The next CHES meeting, sponsored by the Somervell County Master Gardeners Association, will be this Monday, April 10th!  

Rhonda Stebeck will present a program on herbs that are easy to grow in your garden. Don’t miss it!  Find out which herbs are the most popular and easiest to grow in our area.

So mark your calendars! Monday, April 10th, 6:30 pm, Citizen’s Center, 209 SW Barnard, just off the square, Glen Rose.

March 24, 2017

Private water well screenings set for October in Hood and Somervell counties

Contact: John Smith, 979-845-2761, jwsmith@ag.tamu.edu

GLEN ROSE — The Texas Well Owner Network will offer water well screenings April 17 for Somervell County to give residents the opportunity to have their well water screened.

The screenings are presented by the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service offices in these counties in partnership with the Texas Water Resources Institute.

“Private water wells should be tested annually,” said John W. Smith, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension program specialist, College Station.

He said those submitting samples should use only sampling bags and bottles from their respective Texas A&M AgriLife Extension office followed instructions to ensure accurate results. A $10 per sample fee will be collected when bags and bottles are picked up by participants. Bottles and bags will be available at least a week before the turn-in dates shown below.

The dates, times and locations for the screenings will be:

– April 17 from 8:30–9:30 a.m. sample bags and bottles should be turned in at the AgriLife Extension office for Somervell County, 1405 Texas Dr., in Glen Rose. This is a collaborative effort with Prairielands Groundwater Conservation District. A follow-up meeting to explain screening results will be held at 7 p.m. April l7, 107 Shepard Street Glen Rose, TX

Samples will be screened for common contaminants, including total coliform bacteria, E. coli, nitrate-nitrogen and salinity.

Smith said the presence of E. coli bacteria in water indicates that waste from humans or warm-blooded animals may have contaminated the water. Water contaminated with E. coli bacteria is more likely to also have pathogens present that can cause diarrhea, cramps, nausea or other symptoms.

“Water with nitrate-nitrogen at levels of 10 parts per million is considered unsafe for human consumption,” Smith said. “These nitrate levels above 10 parts per million can disrupt the ability of blood to carry oxygen throughout the body, resulting in a condition called methemoglobinemia. Infants less than 6 months of age and young livestock are most susceptible.”

Salinity as measured by total dissolved solids will also be determined for each sample. Water with high levels may leave deposits and have a salty taste, and using water with high levels for irrigation may damage soil or plants.

Smith said it is extremely important for those submitting samples to be at the meeting to receive results, learn corrective measures for identified problems and to improve understanding of private well management.

For more information on the Somervell County screening, call 254-897-2809.

To learn more about programs offered through the Texas Well Owner Network or to find additional publications and resources, go to http://twon.tamu.edu.

Support for the Texas Well Owner Network program is provided through Clean Water Act nonpoint source funding from the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

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by Merilyn Cranford, Somervell County Master Gardener

Shasta daisies have long been sunny garden favorites, both in beds and, with their long stiff stems, as cut flowers.  They’re a cinch to grow, they bloom for a long time, and they attract butterflies, but not deer.

One of the more familiar types is known as “Becky”, a heavy bloomer with an upright habit.  It starts to flower in July and keeps it up straight through to September.  It’s true that “Becky” is a great favorite of many people, but there are others as well.

Plenty of the new cultivars sport larger flowers, with more eye-catching petals than the older Shastas.  One that might catch your eye is named “Fluffy” because of its double flowers sprouting threadlike petals.  Another is “Fiona Coghill”, with its audacious pompon flowers.  The stout stems are strong enough to hold heavy blooms, even when they are wet after watering or rain.  Additionally, “Crazy Daisy” is a 30-inch tall Shasta that adds a playful attitude to the garden and the haphazard arrangement of petals is as endearing as its name.

There is a size to fit everyone’s taste.  Some Shasta cultivars range in height from 10 to 40 inches and flower size from 2 to almost 5 inches across.  For the most part, white is the color of Shasta daisies, though there are a few that claim yellow petals.  Two of these are named “Sunshine” and “Cobham Gold” which is closer to a soft butter cream.

Because of their inherently rugged nature and the range of plant sizes, there are many different uses for Shasta daisies.  Some may look well at the center or back of the flower bed.  Or a large grouping makes a big impact, especially when you view it from a distance.  If you’re not crazy about deadheading all those daisies, place the bed at the far end of the yard where a few faded blooms aren’t as noticeable.  Or grow them in containers.  Give them full sun and even moisture, but make sure the potting mix is well-drained, so the roots don’t rot.

So try a few Shastas — you’ll soon be hooked.  Because however you use them, Shastas add a touch of magic to your garden, along with tons of fresh white blooms, from simple to simply splendid!

CHES – Community Horticultural Education Series

The next CHES meeting, sponsored by the Somervell County Master Gardeners Association, will be a “treet” for tree lovers!

Rachel McGregor, from the Texas Forestry Service, will be our guest speaker, bringing us up to date on Oak Wilt and Tree Trimming.

So mark your calendars!  Monday, March 13th, 6:30 pm,  Citizen’s Center,  209 SW Barnard, just off the square, Glen Rose.

Time to get busy in the garden! While February certainly felt like March by the temperatures, it’s now REALLY time to get busy digging in the dirt! There is still plenty of time to get winter chores completed and begin the exciting spring planting!

If you have not already done so, now it the time to cut back all the winter die back on your perennial plants. Many have already started to break bud with the warm temperatures we’ve had so just cut back to where you see the new growth springing forth. Ornamental grasses should be cut to the ground, as well as flowering native perennials such as lantana, blue mist and most salvias. Autumn Sage should be trimmed to about 1/3 of existing growth. And don’t forget roses! I have a few blooms on some of my rose bushes, but if you haven’t trimmed them back, get to it quickly. There is still time for them to put on a good growth spurt without losing too many blooms. Cut out weak or crowded growth and dead or damaged canes. Shape the plant by cutting a forth to a third of the vigorous canes. As new growth emerges, don’t forget to add a new layer of mulch! It will be like frosting on the cake in your landscape!

For the vegetable garden, hopefully you have prepared your beds with some addition of compost or other organic matter. Onions should already be in, but you may still get a decent crop if you get them in asap. Start a new perennial asparagus bed by planting crowns now. Just remember it takes a full 3 years to begin harvesting. Set out artichoke plants this month. March is the time to be direct seed beans, peas, greens, radishes, and beets. There is still time to get in a good crop of lettuce, too. Tomato transplants can go in the garden as well by mid-March but be prepared to protect them if we get a good cold snap – which we all know is a good possibility!

Consider starting an herb garden if you haven’t already! There is nothing like fresh herbs to go along with all the wonderful fresh veggies from the garden! Perennial herbs such as oregano, sage, thyme and Mexican mint marigold are great for beginners. As with most herbs, they will need good soil drainage and full sun. Cilantro and dill like the cooler temperatures so plant from seed now. Parsley and fennel are great additions as well.

By Shirley D. Smith, Somervell County Master Gardener

One of the very first things I learned when I took my Master Gardening training was the difference between “SOIL” and “DIRT”.  It seems dirt is what you sweep out of your house while soil is what you garden in.  There are different soil types in Somervell County.  Some (probably most) of us do our gardening on top of rock while others (the lucky ones!) garden in sand or sandy loam.  While both can be a challenge, it seems the soils on rock bring a special challenge.  No matter what your soil type, there are certain criteria that are proven to bring excellent results no matter whether you are growing vegetables or flowers.  Without getting all technical, let’s look at what makes up good soil.  Good soil can be said to be a complex living system that envelopes the land like a skin.

To keep this article from getting all scholarly and too complex, let’s just think about what we walk on here in our county.  Since I live on rock, I either have raised beds or have amended my flowerbeds with lots of compost.  Ahhh, compost!  That lovely stuff gardeners consider black gold.  Definition:  compost – decomposed organic matter rich in nutrients.  You can buy compost either by the truckload or bagful.  Every spring I dump bags of the stuff in my beds and then till it into the soil.  If I have already existing plants, I just put a 2+ inch of it around the particular plant and then gently hand till that in.  I love it when I turn over a spadeful of soil and there are big, juicy earthworms.  Earthworms are a sign of nutritious soil.

If you have plants that just don’t seem to be doing well, then perhaps you need to do a soil test and see what that soil consists of.  You can get a soil test kit from our local Extension Office (254 897 2809).  There is a small cost for this service, but it would be well worth it to know what type of soil and nutrients you are dealing with.

There are many websites out there that will educate you more fully about what to do to improve your soil.  Some of them are VERY technical while others offer a more practical and (pardon the pun) down-to-earth approach.  I love to go to the Texas A&M website and search there for most of my questions.  aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu.  Then you can search for nutritious soil or some such description.  This is always a good site to go to for gardening in Texas.

Happy gardening!

 We hope you are planning to attend the next CHES meeting, on the second Monday in February, the 13th!!!!

 Christine Morgan will advise us on planning our spring gardens.  We won’t want to miss her expert guidelines on what, where, when, and how to plant those delicious fresh vegetables we all enjoy. 

So mark your calendars!  Monday, February 13th, 6:30 pm, at the Citizens Center, in Glen Rose, Texas.

The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Office of Somervell County, along with the Hood and Johnson County Extension Offices, will be offering a Master Gardener Training starting in March 2017.  If you are an avid gardener or someone who enjoys learning about horticulture this is a great opportunity.  Training topics will include in-depth classes on plant diseases, soil fertility, trees, grasses, vegetable production, irrigation, organic gardening, entomology and more.

You may ask yourself what exactly is a Master Gardener?   A Master Gardener is an individual who has completed extensive training and has served the community by sharing their gardening knowledge through the activities of the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service.   They are enthusiastic, willing to learn and to help others, and are able to communicate with diverse groups of people.  What really sets Master Gardeners apart from other home gardeners is their special training in horticulture.  In exchange for their training, persons who become Master Gardeners contribute time as volunteers, working through their Extension office to provide horticultural-related information to their communities.

If you think the Master Gardener Program may be for you, contact Zach Davis at the Somervell County Extension Office by emailing zadavis@ag.tamu.edu or call 254-897-2809. The fee for the 2017 Master Gardener training is $150, this includes Master Gardener Training Manual, field trip fees and all other training fees.

• 8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
• T. olive oil, divided
• 2 t. kosher salt
• 1 t. black pepper
• 1 t. fresh, finely chopped rosemary
• 1 large, sweet onion, cut into wedges
• a bunch of small carrots
• 1 quart of new potatoes, halved

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Rub thighs with 1 T. olive oil.  Stir together salt, pepper, and rosemary in small bowl.  Sprinkle thighs with three teaspoons of salt mixture.

Stir together potatoes, carrots, and onions in a large bowl.  Drizzle with remaining 1 T. olive oil and sprinkle with remaining 1 t. salt mixture.

Spread vegetable mixture in an even layer, in a lightly greased, heavy-duty foil-lined sheet pan.  Place thighs 2-3 inches apart on top of the vegetables.

Bake at 375 degrees for 55 minutes to 1 hour, or until a meat thermometer inserted in thickest portion of chicken registers 170 degrees.

Serves 6-8.