Articles - Neil Sperry's GARDENS

Cyclamen Come of Age

By Neil Sperry • December 11, 2019

I’ve told you how many hours I spent reading growers’ manuals to learn how commercial florist crops were produced. That’s back when I was 13 and 14. And one of …

Texas Basket Company – 100 years old and still going strong

By Diane Morey Sitton • December 11, 2019

It’s no coincidence that the basket assembly floor at Texas Basket Company resembles an early 1900s factory. Here, as the family-owned-and-operated company wraps up its 100th anniversary, workers make fruit …

Gardening This Weekend: December 12, 2019

By Neil Sperry • December 11, 2019

Here are your mid-December gardening responsibilities. Scan through the list to see if any applies to your landscape or garden. PLANT• Cold-hardy annuals. Pansies and pinks rate at the top, …

Annuals

By Neil Sperry • December 4, 2019

Pansies and their cousins violas are still going to be the most popular annuals in Texas landscapes month in and month out. But that doesn’t mean that they’re your only …

Great Example of a “Branch Collar”

By Neil Sperry • December 4, 2019

We have a very large pecan that towers over our house from its home near our front door. One particular branch, through its own weight, had lowered to a point …

Tiny, Terrific Tillandsias

By Neil Sperry • December 4, 2019

These may be the ideal houseplants. You can forget to water them by several days and they’ll still love you. They handle bright, indirect sunlight quite well. The types with …

How Long Will My Tree Live?

By Neil Sperry • December 2, 2019

That’s a question that’s asked far less often than “What’s the best fast-growing shade tree?” I wish I could change that, because longevity is far more critical. So to help …

Gardening This Weekend: December 5, 2019

By Neil Sperry • December 2, 2019

Trying to stay ahead of the game? Here are some of our prime goals as we look into the eyes of December. PLANT• Winter color from pansies, violas, pinks, snapdragons, …

3rd printing of Neil Sperry’s Lone Star Gardening