Farm, Ranch & Garden

Jonathan Schulze bagged this Axis Deer on August 22 at his grandparents ranch in Segovia. Being very proud of it, he is dipping into his savings to have it mounted.

What’s That Weather Doing? In case you are a newcomer to the Texas Hill Country, this has not been our typical Spring, Summer or any season so far this year. We have experienced one of the coolest June and July months ever, and yet another record high August, except for those two teasers Fall days toward the end of the month.

"Gardening for Wildlife" will be the presentation given by Elizabeth McGreevy at the September 18th meeting of the Highland Lakes Chapter of the Native Plant Society of Texas. "By inviting wildlife to seek refuge on our property, the homeowner can watch, enjoy and appreciate wild things up close and personal," said Fred Zagst, vice president of the group and program chairman.

Gardeners assembling their arsenal of weapons for control of weeds next spring should stock up on a good dose of patience. This is especially true for people who do not want to overdose on lawn poisons, but are not exactly sure what to do without them. In addition to patience, add two more things: experimentation and accepting nature’s imperfections.

If you want to try planting bluebonnets that turn Hill Country fields a hue that rivals the sky, make your plans now. But beware — this flower is willful enough to make grown men weep, or at least go gray or bald while trying to coax the blooms out of the soil. Other wildflowers might be a bit easier to grow than bluebonnets are, especially if you follow the directions of John Thomas, founder of Wildseed Farms.

No offense intended to admirers of Romantic poetry, but someone should have planted something in that Grecian urn Keats wrote about ("Ode on a Grecian Urn") in 1819. Then he would have had even more fodder for his pen. Imagine a fine green vine with tiny flowers trailing over the side, and an explosion of blooms and foliage within. For centuries, potted plants – often called by the prettier name "container gardens"

SAVE THE DATE PEDERNALES WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT CO-OP 7TH ANNUAL MEETING AND LECTURE. PUBLIC INVITED. FREE. 4:00 P.M. SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 18TH. FIRST UNITED METHODIST CHURCH ACTIVITY CENTER IN JOHNSON CITY. AGRITOURISM, ECOTOURISM, NATURE TOURISM, WILDLIFE AND NATURE PHOTOGRAPHY, HUNTING, FISHING AND ADVENTURE OPERATIONS: ARE THEY THE FUTURE OR JUST A HILL COUNTRY DREAM? Todd Swift, our Blanco County Agrilife Agent, has arranged to have Miles Phillips, the "s ...

Folks in the far north and far western portions of Texas will not identify much with our fire ant fights. These complex insects have left those parts of the state alone, while infesting the hill country and almost all counties around us. This problem is a baptism by fire ant for gardeners who have not faced the problem before.

Lucky gardeners in Zone 8 and higher are nearing their second planting season of the year. And while fall is the prime time to plant wildflower seeds and many other garden delights, it’s an excellent season to try your hand at lavender. The rocky, dry soil in Blanco and Gillespie counties is the perfect place for this tough crop with delicately colored blooms. The aromatic perennial also likes our soil’s alkalinity.

Symbiotic relationship between grass and fish benefits marine life Saltwater anglers who prize redfish above all species should also love the seagrass meadows where the bronze brutes forage during warmer months. These shallow expanses of submerged shoalgrass, turtlegrass and manteegrass abound along the Texas coast, at well known places like Padre Island and in the backwater lakes behind barrier islands like San Jose and Matagorda Islands.