November 19 , 2020
From Drought to Deluge: Top Tips for Garden Success
horticulture is mighty tricky in Central Texas ! Along with filth challenge and jive between drought and flooding rain , extreme warmth and sudden freezes can turn our landscape visions into wishful dreaming . Never fear , theTravis County Master Gardenersare here to help withFrom Drought to Deluge : The Resilient Central Texas Gardener . Sheryl Williams , Drought to Delugeco - editor with Caroline Homer , and gardening course of study assistant withTexas A&M AgriLife Extension , joins me behind the webcam with a few top tips to pilot the way to success , wherever you live . coddler alarm : Serious info interrupt by hilarity . She ’s also a Master Gardener who knows what we ’re up against from her own manus - on success and failures . Well , I was sure as shooting clueless when I started out ( and many days still am ! ) . I did n’t really understand that soil ( or lack of it ) is at the root of our success . Sheryl defines the three geologic region that cross in Central Texas : the Edwards Plateau , the Blackland Prairie , and the Post Oak Savannah Flood Plain . The partition is n’t always so clear cut . Sheryl ’s on the dividing line of IH-35 , where neighbor up the street digger through Edwards Plateau rocks . Downhill in her garden , she ’s never find a sway in her Blackland Prairie clay . I’m in the Blackland Prairie , eastward of IH-35 . In the beginning , encompassing , hard cracks in my mud soil defied digging in juiceless atmospheric condition and clogged up my power shovel when sloshed . I even made “ pottery ” with it one meter .
So , aboriginal or even adapted plants that require rocky land entirely failed . One true native bush for me isAgeratina havanensis . I ’ve heard it called by many common names : shrubby boneset , white ageratum , and even snakeroot . This one ’s untested , but will become a rounded shrub to 3 - 6 ’ magniloquent . Shrubby boneset adapts to jumpy cliffs and all kinds of well - drained soil , including clay . Gradually , I meliorate drainage and general soil health with parting and compost . Then , I had to see about light patterns , another essential gene that Sheryl notes . A. havanensisworks in part shade that ’s dazzled with occasional harsh sun ( forest edge conditions).However , many plant are finicky . They just wo n’t work if the ignitor is n’t correct . Plus , when we ’re selecting plant life , we ca n’t just rely onUSDA Plant Hardiness Zones . Sheryl ’s from the Pacific Northwest in Zone 8 which is the same zone as Austin . But without question , we ca n’t develop all the same plants!Sheryl also points out that drought conditions do n’t always mean that true desert plants will stick around . Inevitably , we get bucket loads of rain . In cold weather condition , concentrated soil can entirely rot succulents and other xeric plants , peculiarly in clayey soil . correctly now , I ’d give anything for even one bucket of rain ! After one of the hottest summer on phonograph recording , and November ending as one of the warm ever , we ’ve had less than ¾ ” of rain over the last two months . In this flash drought , even my most xeric plants are protesting .
chequer drouth status in Texas . Here ’s aseasonal outlookthat updates day by day , too . Sigh . Just as in Austin we ’re enteringwastewater averaging . In my garden , native recurrent Skeleton - leaf goldeneye ( Viguiera stenoloba ) waltzes through drought , deluge and clay land ( though lightened up over the years).This spot is in bright visible radiation , shade by a with child tree until late afternoon when it ’s savage by rough sunlight . In wintertime , it ’s in full sun more hours of the daylight when the tree let go of its leaves , but they ’re cool hours!Believe me , I fail a lot at this gardening thing . And that ’s how we ascertain — and then learn over and over again as our garden exchange and weather contrive us yet another curve . Drought to Delugewill spare you circle of defeat and help you sympathize , programme , flora , water , and preserve . Order online on theTravis County Master Gardener site . BookPeoplewill have copies , too , and watch for it come to local nursery .
Texas A&M AgriLife Extension - Travis Countyhas facilitate me since day one . Over the years , they ’ve grown a valuable web site with planting guides and resource that cover just about anything under the Texas sun . Plus , find out about webinars and community events ( once in - person education resumes).Watch Sheryl ’s interview now !
Thanks for lay off by ! See you next time , Linda
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