Ask Chris
by CHRIS WINSLOW
During the festivities of this Saturday’s New Year’s Eve, most will be making their standard resolutions, many of them connected to the nation’s booming health and fitness industry. But we gardeners know better than that.
Rather than hollow declarations of intent that will barely last through January, we must use this time to create plans to carry us through to the other side of our present drought, plans to make our landscapes prettier to the eye, and our vegetable gardens more bountiful.
Let’s all keep in great shape in 2012 by using our gardens (rather than the gym) as our springboard for our fitness, health and well-being. Some further thoughts and ideas:
• Grow more vegetables and culinary herbs. You can reduce your weekly grocery bill, cut down on the number visits to the doctor, and enjoy your food at the dinner table more, if you grow your own. You know how they were grown and what’s been sprayed on them.
• Experiment. Central Texas is also perfect for asparagus, grapes, berries, artichokes, peaches, pears, apples, plums, olives, apricots, nectarines and pomegranates. These plants are perennials and will produce year after year without replanting.
• Start composting. By saving and composting grass clippings, leaves, and kitchen scraps, you can make rich compost and mulch for your garden and flowerbeds. The material is free and just takes a little bit of effort to convert it to something useful.
• Lower utility bills by xeriscape gardening. Remove some of your lawn and add new beds with xeric plants, and you can save on your water bill. If you plant deciduous trees on the east, south, and west side of your house, you can keep it cool in the summer and warm in the winter and save on electric bills.
• Shop in garden centers. Gardeners need quality specimens and knowledgeable staff. You don’t find either of these in the big box nurseries.
• Make your landscape a “Knockout.” This is easy; all you have to do is plant some knockout roses. These cherry bloomers are no muss/no fuss roses that bloom all the time, without pruning or any kinds of sprays.
• Volunteer. Start gardening projects with your neighbor or perhaps the community. Target a piece of ground that’s going to waste and produce some vegetables for the food bank. Reap the mental rewards of volunteering!
Well, that’ll make a good start for 2012. I’ll have to get to work but only after I eat my good luck food for the year: cornbread for gold, collards for dollar bills, and black-eyed peas for pennies.
Happy gardening in the New Year!
It’s About Thyme: 11726 Manchaca Road, Austin, TX 78748 www.itsaboutthyme.com
