American robins are arriving in the Highland Lakes for winter.
Have you seen the robins? When the American robins (Turdus migratorius) arrive, we are assured that winter is coming. You might see them on your lawns or covering an entire field while they tug at worms and bugs or roosting in your trees. Sherry Bixler of Burnet, an avid birder, saw more than 30 of them at Inks Dam National Fish Hatchery as early as Nov. 19. We saw robins a little later in Cassie and Oatmeal.
DECEMBER GARDEN DUTIES
[image id="23316" title="Luedecke" linkto="file" ] Bill Luedecke and daughter Martelle offer advice to Highland Lakes gardeners.1. In December, we need to be vigilant when it comes to the weather and opportunities to prepare our gardens for the spring planting.
2. Now is time to add that organic material we have been talking about to all your flower and gardening beds and have them ready to plant when needed.
3. Remember to plant those bulbs we talked about in September. You know, the ones that have been in your refrigerator for the past four to six weeks. Those bulbs will provide all that wonderful color in your flowerbeds come spring. This includes tulip and hyacinth bulbs. Plant your bulbs so the base of the bulb is at a depth three times the diameter of the bulb.
4. Warning: Don’t start to prune your fruit trees yet. Pruning promotes growth and budding, and with there being several warm days in a row in the winter, we don’t want to fool our fruit trees as to what season it is.
5. This is still a good time to set out those cool season plants such as pansies, violas, stock, snapdragons, etc.
PERENNIAL PREVENTION
When we are transplanting old plants or potting new ones, we are always on the lookout for the best potting soil available. Sometimes, we just need to mix our own. Rose Lackey has come up with the best potting soil combination I have seen. She combines one large bag of Ladybug potting mix, one bag of cotton burr compost, 3 gallons of coarse perlite (it will provide air for the plant’s root system), and 1 gallon of the sand that builders use with cement. Mix the ingredients well, and you will have some outstanding potting mix. Rose also adds Earth’s Fortune to that combination (it contains micronized volcanic minerals and humates) if she is starting cuttings.
Why, you may ask, are we speaking of transplanting and cuttings? Perennial prevention! Do you have a plant that has been in the family and passed down? Do you have a perennial that has sentimental value as well as aesthetic value?
Before we get our “winter” or “freezes,” take some cuttings from your favorite plants. Fill up your containers with Rose’s mix. Your containers can be anything from Solo cups with holes in the bottom, leftover containers from last spring, just about anything that will hold dirt and drain water. Water and allow to drain outside. Place containers on a tray if you plan to keep your cuttings inside your home or garage (don’t want to get the floor wet) as opposed to a greenhouse.
You will need approximately a 6- to 8-inch stem. Cut at a 45-degree angle below the node (the bendy, pointy part where new growth begins). Remove flowers, leaving only several leaves for the plant to produce its own food. Stick your finger into the soil then place your cutting in the hole. Gently push the soil so the cutting can stand on its own. Lightly water to firm up the soil.
Now, if by chance something happens to your sentimental parent perennial, you have taken measures to ensure the legacy lives on. And when (hopefully) nothing is harmed in possible freezes in the spring, you’ll have lots of legacy offspring to brighten your home surroundings and share with friends and family.
Keep your souls and soles in your garden!
Remember, Jesus, the True Master Gardener, said, “I am the vine; my Father is the Gardener.” John 15:1 Contact Bill Luedecke at The Luedecke Group Realtors at (512) 577-1463 or email him at bill@texasland.net. Contact Martelle Luedecke at (512) 769-3179 or luedeckephotography@gmail.com.
