Houston Gardening: Plan and Prep for Spring

The residents of the Lone Star State have good motive to be traumatized by the ups and downs of February temperatures. In 2021, not solely have been we within the second 12 months of the COVID pandemic, however many people have been huddling in below-freezing temps in our personal houses, melting snow to flush bathrooms or taking transient respites in our automobiles with the warmth on full blast.

For gardeners, final 12 months’s winter snow storm worn out citrus bushes and froze again many perennials and shrubs. Nevertheless, for individuals who gave their botanical victims an opportunity to recuperate, their persistence was rewarded by vegetation that got here again up from their roots, often much more vigorous than earlier than.

For this gardener, the 2021 freeze did what I’m all the time hesitant to do and that’s correct pruning. The roses bloomed higher than ever, the sago palms returned full and inexperienced and the oleander is now a manageable measurement. Then, February 2022 arrived with continuously fluctuating temperatures. We Houston gardeners have develop into weary of hauling vegetation out and in of our houses and the month-long chore of masking and uncovering treasured outside specimens. Although my cats cherished the indoor forest, I didn’t take pleasure in their propensity to make use of the pots as litterboxes.

Final week, I gave up. I made a decision that what lives lives and what would not, nicely, too unhealthy. There’s a level in a gardening 12 months the place it would not appear price it and I hit that wall when the temps fell from 75 levels to freezing.

Nonetheless, the promise of spring is true across the nook. My neighbor’s tulip magnolia is blooming, all the time an indication that I must get my gardening gloves on and clear away winter’s particles. Nevertheless, it must be accomplished fastidiously, with observant eyes on the lookout for new development, as I found whereas my Angel Trumpet’s brown, unhappy stems. Proper at floor degree, new leaves have been already rising.

This week is the time to arrange the backyard for early vegetable transplants. Some cold-tolerant seedlings like cabbage, spinach and kale can nonetheless go in whereas seeds for radishes, carrots, lettuce and beets will be sown within the floor in addition to English, or backyard, peas. It is too late to start out seeds for tomatoes, however subsequent week, many backyard facilities needs to be placing out tomato transplants. Smart gardeners will watch the climate forecast for any late freezes then pop these tomato infants in as quickly as attainable in order that they are going to produce earlier than summer time’s warmth. Most tomato fanatics in Houston shoot for late February however tomatoes will be planted by means of March, relying on the kind. Nonetheless, the sooner the higher. Be ready to cowl them in case of a late freeze.

It is a good suggestion to decide on quite a lot of determinate and indeterminate tomatoes based on your family’s wants. Cherry tomatoes will be prolific for a very long time whereas many paste, or Roma, sort tomatoes produce all of sudden. Heirloom varieties are sometimes not as productive as fashionable hybrids however they make up for it in taste. And there are such a lot of completely different colours to select from past the standard crimson fruit. Final fall, I planted Midnight Snack, a cherry selection that was deep black on the stem finish. Sadly, I used to be solely capable of harvest a tasty few earlier than a late January freeze. I’m going to do this distinctive selection once more this spring.

These final winter weeks are additionally a superb time to get the fitting instruments for the job. That rusty pair of pruning shears not noted within the rain aren’t going to chop it, actually. Sharp shears make for cleaner cuts. In Houston, many rose growers prune on February 14, based on the rose’s development habits. For individuals who are behind, there should be time to do some pruning. A few of our roses have already put out new development so I’m letting them do their very own factor.

Whereas people up north are nonetheless daydreaming about their flower and vegetable gardens, Houstonians must get their plans in gear now. It is a good concept to get mulch, potting soil, amendments, instruments, seeds and vegetation earlier than March Insanity hits the gardening facilities.  Provide chain and staffing points are affecting extra than simply grocery shops and automobile dealerships. Some in style seed firms are warning that seed and plant orders could also be delayed so it is best to get orders in now earlier than spring fever hits the remainder of the nation.

For individuals who have the time to filter out flower beds and put together their vegetable plots, this week is the time to do it. We might have yet one more gentle freeze however we needs to be good to go by the top of this month. Various herbs like parsley, lavender, sage, oregano and others will be planted. For Houstonians, French lavender is an efficient selection. It performs much better in our warmth than English lavender however it does should be out of the solar throughout the hottest a part of the day. I preserve it in massive pots that get morning solar however are shaded by my home within the afternoon. Basil is a culinary favourite however it might probably get broken by temps within the forties so preserve it in easily-moved pots till the specter of frost is previous. In late March, sow basil seeds for a summer time bounty.

Many people misplaced citrus bushes and our pleasure in regards to the new development on the trunks turned to disappointment after we discovered that the brand new development was most likely simply the rootstock which is used for a lot of grafted citrus bushes. Some folks wish to let it develop and see what occurs, others say that the rootstock development won’t produce fruit, or if it does, it will likely be inedible. Citrus bushes will be difficult. Thankfully, we have now native assets similar to Urban Harvest to assist us with our questions. The non-profit group hosts quite a lot of instructional lessons for fruit and vegetable gardening.

It is nonetheless too early to sow most flower seeds however nurseries will quickly have flats of colourful annuals like snapdragon, inventory, lobelia and dianthus for the early spring months with petunias, impatiens and salvia not far behind. Nevertheless, gardeners can choose up zinnia, cosmos and sunflower seeds now to sow when the climate warms up.

As February nears its finish, it is time to put together for the spring. Planning is necessary however it’s the precise doing that produces outcomes. Gardening will get us exterior and helps to alleviate the stress of continuous unhealthy information and on a regular basis worries. It grounds us, each actually and figuratively. And in case you get a basket filled with contemporary greens or a reasonably bouquet of flowers in your efforts, nicely, that is simply the cherry tomato on high.