Late Winter Blooms

Late winter is actually the beginning of the spring flowers for south Texas.  Petunias planted in the fall, reach peak right now.  Geraniums are spectacular in March.  Inpatients love the cool night time temperatures.  I still need to pay attention to those last minute freezes....but I don't see anything in the forecast.  Diluted fertilizer every week or so encourages peak blooms.

As I pull out my winter veggies, I've been adding compost to the raised beds.  The broccoli and cabbage are at peak with the broccoli starting to flower.  I'm still serving chard, collards, salad greens, beets, carrots and spinach.  The onions are growing nicely and as I thin, I add the green onions to salads.   The onions should be fertilized every 2-3 weeks.

Anticipating spring weather, I've potted up Tycoon & cherry tomatoes and banana peppers, and set out seeds for cucumber, basil and chives.  Seeds are so much cheaper than six packs or individual pots.

Other gardening chores include cutting back shrubs and adding top dressing to the grass.  Last week I cut back my knock out roses.   I'm slowly working through my compost pile and adding this organic material to the beds.  The leaves are falling and the Monterrey oak is nearly bare.  The live oaks are just starting to drop so I expect a mess for the next few weeks.

If only we could get rain.  We have had less than two inches of rain since Thanksgiving.  All the storms seem to stay north and east.  It's getting very dry and I'm so afraid that we are in another year of terrible drought.