will need to cut the flower stalk one inch above the bulb but leave the leaves as these will feed the the bulb over the next several months.  Water and feed your plant until the first of August.  At this time let the pot dry out completely and the leaves  will die back.  After it is completely dry remove the bulb from the pot and store it in a cool and dark spot for about eight weeks.  Now you are ready to plant it again and enjoy another year of beautiful blooms

By Christi Stromerg Williamson County Horticulture Agent

Shared by Merilyn Cranford

 

 

With patience, you can coax your poinsettia to bloom again for another year, according to Ellen Ellison of Brenham, Texas.  Here’s how:

• Christmas. Pick a colorful plant with tightly clustred yellow buds.  Protect from hot or cold drafts, water when dry, and place in a room with enough natural light for reading.
• New Year’s.  Apply fertilizer.  Continue light and water.  Plant should remain colorful for many weeks.
• Valentine’s Day.  If your plant has become long and leggy prune to 5 inches from the soil.
• St. Patrick’s Day.  Remove faded and dried parts of the plant.  Add more soil, prferably a commercilly available sterile mix.
• Memorial Day.  Trim off tow or three inches from the ends of branches to promote side branching.  Repot to a larger container.  Move plant outside…first to indirect, then direct light.
• Fourth of July.  Trim plant again.  Make sure it has full sunlight.  Slightly increase the amout of fertilizer.
• Labor Day.  Move indoors, but make sure it has six hours or direct light from an uncertained window.  Reduce fertilizer.
• First Day of Autumn.  Starting on or near September 21st, five plant 13 hours of uninterrupted darkness and 11 hours of bright light per day.  Keep night temperatures in the lower 60s.  Continue to water ad fertilize.  Rotate plant each day to give all sides even light.
• Thanksgiving.  Discontinue day/night treatment.  Put plant in a sunny area.  Redduce ater and fertilizer.

 

Can we say,”Vegetable garden envy?”

Thank you to SCMG Mary Ann Steele for the pictures of her gorgeous veggie garden!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Name: Mary Ann Steele

 

What year did you become a Master Gardener?  2015

 

Do you hold a position in the group? Tri-Chair  on the Paluxy Heritage Garden project.

 

Is there a particular gardening book you enjoy?   Lasagna Gardening by Patricia Lanza.

 

What do you enjoy about being a Master Gardener?  Learning and spending time with fellow gardeners.

 

Do you have a favorite plant?  Most all flowers, but zinnias are my favorite.

I would rather sit on a pumpkin and have it all to myself, than be crowded on a velvet cushion.

Henry David Thoreau

October and pumpkins go together like garden soil and my fingernails; somehow, you just don’t find one without the other.  Pumpkins on doorsteps.  Pumpkin patches. Pumpkins in front of stores, and pumpkins growing in gardens.  Pumpkin spice has overtaken our food choices in October. Pumpkin pie, pumpkin soup, pumpkin lattes, and, although I do appreciate her skill at making pumpkin mousse, I do have to disagree with my dear friend about the merits of pumpkin spice coffee creamer and pumpkin spice Pop Tarts!

 

I love pumpkins.  The photo above is of the Seminole pumpkin vines in my garden.  They are beautiful, do a great job of controlling weeds, and are extremely prolific producing multitudes of  huge, beautiful, delicious, butternut shaped pumpkins.  If you haven’t tried this variety in your vegetable garden, you should give them a try next year.  Just make sure you give them plenty of room.  And while the shape may not make for the best sitting, I am happy to sit just about anywhere in my quiet, simple garden.

 

Garlic

 

Mary Ann Steele

Somervell County Master Gardener

 

If you have never tired growing garlic, you have missed a terrific experience.  You can’t have too much of this herb.  It’s a must for cooking, and it makes a great gift.

 

Plant garlic in spring to early fall.  Buy “seed” garlic with big, firm bulbs from a reputable source.  Don’t use garlic from the supermarket as it has been treated to retain green growth.  Gently break the bulbs into individual cloves.  Plant in rows pushing each clove, root end down, about 2 inches into soft soil.  Brush the row back and forth with side of you hand to cover the cloves.  Mulch lightly.  You don’t need a dedicated vegetable garden.  Plant in a sunny spot.  Good drainage is a must for garlic, or its roots rot before it gets a chance to grow.

 

Some old-timers say plant during a full moon in October.  “There’s something magical about planting cloves by moonlight.”

 

When you see your garlic plants sending up flower stems, it’s time to get out your clippers.  Cut the curly stem end with the bud, and use the same way you would use a clove of garlic.

 

Once the stems have started to turn brown, it’s time to harvest.  Using a garden fork, loosen the soil then lift the heads out without breaking the stems.  Gather in bunches with a few heads in each, fasten together with string or a rubber band, and hang in any airy place to dry.

 

Besides drying heads, you can preserve garlic by adding cloves to vinegar or by freezing in small containers.  Once you begin growing garlic, pesto is only a bunch of basil, a little grated cheese, some olive oil, and a pine nuts away.

 

If you have a really good crop of large heads of garlic, try roasting some .  Using a sharp knife, cut off the top of each head and drizzle with olive oil.  Wrap in foil and roast at 400 degrees for about 40 minutes.

 

For storage, dig up bulbs when the top half of the leaves is brown.  The foliage can be trimmed off or left on.

 

Elephant garlic have a delicate taste and are more related to leeks than garlic in the allium family.

 

Different strains and varieties grow better in different climates.  Hard neck, Rocamboles, Purple Stripes, and Porcilian prefer cold winters.  Asiatics and Creoles like warm climates.  Softneck Artichokes, and Silver Skins are easiest to grow and do well in hot or cold climates.