VOLUME 17, ISSUE 16 • May 6, 2021

Neil Sperry editor. Gretchen Drew design and circulation.

Gardening This Weekend

May is the transition month of spring into summer. That transition was rerouted a bit by last winter's cold, but much is on track. Here are this weekend's tasks.

Photo: Cauliflower from the farm garden of Dan Clifton Sparkman of Saint Jo (along the Red River) harvested late last week.

Color gone wild

There’s no holding back. Colors explode in Diane’s Sitton’s great story this month.

Photo: How bold can you go! Randy Gilson sets the bar high at Randyland, a one-of-a-kind garden museum.

Oaks in Distress

February's cold is still showing its impact on oaks across Texas. Several of us visited 10 days ago and decided we needed a recommendation we all could be giving, so we turned to the experts at the Texas A&M Forest Service. Here is the information they released yesterday.

Retraining a Frozen Tree-Form Crape Myrtle

So you had a lovely crape myrtle tree. "Had," as in past tense. This past winter froze it back to the ground. I'll show you how to retrain it in just a couple of steps in a couple of years.

Photo: If you have to start a crape myrtle over, you need these sprouts.

Question of the Week: May 6, 2021

"What are these growths on my trees? Do I need to spray for them?"

I'm already getting these questions for 2021. It happens every year. Click through for my answer.

Photo: Unusual live oak gall.

And, in closing…

That's it for e-gardens. One more reminder to remember your mom. (Hint: gardening gifts are always good.)

I'll be back same time, same e-mailbox next week. But in the meantime I'll be watching for you on my website, and on my Facebook page. And I'll be live on the radio this weekend hoping to hear from you. Tune in a podcast of prior programs.

Check out my newspaper column in your local paper. If they don't carry it, suggest that they do. This is my 50th year to be writing Gardener's Mailbag.

Until next week, thanks for reading…

And happy gardening!