VOLUME 19, ISSUE 43 • October 26, 2023

Neil Sperry editor. Gretchen Drew design and circulation.

First things first, Happy 12th birthday to our grandson Nolan!

Thanks for all your kindness after my announcement of my illness in last week's e-gardens. You're a wonderful family, and I have felt your love and prayers. Thank you.

I've assembled what I think will be a fun read for you in October's final e-gardens. Where has this year gone already!

In this issue…
• An ivy from Asia that's named for Boston;
• October in Galveston - Diane Sitton;
• One photo/many messages;
• To-do list for this weekend; and
• Great questions and my attempts at the answers.

NEIL SPERRY'S LONE STAR GARDENING
Special sale only $34.95!

Short notes from Neil…
My goal in writing this book was to have a reference for the entire state that would cover all aspects of outdoor gardening. "One book does all."

I worked a year preparing it. I put my best 840 photos into it. 344 pages.

I self-published it and opted not to put it in stores or on Amazon to keep your price as low as I could - plus this way I can sign every book as it sells. Yet it's quality. It's a hardback, and it was printed in Texas, not China.

I have guaranteed your satisfaction or promised your money back, yet no one has requested a refund.

I've just taken delivery on the next-to-last shipment of the 6th printing.

I have reduced the price to cover some current expenses I'm encountering.

If you want it as a Christmas gift, don't wait. My signing schedule isn't going to be totally in my control this time. Please give me some lead time.

ORDER FROM neilsperry.com
OR CALL MY OFFICE M-F 9-5
AT (800) 752-4769

Photo: Boston ivy is a vine for all seasons.

Gardening This Weekend

Happy Halloween, and on to your gardening endeavors this final weekend of October. I've made my list of things we should be getting done. I'll share it. Add your own things and let's all get busy.

Photo: Finish digging and dividing spring-blooming perennials - purple coneflowers.

Monet inspired garden is
pretty as a picture

Diane Sitton gets us into some beautiful backyards and gardens. This month it’s in Galveston. You’ll love the trip!

Photo: White wicker, green shutters and a 14-foot ceiling create a cool, airy atmosphere on the front porch.

Boston Ivy Loves Texas, too

If it's the coziness of an ivy-covered cottage that appeals to your gardening tastes, this is probably the plant you should consider. It's well suited to big parts of Texas, and it's a handsome addition as well. Let's outline the details.

Photo: Boston ivy's leaves are splendid deep emerald-green all summer.

How Many Things We Can Talk About

This landscape caught my eye as we waited for a traffic light. I saw something I wanted to discuss with you. But when I cropped it for e-gardens I saw a total of 8. See if you can identify them. We've talked about all of them here before.

Photo: Click to see the teaching topics I found.

Q&A
Ask Neil

A chameleon althaea. My once-every-10-years question about Chinese photinias. My once-every 25-years question about snailseed vines - by name! And somebody wants to take out a live oak! I'm going to be busy. See how I answer them.

And, in closing…

That's it for another episode of autumnal e-gardens. Again, thanks for all your kind comments.

Tune me in on radio this weekend, and join me on my website, and in the dozen or so Texas newspapers that carry my columns. And I'll hope to see you in church. That's always a great place to be!

Until next week, thanks for reading. Go Rangers!

And Happy Gardening!

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