By William Scheick

Book Reviewer

Ron Csehil and Tom O. Harris. Drip-Line Gardening: A Method for Everyone. Thehillcountrygardener.com, 2010. 128 pp. $30.00 (book); $15.00 (compact disk).

Cinead McTernan. Kitchen Garden Experts: Twenty Celebrated Chefs and Their Head Gardeners. Francis-Lincoln, 2014. 192 pp. $30.00.

Drought is a gardener's nemesis. The absence of the natural benefits of rainwater is a loss painfully compounded by the ever-increasing cost of relying on chemically treated tap water.

It is no surprise that many communities in Texas anticipate running out of water very soon if rain totals do not return to normal. Wherever and however more water is to be secured for these communities, one thing is certain: water-use costs will escalate.

In these droughty times, Ron Csehil and Tom Harris point out, "drip-linegardening practices will allow you to meet water restriction schedules while still maintaining healthy plants." Moreover, they suggest, "adding timers to your system will allow for proper watering cycles as well as worry-free vacations."

Their helpfully illustrated book begins with a section on organizing plant beds. "You can grow more in less space than you think," they observe, but whatever the bed size, a well-planned layout is crucial.

Also, proper spacing between plantings is critical to efficient drip-line watering. The authors provide a chart for irrigation spacing between various vegetables.

For tomatoes, for example, the spacing might be about two feet apart with possibly two water emitters, though the drip lines should cover the entire bed. "The roots of these plants will grow all over this bed because they will receive plenty of water when ... the system [is] turned on for two hours."

The authors provide photos of several basic and easily constructed bed borders. Assemblage of drip-line parts is likewise amply illustrated in this handy how-to book.

Promoting sustainable gardening is also the goal of Kitchen Garden Experts. Although it features British success stories celebrating locally harvested food, each chef offers "kitchen garden secrets" that mostly can be applied to our own growing and cooking experiences.

Consider this recommendation: "Sow seeds of crops like leeks and garlic in lengths of guttering. It saves time when it comes to planting out - just slide out the soil and seedlings into a prepared shallow trench."

Kitchen Garden Experts is a handsome, well-illustrated book with recipes aplenty, including beetroot couscous, poached rhubarb, cucumber with flakey crab, wet garlic barigoule, sorrel frittata and fig-mozzarella-basil salad.

Besides edible flowers (such as marigolds and pansies), there's wild rocket (Diplotaxis tenuifolia), a low-maintenance kitchen-garden perennial that apparently keeps on giving. Mentioned, too, is a novelty menu item known as oca, a citrus-flavored South American tuber I would like to sample.

The Hill Country Gardener

Work outside early in the morning or late in the evening so you can avoid loss of water in your body. Drink cool or cold water before, during and after working outside and sweating. Use sunscreen and work in the shade as much as possible.

Birds and Wildlife

Keep birdbaths full and clean.

Butterflies are attracted to overripe fruit, blooms, and mud.

Hummingbirds will reward you with their antics if you keep plenty of water in feeders for them.

Color

Keep rose bushes cleaned out.

Fertilize caladiums with slow-release lawn fertilizer at the rate of 1/3-1/2 lb. per 100 square feet of bed.

Deadhead spent flowers on annuals and perennials.

Plant zinnias.

To brighten a landscape in the heat of the summer, plant lantana, bougainvillea, mandevilla vine, allamanda, hibiscus, salvia, periwinkle, marigold, zinnia, portulaca, purslane, copper plant, and Bush morning glory.

Mulch heavily.

Water plants by hand when needed and not according to the calendar or day of the week.

Fruits and Nuts

Water fruit trees with one inch of water over the drip line per week until the fruit are harvested.

Take out the old canes in the blackberries.

Ornamentals

Iron deficiency (chlorosis) can show up in landscape and garden plants at this time of year. Look for yellowed leaves with darker green veins. Frequent applications of iron sulfate (Copperas) as a foliar spray or applications to mulching materials may be needed. Green sand can also be used and is effective.

Shade Trees and Shrubs

It's safe to prune oak trees in July and August. 

This is not a good time to plant trees and shrubs. It's too hot.

Turf Grass

Set your lawnmower height at the highest level while it's hot. 3 ½ - 4 inches for St. Augustine in the sun and 4-5 inches in the shade.

If you see dead areas in the St. Augustine, check for grubs and chinch bugs.

Mow the lawn before you leave on vacation.

You can plant new lawns in the heat as long as you keep them watered at least twice per day. Do not let the seeds dry out.

Vegetables

It's time to start over in the vegetable garden.

Install a drip irrigation system in your gardens to make watering more efficient and less time-consuming.

Prepare for fall gardening. Add 2-3 inches of compost and 1-2 cups 19-5-9 slow release fertilizer per 100 square feet.

Plant your pumpkins for Halloween this month.

Soil Science Society of America

In areas affected by drought, residents may be seeing more cracks in their soil. Are these serious?

According to Eric Brevik, a professor at Dickinson State University, some soils have a high content of clay minerals known as smectites. When smectite clays get wet, water moves into a space between the structural units that make up the clay mineral. The presence of the water molecules pushes the structural units apart, causing the clay mineral to expand, or swell.

When these clays dry out, the water molecules are removed from the inter-structural spaces and the clays shrink. When this shrinking takes place in millions of clay structural units in a volume of soil, the shrinking can be enough to create large cracks in the soil. Soils with a high shrink-swell clay content are known as Vertisols.

Vertisols are found in several places in the United States, including the Gulf Coastal Plain of Texas, the Mississippi River Valley from Illinois to the Gulf Coast, central Montana, western South Dakota, and the Red River Valley of North Dakota and Minnesota. Other major Vertisol regions in the world include central India, eastern Australia, and eastern Sudan and South Sudan.

For more information about soils and gardening, conservation, food, and more, visit the Soils Matter blog sponsored by the Soil Science Society of America at soilsmatter.wordpress.com. SSSA also has public information on its website, soils.org/discover-soils.

Seguin: "Rain Gardens and Storm Water Treatments" will be presented by Matt Madrone, Landscape Architecture, at 7 p.m., July 17, at the Justice Center, 211 Court St., Seguin. A 6:30 p.m. social function precedes the meeting. For additional information, call 830-303-3889 or visit www.guadalupecountymastergardeners.org.

Austin: Chris Doggett, of Williamson County Beekeepers Association, will present "Raising and Managing Bees, Saturday, July 19, 10 a.m. - noon, at Zilker Botanical Garden, 2220 Barton Springs Rd., Austin. Doggett will share his knowledge and expertise in raising and managing bees. Learn how to provide a healthy and attractive environment for bees, whether you have a backyard hive, or acres of crops needing pollination. A delightful speaker with hands-on experience, Chris will gladly answer your questions and concerns to take the mystery out of beekeeping. This seminar is free; Zilker park entrance fee is $2 per adult, $1 per child or senior. The seminar is presented by the Travis County Master Gardeners, a volunteer arm of the Texas AgriLife Extension Service in Travis County. For information, visit www.tcmastergardeners.org or call -512-477-8672.

Dallas: "Moths: Tales from the Dark Side" will be presented Saturday, July 19, from 10 a.m.-noon.

Delve beyond butterflies and learn about one of nature's "other pollinators," the moth. Learn about fascinating behaviors, adaptations and diversity in the moth world from Entomologist John Watts. $15; $12 for TDG members. Texas Discovery Gardens at Fair Park - 3601 Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd., Dallas. For more information, visit http://texasdiscoverygardens.org/events_and_classes.php.

La Marque: "A Homeowners Guide to Weed Control" will be presented by GC Master Gardener Anna Wygrys. Saturday, July 19, 9-11:30 a.m. at Galveston County AgriLife Extension in Carbide Park, 4102 Main, La Marque; Phone 281-534-3413; email reservations to galv3@wt.net, further details www.aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/galveston. Free.   

• Many, many practical and timely garden tips that are for Texas - not Maine or California!
• Organic, earth friendly tips to make your garden grow and prosper
• Lots of space to record your own activities for future reference
• Planting dates and tips for vegetables, flowers, herbs, fruit and lawns

The Vegetable Book

By Dr. Sam Cotner

Finally, back by popular demand and in its fourth printing, the most informative and comprehensive "how-to" book on vegetable gardening in Texas (also, suitable for most other areas of the South) written by the late, great Dr. Sam Cotner, former head of horticulture at Texas A&M University and lifelong gardener. This interesting read has over 370 pages of detailed information on every crop, from Asparagus to Watermelon including problem/solving sections for each vegetable. If you want to maximize your enjoyment and success growing vegetables in Texas, this book is a "must have," whether you are a beginner or a seasoned gardener. Price $34.02

By William D. Adams

The best thing for tomato enthusiasts since the tomato itself! Adams draws on more than thirty years of experience to provide a complete, step-by-step guide to success in the tomato patch. Learn everything from soil preparation, planting, feeding, caging and watering. Liberally sprinkled with the author's easy humor and illustrated with his own excellent photographs, this must-have book has everything you'll need to assure a bumper crop! 189 pages. Lots of color photographs! Price: $31.94

($15.82 if ordered separately)

Remit payment to:

TG Books * PO Box 9005 * Waco, TX 76714

or call Toll-Free 1-800-727-9020

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