| Author |
Message |
Juju2bigdog
Member
10-27-2000
| Thursday, August 27, 2020 - 1:59 pm 
TnT, get into Christmas cactus (there is also Easter cactus) if you have a knack for making succulents bloom. That is a pretty easy one and can be VERY rewarding when the whole thing bursts into bloom.
I have long been convinced plants have emotions. When I went off to 8 week federal agent school, Bigdog and I had a house with a sort of solarium, a small room with three sides of windows, and we kept the door shut to keep out the cats. I had always handled that room full of plants, so I told Bigdog he had to water plants while I was gone. I got to come home at 4 weeks, and I went into that room, and it was so sad. Everything was drooping, listless, dropping leaves. He immediately said he was watering faithfully, and I didn't doubt him. So I said, Oh, I bet you are not talking to them, and he said what? I told him plants are emotional, and you don't have to actually talk out loud to them, but you have to think about them and let them know you love them and want them to thrive. And you can do that when you water them, think about each one as you are tending to them. So I came home after 8 weeks, and the room was a jungle of riotously happy plants.
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Tntitanfan
Member
08-02-2001
| Thursday, August 27, 2020 - 7:35 pm
That is a good suggestion about Christmas Cactus, Juju. I will keep an eye open for one at the store.
I promise to apologize and explain the reason when I trim back the roots. I have a very limited "plant friendly" space, so want to be careful about crowding these three.
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Juju2bigdog
Member
10-27-2000
| Friday, August 28, 2020 - 12:28 pm
On the other hand, orchids have the longest lasting blooms of the flowering plants, so that is a reason to have orchids.
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Tntitanfan
Member
08-02-2001
| Friday, August 28, 2020 - 6:39 pm
You are absolutely right! I was amazed at how long my first blooms lasted. I felt the same way about my first succulent - who knows what it is - as the bloom stalk/spray/whatever lasted for almost three weeks.
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Dipo
Member
04-23-2002
| Wednesday, November 18, 2020 - 7:56 am
Need help, LOL... I have inherited a cherry tomato plant that is green and still has some red cherry tomatoes on it.
Do I need to prune it? is it ok with our current weather, it is starting to get cold.
Any advice would be appreciated.
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Sadiesmom
Member
03-13-2002
| Monday, March 08, 2021 - 2:34 pm
Be careful with Mint, if it escapes the pot it becomes a weed everywhere. took me years to kill it off. But it does keep ants away from the house.
IN the ice storms a giant fir tree (15 feet tall) fell over (or was pulled over which I suspect). Now that the ground has thawed, can I just push it back up? does not look like damage to mail stem.
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Juju2bigdog
Member
10-27-2000
| Tuesday, March 09, 2021 - 3:04 pm
It would probably be worth a try, Sadiesmom. You could probably also try the method of three triangulated ropes and stakes in the ground to keep it stabilized until the roots take hold again.
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Sadiesmom
Member
03-13-2002
| Tuesday, March 09, 2021 - 7:02 pm
I have a bunch of strong planter holders I can put in the ground around it. Tried today but not strong enough to lift it. Will have to get nieces boyfriend to help.
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Mack
Member
07-22-2002
| Saturday, October 05, 2024 - 11:36 am
So I’ve started on a fairly major project in my backyard. Quite frankly while I kept it nice enough the mature large bushes, etc., have basically outgrown the design. On top of that the freezes of the last few years and the long drought have taken a toll on many of them. Oh yes and there was some kind of decease that randomly hit some. So it’s time to start the adventure and remake mostly my flower beds.
I’ve been thinking, maybe even precasting, about what to do. I had my front yard professionally relandscaped early this summer with the goal of planting more heat and drought resistant plants. It looks good and we’re pleased with it but it was expensive and I don’t want to spend that kind of money in the backyard. It did cause me to start researching the plants the landscaping used as they attract a lot of butterflies and bees, something that had been missing from our yard.
So where am I today. My research led me to believe I should focus on Texas native bushes and plants with the goal of providing butterflies, bees, and birds a better habitat. With a bit of handholding from a local native plant blogger ( https://nativebackyards.com/ ) I developed a plan, actually more of a vision of what I wanted to do with my existing flower beds. Luckily there is a local small nursery that only sells native Texas plants and in the last couple of weeks I have become a familiar face to the couple that owns and runs it. The nursery is appropriately called Pollinatives with the emphasis on plants that support local pollinators. I’d post a link but they really are small and don’t retail out of the area plus most of their information is shared on Facebook and not their very basic website.
This actually is the time of year to plant certain perennials. In the long run it will limit the number of expensive annuals we have been planting only to watch them burn up in the mid to late summer. The adventure has started and hopefully will be done next spring with a break for our short but sometimes extreme winter.
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Grooch
Member
06-16-2006
| Saturday, October 05, 2024 - 12:42 pm
Mack, does white clover grow where you live? I'm going to experiment this spring and start an area of a white clover lawn. If it does well, I'll expand it to the whole back yard. Then on to the front.
You don't need to really mow it or water it. I have deer and rabbits and turkeys (now) in my yard, so they can eat it if they want to.
You should really look into it. A low maintenance, earth friendly, bee loving lawn. :0)
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Mack
Member
07-22-2002
| Saturday, October 05, 2024 - 2:02 pm
It will grow in parts of Texas but the native plant folks consider it an invasive species because it is not native to Texas. I take some of that with a grain of salt and while trying to plant only native plants I have non-native species.
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Grooch
Member
06-16-2006
| Saturday, October 05, 2024 - 2:56 pm
Now I'm wondering if the grass you grow in your yard is native. Lol!
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Mack
Member
07-22-2002
| Saturday, October 05, 2024 - 5:24 pm
Probably not but one step at a time. 🙂
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Juju2bigdog
Member
10-26-2000
| Saturday, October 05, 2024 - 9:38 pm
Mack, are you going to grow bluebonnets and pink buttercups and Indian paintbrush? We have been gone from Texas for almost 30 years now, but I STILL miss those flowers Ladybird Johnson had planted all over the state, particularly on the slopes of the interstate expressways.
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Juju2bigdog
Member
10-26-2000
| Saturday, October 05, 2024 - 9:39 pm
Oh, and mountain laurel trees/shrubs that start blooming in February, and you just KNOW spring is coming!
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Mack
Member
07-22-2002
| Sunday, October 06, 2024 - 4:48 am
I have mountain laurel and Indian paintbrush in the front yard that were planted as part of the landscaping done earlier this summer. Not sure where I would put the bluebonnets and buttercups in the back yard but it will take me until probably late spring or early summer to get the back yard the way I generally invision. I should say I’m not taking out all the non-natives in the back yard. It had gotten down to pretty much just bushes in the back yard and I am only removing those that are dead or close to dead. The others I am cutting back pretty severely in some cases so if they make it fine and if not I’ll plant something else.
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Juju2bigdog
Member
10-26-2000
| Sunday, October 06, 2024 - 11:13 pm
Sounds like a plan, Mack.
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Mack
Member
07-22-2002
| Wednesday, October 09, 2024 - 1:23 pm
My wife says I have to stop going to the nursery and buying plants. Funny she thinks they should be planted not just sitting on the ground but in it. 😬 Actually I know what I want to plant and more or less where but by just placing them still potted I can move them around to what I think works the best. Then I take a break and go back and see if I still like my design vision….which is still kind of evolving. Only have 18 to plant and have already planted 16 😀
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Grooch
Member
06-16-2006
| Wednesday, October 09, 2024 - 1:45 pm
I am impressed! My sister lives in Dallas and she called me yesterday because she needed a break from gardening because it was way to hot to continue.
I just bought a Mr. Lincoln rose tree at 50% off and tomorrow I'll drag home a fig tree I have in the greenhouse at work. It's time for fall planting where I live.
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Dipo
Member
04-22-2002
| Wednesday, October 09, 2024 - 1:50 pm
WOW Mack, I thought it was hard to take care of my 7 balcony plants, LOL.
I bet it will look great once you get it done.
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Mack
Member
07-22-2002
| Thursday, October 10, 2024 - 4:48 am
I image once I finish next spring I will have planted probably 60-80 plants. Our house is a the end of a cul de sac so we have kind of a pie shaped lot of almost 1/2 acre. Only maybe 6O feet wide at the street and about 270 feet across our back yard property line. Between the droughts, the freezes, and our more frequent travel pre-Covid our yard kind of suffered from lack of attention. We now spend a lot more time in our back yard and we even joke about vacationing in Puerto Backyardo. With a few exceptions the plants I’m using are native Texas plants so more drought and heat tolerant and require very little maintenance. Heavy freezes are a potential issue but I’ve already stocked up on ground cover cloths designed to protect plants during freezes. Potted plants can be moved to the garage if necessary.
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Grooch
Member
06-16-2006
| Thursday, October 10, 2024 - 5:51 am
How many will Mrs Mack have planted? 
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Mack
Member
07-22-2002
| Thursday, October 10, 2024 - 7:20 am
Zero so far and I will not ask her to help, this is kind a mini-hobby for me right now. She still works and is a senior manager and leader in her agency so 10-12 hour days are the norm. Since I’m fully retired except for some pro bono work I pretty much take care of the house, plan and cook most meals, and right now plant. Doesn’t help that she still is experiencing some post-Covid fatigue though that seems to be getting better.
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Mack
Member
07-22-2002
| Thursday, October 10, 2024 - 1:57 pm
Update on the planting….up to 24 planted with 19 to still plant. Now if you do the math from my previous post you’ll notice an increase in plants planted and an increase of those waiting to be planted. Well……with Mrs Mack’s approval I had to go to the nursery today. Turned out a deer or deers ate one of new plants in the front yard to ground. Mrs Mack wanted it replaced so off to the nursery I went. Nursery manager said I was the third person coming in to replace the same plant for the same reason. With no rain for three weeks the deer are getting desperate and now eating plants they typical don’t like. She recommended a replacement plant in the same basic color but more deer resistant. Somehow a couple of other plants jumped into my wagon on my way to check out. 😬
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Mack
Member
07-22-2002
| Friday, October 11, 2024 - 11:48 am
11 more planted. No purchases today. Started to get hot so I’ll finish the rest tomorrow.
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