Punk Gardener

We had a few. Not enough to make a dent in our drought.
Anyone else starting to wonder if the Hill Country might start looking more like West Texas desert if this keeps up?
I’m planting trees all around the house & getting rain barrels next Spring. We’ve also been talking about drip irrigation instillation.
Creating water conservative micro climates is the meme du jour around here lately.
So, fellow CenTex, gardeners– what are your plans, if any, in dealing with all this dry?

& did I mention one of my neighbors has a goat tied to their house? Give it up for East Austin, y’all

Dry, dry summer, early cold fall; CenTex gardeners are getting no love. My tomatoes are hanging in there, tho.

& a tiny bit of wind… long overdue, but it split the main stalk on one of my tomatoes. Merde. I was thinking of splinting it, but Mr. Punk Gardener thinks that will just put more torque on it. Let it be & see if it heals? :/

Plant deciduous trees on the south & SW sides of your house to provide shade on the hot summer days when the trees will be in full leaf.

Here in CenTex it’s almost tree planting time.

I’m planning at least two jujubes, as the fruit is high in vit c & can be dried easily for a snack that will keep over the cold months. Jujubes are also drought & disease resistant & so perfect for this area.

If my apricot refuses to grow any taller (it is green & healthy but unlike the plum, peach & fig, it hasn’t really taken off) by next year, I may plant another fig tree where the apricot is now.

I’m starting with my little fruit orchard this year (I want shade around the house. I also want squirrels & birds to watch out my window- I’m easily amused by them ), but next Spring the veggie beds go in!

putting black plastic over the area where the raised beds will go in Spring, notching & stapling the blackberry plants to backfill their bed, & cutting the vines from the monster wild grapes that grow from the fence to a poor half strangled red oak.
Much sneezing , sweating & mosquito bites incurred, but the yard is happier

Every morning now, mockingbirds serenade me with jazz improv. One of the Bradford Pears on my street is already starting to turn scarlet & my tomato plants are robust (my peppers tho look sad). Overall– BEAUTIFUL out there!

The toad family from my front yard has relatives or maybe friends, who have discovered my backyard berry patch & completely gone burrow happy (in fact, I’m going to name the biggest & boldest guy I found back there Bill Burrows– hehe.) Now , I’m happy for the insect control help & all but I hope he’s not messing with the roots of my blackberries too much!

Peak Oil Hausfrau: Retrofitting the Suburbs

Great post about confronting suburban rot (& the flight of the white collar class back to the cities) before it gets any worse.