YardWorkYolanda

pro · Spring, near Kuykendahl

Gardening, chickens, and two kids who will not stop tracking mud in.

Joined Mar 2018 · 3 posts

Zone 9a and stubborn

Recent posts

• St Augustine versus keeping half the yard as beds. What has survived a Spring summer for you?

  We are going into another brutal summer off Kuykendahl and my back yard St Augustine is already showing stress where the pine trees block the rain. My husband wants to re-sod the bare spots again, but I am at the point where I want to carve out another big garden bed and fill it with salvias, lantana, and gulf muhly grass instead of fighting water bills every July. For those of you who ripped out lawn for native beds, did it actually save you work and water, or am I just trading grass mowing for pulling weeds in ninety-five degree heat?

  1mo ago

• Real storm prep tips for hurricane season (not just buying 50 cases of water)

  Every year around this time I start looking at my yard and cleaning out the drainage swales along the side of the house. After living off Kuykendahl for twelve years, I have learned the hard way that one clogged street drain or loose fence pickets will cost you a weekend real quick once the wind starts blowing. What are the actual practical things you do every June that saved your sanity when the power went out or the heavy rain hit? I am talking real house prep, yard work, or small gear that actually worked when we were sitting in the dark, not the panic buying list at HEB three hours before a storm hits.

  2mo ago

• What is the one thing you wish someone told you before moving to Spring?

  That you cannot plant flowers or vegetables based on national gardening advice you read online. People move here from up north and buy tomato plants in June because that is when they plant back home. By June in Spring, the night temperatures stay so high that tomato blossoms just drop off. You have to get spring crops in the ground by late February or early March, then do a second round in September. Also, Texas gulf coast clay soil will turn your yard into solid brick in August and sticky soup in spring rain unless you mix in compost.

  4mo ago