Texas Trees Devastated in Drought

December 21, 2011

Texas trees have been devastated during the drought this year.  The Forest Service estimates as many as five hundred million trees have died during the drought.  That is close to ten percent of the trees in Texas.

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Last Minute Gardening Gifts

December 19, 2011

Wondering what to get that gardener on your gift list?  Here are some last minute suggestions: 1)My book, Preparing A Vegetable Garden From The Ground Up, is now only $0.99 in ebook form.  It should be the first thing on your list for your gardening friends.  Available in print or ebook from Amazon.com or other [...]

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Friday Fun at Texas Discovery Gardens

December 16, 2011

The Texas Discovery Gardens is celebrating its’ 70th anniversary this year.  As part of that anniversary, they are running a special on membership and putting on several special programs. Reliant Energy is matching membership funds so that for a short time, membership is half off.  Join as an individual for $15 instead of $30 until [...]

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Growing Heirloom Vegetables in Small Plots

December 14, 2011

There are some special considerations when growing heirloom vegetables for food and seed in small plots.  If you intend to save your seeds from at least some of your vegetables, you will need to do some things to make sure you get pure seed.  Vegetables of the same species, such as tomatoes, will cross pollinate [...]

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Growing Cauliflower in Hunt County, Texas

December 12, 2011

Cauliflower is a member of the cole family of crops.  It grows best in the fall garden as it gets too hot and bolts many times in the spring.  Remember when rotating your crops not to plant it where other cole crops such as broccoli, cabbage, or brussel sprouts have been planted in the last [...]

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Hummingbird myths

December 9, 2011

Most gardeners like hummingbirds.  These pretty, colorful birds sip nectar from long beaks with even longer tongues.  Watching a tiny bird hover while drinking his fill is amazing.  Hummingbirds are territorial and fight to protect feeders, nesting areas, and mates. When I started being interested in hummingbirds, many things were recommended that are now discredited.  [...]

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Time to sow cover crops

December 7, 2011

If you are in the South, winter has arrived.  If you are in the North, it has been there a while.  The last of the garden is gone and your field is bare.  Sowing a cover crop of clover or other legume will help keep that soil in place and add nitrogen and other nutrients [...]

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Rain Finally

December 5, 2011

I do not know if the drought has broken, but it has rained about three inches at my house this weekend.  Instead of the usual drought to flood, it has come down in slow, soaking rain that the land can absorb.  We are still desperately dry, so water conservation must continue, but at least the [...]

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Tuning Your Garden Tools

December 2, 2011

Winter is a good time to tune your gardening tools.  It is cold and wet and hard to do much outside, so cleaning and sharpening your tools is a good use of your time.  Tools need two kinds of maintenance, in general.  Edged tools need sharpening.  All tools need a good cleaning and a wash [...]

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Growing “Pumpkin Chunkin” Pumpkins

November 28, 2011

Regular readers of this blog probably suspect I am a nerd.  After I admit to watching the 2011 Pumpkin Chunkin® contest, you will be sure that I am a nerd. One thing that disappointed me was that these were more metal cranes than catapults. The other thing I noticed is that most of the pumpkins [...]

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Almost Home by Caroline Clemmons

November 26, 2011

What happens when you move to the big city from a small town, then go back?  Link Dixon finds it is Almost Home in the book by Caroline Clemmons.  Here is the book trailer: Since my Mom writes as Caroline Clemmons, I suggest you try check it out for yourself. It is only $0.99 at [...]

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Thanksgiving as a Harvest Festival

November 24, 2011

In the United Sates of America, today is set aside as a day of thanksgiving.  From our legends about why this is so, you can see that Thanksgiving is a harvest festival under a different name.  We celebrate the thanksgiving of the first European colonists we acknowledge when they harvested their crops and finally had [...]

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Growing Grapes in Hunt County, Texas

November 23, 2011

Grapes have become a popular plant to grow in our area.  With two wineries in Greenville, Landon Winery and the Blue Armadillo Winery, it is natural to assume grapes grow well here. Most areas in Hunt County are vulnerable to Pierce’s Disease, however, so while grapes may do okay for a couple of years, they [...]

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Feed Someone You Love: Teach Them To Garden

November 21, 2011

Remember the saying, “Give a man a fish, you feed him for a day.  Teach a man to fish, you feed him for a lifetime?”  Gardening is like that .  You can teach someone to garden, to grow their own vegetables, and they will have food security.  Even if they do not live anywhere that  [...]

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Holiday Card Traditions at Lambda Farm

November 18, 2011

When I was growing up, the Friday after Thanksgiving was Christmas decoration day.  The Christmas tree and decorations went up in the living room.  Decorations went all over the house.  Just as important, though, was the writing of the Christmas cards. These were hand addressed and something personalized was written for each person.  I remember [...]

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Guest Post on The Writers Curse

November 16, 2011

The writer’s curse is, “Be Careful Or You Will End Up In My Next Book.”  This is similar to the mother’s curse,”I hope your children are just like you.”  Speaking of mothers, I am a guest on my mother’s blog, A Writer’s Life, discussing the writer’s curse today.  I hope you wander over and say [...]

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Can Stress Kill Bugs?

November 14, 2011

If your childhood was anything like mine, you know what the “look of death” meant.  Usually delivered when snatching me bald headed for some infraction was not desirable — out in public, or at a party, for example, it froze my blood and promised retribution later if I didn’t shape up.  Do bugs have this [...]

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Growing Carrots in Hunt County,Texas

November 11, 2011

Carrots are rich in beta carotenes and are good for you.  It can be hard to get your kids to eat them,though.  Set aside a little space in the flower bed or garden that has full sun and let your kids grow their own carrots.  Studies have shown that kids are more likely to eat [...]

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Six Great Apps For Gardeners

November 9, 2011

Today I have a guest post by Terry Ford on gardening apps for your smartphone.  Please join me in welcoming her to Information Central.   If you have a garden and a smartphone, you’re in a great position for a good harvest! Just download a few different gardening apps, and your season will never be [...]

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Visions of Wildflowers

November 7, 2011

If you enjoy wildflowers, you can see some beautiful plants and learn some interesting facts in a PBS video that draws heavily on the knowledge of the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.  This video discusses the history of wildflowers and the way in which they were used.  The video is about an hour long and [...]

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How To Water A Tree

November 2, 2011

Texas, and much of North America, is in the worst drought since records have been kept.  Many people have asked what they need to do to keep their trees alive,  The Texas Forest Service has a very helpful video with information on how much and how often to water your trees to keep them alive.  [...]

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Top Ten Scary Bugs

October 31, 2011

In honor of Halloween, I am presenting to you a list of the top ten scary creepy crawlers and flyers in North America.  This is simply my opinion, and your mileage may differ, but these are the bugs that make this bug geek squeak: 10. Wasps–Anyone who has ever dislodged a wasp nest when clearing [...]

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Growing Cabbage in Hunt County, Texas

October 26, 2011

Cabbage grows best in the fall in this part of Texas.  Most people plant transplants to grow cabbage, but it does grow from seed in the fall.  It will bolt in the spring if grown from seed because it adds too much time before the head is mature.  This is what you need to know [...]

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Beneficial Insects: Praying Mantis

October 20, 2011

Praying mantids are apex predators in the garden. That means they eat other insects but not many insects bother them. They occupy the same niche that grizzly bears or sharks do in other settings.  They do not bite humans, but will pinch a finger in their well developed front legs if forced to defend themselves. [...]

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Growing Brussels Sprouts in Hunt County, Texas

October 17, 2011

Brussels Sprouts are considered a cole crop.  This means they need to be planted someplace in the garden where no other cole crop has grown for at least one growing season.  In addition, they are very sensitive to heat, so they do better in the fall.  In fact, it is very difficult to get them [...]

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