Vegetable Plantings

This week I planted my tomatoes and wrapped in cloth to protect against winds, freeze and insects.  I fertilized with a water soluable mix.  I also planted banana peppers, eggplant, basil, and two types of beans (bush and a pinto type).  The onions got fertilizer.  I'm regularly harvesting green onions.  Everyday I'm picking some time of greens:  collards, cabbage, spinach, chard, beets and mixed greens.  The herbs are doing well, too.  Since we are not getting rain, I've set the drip for 30 minutes twice a week.

Spring flowers--but no Spring Rains

Where I have drip lines, I have beautiful spring flowers!  This week I installed drip lines to all the flower pots in anticipation of our next long trip.....plus no rain.  I have geraniums, impatiens, wave petunias and begonias in bloom.  The Texas Gold Columbine are beautiful and spreading everywhere.  A beautiful gold iris is in bloom.  To extend my enjoyment, I took a cutting into the house.  The oak leaves are being dumped heavily and we can't keep the sidewalk clean.  Periodically, Joe is collecting and using as mulch around the yard.  The weeds are picking up but the grass is still dormant.  I'm amazed at how much survived the freezes.  With this drought, I don't plan to replace many shrubs until we get consistent rain.

Vegetable Planting Schedule Off This Year

I'm taking a slow approach to planting my spring vegetable garden this year.  It's been cold and dry such that I'm going to wait until after March 15, even then I'll watch the 10 day forecast closely.  It's drizzling but no real rain today.  Hope tomorrow is better.

I have Tycoon and Valley Cat tomatoes potted up just for the day when it's warm enough.  I'm only planting one cherry tomato this year.  As always, I'll wrap in cloth to protect the young plants from wind, cold and insects.  I've also got banana peppers, egg plant and cucumbers just waiting in small pots.  Later I'll plant bush beans and a type of pinto bean.

Rainbow and Lowe's are having specials on flowers.  This week I bought a flat of impatiens for $.67 each.  Earlier in the week I bought red begonias for $1.00 a six pack.  On special I've purchased two Boston ferns,  two bulbine, two hanging baskets of impatiens, white petunias, white geraniums and red geraniums.  The bougainvillea are sprouting and I set out in a sunny spot.  Yesterday I started placing drip tubing around the deck in planters.  Joe drilled holes in the two copper pots and I filled with impatients or begonias.

First Signs of Spring in San Antonio

The first signs of Spring in south Texas area the blooms on red bud trees and mountain laurels.  Through most of the year, the red bud is a small tree that sticks to the background.....but it's the first to bloom in late winter.  Next is the beautiful Texas mountain laurel.  I think the purple blossoms smell like grape kool-aide.  Once you have a mountain laurel you will always have baby mountain laurels from the seed pods that drop to the ground later in the year.  Fortunately they are easy to pull out from the ground.

The average last freeze date in San Antonio is March 3.  Guess what, it got down to 26 degrees at our house on March 3....just like the average.  We seem to get a warm up to the mid 80s and then an arctic blast hits us again.  I'm definitely holding off on planting my spring garden.  But the winter veggies are still so bountiful.  This week I harvested the red cabbage and made the best German sweet and sourer slaw.