Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:03):
All right, let's get going again here. We got plenty
of business to take care of today on garden Line.
Welcome back. I'm your host, Skip Richter, and you're listening
to garden Line. If you just tuned in for the
first time, Welcome. We're here every Saturday and Sunday in
the morning from six am to ten am. And if
you don't listen to pass shows, you can do that
(00:23):
by going to the ktr H website to the garden
Line section. The pass shows are all posted up there,
or if you want to download the iHeartMedia app, you
can listen live on the app on your even listener
or your phone just driving around wherever you are, or
out in the garden. That's the cool way to listen
to garden Line. Get out there and be doing work
while we talk about doing work in the garden. And
(00:46):
you can also listen to pass shows on the iHeart
Media app. So what we're going to do now is
we're gonna shift gears and we're going to talk about
native plants specifically this hour. If you got a phone
question about a native plants, feel free to give us
a call. Otherwise we're going to hold the other calls
for now because we want to focus our attention on natives,
(01:07):
and I know there'll be a lot of people that
are interested in learning about natives. I have Zach Buchanan
from Buchanan's Native Plants on Eleventh Street and the Heights
as a guest today, and I want to welcome Zach. Hey, Zach,
welcome to Garden Line. It is so good to have
you with us.
Speaker 2 (01:24):
Hey, thank you for having me.
Speaker 1 (01:27):
You bet well, when I was thinking about native plants, naturally,
I thought, well, I got to talk to somebody from Buchanans,
because you guys are the experts in that. I appreciate
the fact that you have such a focus on natives
that not only are native to the region maybe, but
(01:48):
native even specifically as Houston. You have a table that's
just Harris County Natives, and I don't know if people
realize that, but that is that is kind of cool,
and the ones that carry just some real beauty. I
think for a lot of people, uh, they just haven't
delved into natives.
Speaker 2 (02:06):
You know.
Speaker 1 (02:07):
Maybe there I don't know, maybe they have a misconception
about natives. But when they get there or they go
to your website, which is great Buchanan's Native Plants dot Com.
I believe I'm saying that one right. Uh, the photos
and information you have is just outstanding. So I don't
want to compliment you on that, but we're glad to
(02:28):
have you here and i'd like to I'd like to
visit with you. What what has been your experience, you know,
their Buchanans over the years with people and native plants,
you know, in terms of the amount of interest and
maybe some some attitude changes or things like that. Can
you elaborate a little bit on what you guys have
been seeing.
Speaker 2 (02:50):
Sure, yes, well, thank you for first, thank you for
thinking about us, and we appreciate the recognition at our
At our up, we don't carry exclusively natives, but we
carry We try to promote natives as often as possible
and inform people of the benefits of native plants, but
(03:13):
we also carry other things that maybe act native in
Houston and surrounding areas, so you know, we we always
try to when talking with customers and assessing, you know,
what they're looking for, we try to recommend native plants
(03:34):
that will work in those situations. And what we're seeing
is kind of a increased interest in native plants over
the last I don't know, three years or so. And
we think a lot of that has to do with
kind of like the the annual freezes that we're getting
(03:58):
that are that people are have to replace plants that
maybe didn't survive through the freeze. They're they're coming to
us after our semi annual hurricane events that are causing
disruption and looking for things, looking for uh, attractive plants
(04:21):
that are low maintenance. And and I think that's the
biggest draw that customer for customers with native plants is
that they're they're made for our area. They require little
to know human intervention to really thrive and and be
(04:44):
showy in the garden.
Speaker 1 (04:46):
Mm hmm. That that is. That is cool. Yeah, go ahead.
I didn't want to cut you off there.
Speaker 2 (04:53):
Well, I mean, I just I think that it can
be it can be daunting for h new homeowners, new
people new to gardening when they come in and see
native plants in like a four inch or one gallon container.
(05:13):
They're not maybe at their most showy when they're in containers,
but when they're when they're in the garden and when
they're planted and established is when they really take off
and it's it's I always tell people it's kind of
the long game. You're playing the long game with natives,
(05:35):
where it's not instant gratification, but the eventual gratification is
so much more than I think conventional kind of big
box store landscape merchandise. So I think it's it's kind
(05:59):
of like natives surprise you when they come up in
spring after they've been you know, died back to the
ground in the winter. You get that first spring show
or sometimes a summer bloom or a fall bloom, and
(06:20):
when it when that happened, I think it's it's really magical,
and I think that's what kind of endears definitely what
what I love about natives, and I think that that
other people agree, and more and more people are kind
of coming around to that way of thinking, is our
is our experience?
Speaker 1 (06:38):
That's good. Yeah, you're you know, your point is so
well taken, and that's true. Not just a native. I
remember there used to be a salvia called uh indigo
spires and it was a big, old floppy thing, but
it's hard to get it to look pretty in a
container in the garden center, and it just wasn't as
popular as some of the more dwarf types now that
look better in a container. And uh, that is true
(07:00):
of natives. Don't buy plants based on how big the
giant red flower is on top. Buy a plant based
on is it a good healthy plant and bring it home.
And actually you're probably better off with the plant being
more in a vegetative state when you buy it, for
it having the energy to get established and start growing
so that it can bloom or whatever it is that
(07:21):
you want the plant for. So those are very good points.
I appreciate. I appreciate that a lot. So I want
to get into We're going to get into in a moment,
some specifics natives that that you think are great. And
so why don't I just have you start off on that.
Let's go through something close to the equivalent of a
(07:44):
top ten list. After I throw in a one or two,
we end up with a Baker's dozen. But let's let's
have you tell us about what is one native we
can start off with. We you know what I said that,
and I've got to go to a break, Zach, I'm
sitting there not watching my plock. I get into talking
about plants. We'll start off with that. When we come back.
(08:05):
I have an idea though, I have an idea for
your non You mentioned plants that are not native, because yeah,
you guys carry I talk about all the time when
I talk about Buchanans. You know, the incredible houseplant greenhouse
and the fruit trees and everything you have. You said
that they're plants that are not native, but they act
like natives, And so I have an idea. We need
to make a There used to be a bun There
(08:26):
is a bumper sticker on cars. You need to make
a sticker and it says I'm not from Texas, but
I got here as fast as I could. And you
need to stay on the non natives that live like
their natives. Just the marketing idea. All right, let's take
a break. We'll be right back with Zach Buchanan from
Buchanan's Native Plants in just a moment. All right, welcome back.
(08:50):
We are here with Zach Buchanan from Buchanans Native Plants,
and today we're talking about natives and specifically we're going
to go into some natives that you definfinitely need to
include in your landscape. Maybe you're not a native enthusiasal.
Some people do the whole landscape in natives. But maybe
you're like, Okay, I don't want to do that. Well,
here's some natives that you that you really need to
(09:12):
have in any kind of landscape in our area. And Zach, well,
why don't you go ahead and kick it off without
any further ado.
Speaker 2 (09:21):
Yeah. So, my my number one that is probably most
prominent in my yard and that we sell a whole
lot of, and for good reason, is a turk's cap.
I think it's kind of a unbeatable plant. It can
(09:42):
do shade parts on full sun. It's really adaptable, and
the flowers are kind of always on the plant and
they'reautiful red, kind of really unique shape, looks like a
(10:06):
turk's cap where it gets its name. But it's also
like a huge pollinator attractor, a real good hummingbird attractor.
I've got it planted out plant a big window at
our house, and during hummingbird season, I'll see them out
there getting nectar from its almost daily.
Speaker 1 (10:29):
Hmm. Cool. Yeah, I've got I've got one in my
I have an area just for hummingbirds that's out from
where I sit, just so we can sit out there
and watch them. And I've had turks cap in there,
and boy it is it is amazingly tough.
Speaker 2 (10:42):
Plan.
Speaker 1 (10:42):
In fact, I'm going to post something to our social media.
I found one up on the campus gardens at Texas
A and M. That was huge. It was so tall,
it was like, I don't know, six seven feet almost,
And normally they're not nearly that big, aren't they. I
think of Turk's cap typically being maybe shoulder high, but
(11:06):
not much more than that.
Speaker 2 (11:08):
My mosture one, the one in my garden that's most mature,
is taller than me, probably about seven feet right now.
And I've got to, you know, trim up, trim up
the bottom a little maybe a little more narrow, but
but yeah, it's just, uh, it's going great guns And
I think it all again with natives, like being self sufficient.
(11:33):
A big thing about them is is because they're adapted
to our area, they're really good at being drought tolerant.
A lot of these where you know, if you if
you go, you know, a week or two without turning
on the sprinkler or something, and they're established, they'll be fine,
(11:54):
and and they might even benefit from that and put
on a greater show.
Speaker 1 (11:58):
Yeah that's cool. Yeah, Okay, what's the plant Number two.
Speaker 2 (12:06):
I've got to say, like a through in a couple
of grasses, because I just love the texture that that
ornamental grasses and native grasses bring to a landscape. And
I mean the one that I feel like everybody should
have is Gulf Coast Mealy. It's a real thin blade
(12:29):
grass doesn't get huge, probably about three to four feet mature.
But what I think is, again, they these natives, if
they're not putting on like a show all year long,
when they bloom, they they have like this real grand explosion.
(12:54):
And I think Golf Coast merely is a perfect perfect
example of that, where in fall mhm, it will get
covered and when they're planted it like un mass you
can get this really great pink cloud that just kind
of hovers over the plant. And I think when it's
(13:18):
it's really beautiful and and I think they're they're a
great thing to bring some unique texture to the landscape
and kind of break up, you know, maybe the monotony
of of ever green, always green, kind of leaves that
all look the same that that landscapes can sometimes devolve into.
Speaker 1 (13:45):
That's a good point. A couple of tips for people
that are listening about this Gulf merely if you have
an area where water is going across and you need
to stabilize so to prevent erosion, a bed of that
and it could be masked. It doesn't just have to
be An agil plant is a great way to slow
the water down and do that. And also, if you're
(14:05):
going to plant one, and you can put it where
you're going to view it from the side opposite of
where the sun is shining on it, if you can
picture that, that is better. And from this, if you're
standing like with the sun to your back looking at
the plant, it's kind of a burgundy looking cloud above it.
But when you walk around the other side and the
sun is coming through, oh gosh, it lights up incredibly.
(14:28):
So just a little added tip of there on that one.
What would be plant number three?
Speaker 2 (14:37):
I'm going to include a tree and I think you know,
we we carry a lot of different trees, a lot
of native trees, non native trees or close to Houston
native trees, but one that's native to kind of Houston
(14:57):
and Harris County that we kind of sing the praises
of all the time is not all oak. It's a
variety of oak tree that it's about seventy five feet
tall and full size, and and it gets fall color
(15:18):
late in fall where it's kind of red or orange,
but it is it's really kind of made for our
heavy clay soil and can thrive in that in that situation.
And for that reason, I think it's it'd be my
(15:38):
number one. And you know, in my neighborhood, I see
a lot of people putting like just the go to
is live oaks, like, oh, I need a planet, treat
planet live oak and live oaks are awesome. There's nothing
wrong with live oaks, but we need to we need
to think about diversity too, and and the benefits that
(15:58):
that brings to ourighborhood and our and kind of our
urban forest is plant different stuff and be that person
on the block that has that showy tree that's putting
off fall color and its not lose them all its
leaves and spring. Yeah, and you got to clean them
(16:19):
all up.
Speaker 1 (16:19):
I know that's a good point. Houston is already a
live oak forest, folks, and so we're we're covered on that.
I love nutall too. A lot of people have heard
of Schumart oak. Nuttall is a red oak like Schumart
oak is and Schumart's great. If you've got a nice,
well drained, deep soil, you know, quality soil and stuff,
it's fine. But nuttall, if you've got a spot that's
(16:41):
a little soggy wet, you know, doesn't drain really great,
nuttall will grow in that. And it's very versatile. Like
Zach said, and nuttall is the oak that was chosen
to plant as a memorial to Randy Lemon out at
the Brookwood community. If you go out to Brookwood, ask
them to see Randy's nuttall oak and you can. You
can see one out there that's doing real well. All right, Zach,
(17:03):
let's hit plant number four.
Speaker 2 (17:06):
Okay, let's just dive into I'm gonna I'm gonna go
kind of with a large shrub, smaller tree. Yopon holly
goes by pride of Houston. Yopon holly. Sometimes there's a
(17:27):
dwarf variety of yopon holly that's a good substitute, a
good native substitute for boxwoods. When planting a row of
something that you want to be evergreen and kind of
muldible or shapeable, dwarf yopon holly is the way to go.
But also just full size yopon holly can turn into
(17:49):
a really beautiful and unique shaped kind of mid size
to large tree over time. It's evergreen and it's gonna
it's gonna berry. It's gonna fruit, and that fruit attracts wildlife.
(18:10):
It feeds birds. It'll feed birds going into winter when
they need that that food source the most. And I
think it's just an awesome plant that again, it's it's
kind of weird looking in a pot, but then you
see it like there's a there's the house that I
(18:31):
walk by that's got a bunch of them that are
just kind of massive and mature, and I think it
just it. It doesn't look like anything else. It's it's
just kind of sprawling out and reaching out over the
over the rest of the yard. And it's uh. And
those berries in the winter are awesome.
Speaker 1 (18:53):
That's good. I like that plant too. And you know
you can you can train it like you want. I've
seen it trained up where they like make a mini
tree out of it. They clean up the trunk and
you put it in the middle of a flower bed
and then you have all things around it that are
pretty also, and it stands above it with the berries
and everything. It's really beautiful, so it's a versatile plant.
(19:14):
We're gonna have to go to a break here in
less than thirty seconds, so we'll come back to this list.
I think we have to shift gears. We're four into
a ten plant list, so that this is all really
really helpful, good information. We're visiting with Zac Buchanan from
Buchanan's Native Plants on Eleventh Street, and if you are
(19:35):
interested in checking them out, you ought to check them
out on the web also as well as stopping buy there.
We'll be right back folks. Alrighty, welcome back, Welcome back
to Guardline. Good to have you with us today. Hey,
you know I talk all the time about ACE hardware stores.
ACE is the place for and you just get to
fill in the blank. It's a place for your gardening supplies.
(19:57):
It's a place for paint. It's the place for all
the stuff you'd expect from a hardware store. But it's
also the place for quality hand tools to fit your budget.
From ACE from Milwaukee, Stanley Blackendeck or Craftsman de Walt,
they've got you covered for all of those things. Now
you need to know too, though, that ACE makes it
easy if you know what you want or need, you
(20:17):
can simply buy it online from that store's website and
then pick it up at the store. You can sign
up online also for the ACE Rewards program. I belong
to that and I hope you will too, because you
get discounts and special offers only for ACE Rewards customers.
They're emailed directly to you. So hey, if you're can
go through the register, you might as well go through
the register as an ACE Rewards member. It really pays off.
(20:41):
ACE stores are all over. You can go to ACE
Hardware Texas dot com to find yours. Places like out
East in Childs at Child's Building Supply on North sixteenth
and Orange. How about Southwest Way, Southwest Wartenfeed and ACE
on North Richmond Road, Brenham Ace on North Parkway, North
Austin Park, rather Fulsher Ace on FM three fifty nine,
(21:02):
and Hamilton Ace on Highway six in the Bear Creek area,
and then as well as Bay Cliff Ace. It's on
Grad Avenue down south of Keema. ACE Hardware stores are
all over. Go to Acehardware Texas dot com. We are
visiting with Zach Buchin in this hour on native plants,
So just a little instruction on call in. If you
have a native plant question, please feel free to call
(21:24):
in between now and nine to thirty. Zach's going to
be with us till nine thirty and we'll take the
call about that. If you have an other kind of
gardening question, I'll be taking those between nine thirty and
ten as we wind up the show today. So either
way you want to go about it, well, Zach, let's
jump back into your list. Thanks for hanging around. By
the way, what would be the fifth plant? I think
(21:46):
we've gone through four.
Speaker 2 (21:49):
So let's get some some showy blooms in there. So
one that we try to promote, especially around like fall
time when people are are buying mums and uh and
stuff like that to put in their garden or on
their patio, we like to recommend fall aster, which is
(22:12):
a native to our area and it's a fall bloomer
and it it has a kind of purple daisy, small
daisy like flower, but it gets kind of covered with them,
similar to yeah, and I think it's it's a great
(22:36):
source of nectar for h and pollen for native bees,
which I kind of want to I want to take
a second just to promote natives for the insect population
and the importance of natives for native insects, which they
(22:57):
have a kind of a symbia relationship. You know, not
all insects in the garden are bad. Native plants bring
good insects to your garden, which then bring good birds
to your garden to eat those insects. And when we
have when we have plants from different parts of the
(23:18):
country or different parts of the world, even that's when
we introduce kind of harmful can introduce harmful insects into
our garden that are that become more of a problem.
And so it just can't be overstated the benefits of
native plants in the garden and that relationship that they
(23:41):
have with the rest of the ecosystem.
Speaker 1 (23:44):
That's a good point.
Speaker 2 (23:45):
You know.
Speaker 1 (23:45):
If I had to give a top five list of
natives in my book, fall Asters on that list, it
is it makes a small shrub that it's just a
green shrub. During the year, you don't you notice it,
I mean, you know, not spectActor is pretty green. Uh,
but then in the fall you know it. You're right,
It's just it's hard to find a spot that doesn't
(24:06):
have a bloom on it on that plant and those
little daisy like blooms. Being a little small daisy like
bloom really attract beneficial insects too. I was out in
Fredericksburg in their market plots one year when the fall
astro was blooming and I walked up to him and
I have never seen so many surfing flies and hoverflies
another name for it. They were just going to town.
(24:29):
And that's an insect whose larvae eats our aphens, for example,
and little tiny parasitoid wasps on it and things. So
if you want to if you want to have an
organic garden, if you want to bring in beneficials, that
is one of many plants that needs to be part
of your landscape.
Speaker 2 (24:44):
So yeah, we have a kind of a go ahead
on the on the same on the same kind of trajectory,
I was going to go into another one. The Gulf
Coast penstemen for the as those penstamen, I think is
another really kind of underrated but showy native plant that
(25:10):
gets thirty inches tall and it has these really kind
of delicate, beautiful purple blooms that are really good for
cut flowers, which a lot of these natives can be
used for cut flowers and bringing them into the home,
(25:33):
and and I think just to throw out some really
showy things, this brass gulfos penstemen. I think it is
a great option.
Speaker 1 (25:45):
It is, it is outstanding and being a perennial here,
it's almost fool proof. I mean, you know, water it's some,
but it's a good tough plant and it does better
as you water it. I like the way those tall
spikes you were describing. They the blooms are sort of
out in the air on them. You know, it's not
(26:06):
like this tight lot of blooms. It's it's very open
and so in an arrangement that is a really pretty addition.
You know, so many of the store bought flowers are
all compact and everything like that, but it is a
it makes a very natural, beautiful arrangement and a nice statement,
you know. Being thirty inches high, you can put it
behind some lower growing flowers or in front of some
(26:27):
taller maybe green shrubs or something like that. That's a
great choice. Well, I'll I'll talk and let you go
on to where are we at now? Number seven?
Speaker 2 (26:37):
Okay, Yeah, moving right along. I'm gonna I'm gonna go
with another another ornamental graph that I think is very
different in look than the golf, than the Gulf Coast
Mew League that we mentioned earlier, this one. What I
(26:58):
love about the plant is inland coeoats. What I love
about inland coeoats is that it can do shade or
parts on where most ornamental grasses kind of want as
much sun as possible. The inland fiots can take a
lot less and do really well. And so it has
(27:21):
a texture similar to bamboo. I tell people a lot
like kind of big broad blades that grow up a
stalk and then kind of lates well I guess summer
into fall. At the top of that stalk, it starts
to develop these keeed clusters that look like oats and
(27:46):
they're just kind of they're dangling. And if it's in
an area that gets that gets a lot of wind
or breezes going through it. The dangling oats on this
on you know, big clusters of inland coots. It looks
it just looks amazing and again bringing a different texture
(28:09):
even in the even with a bunch of grasses, this
is a different texture of grass that it's it's unique
and it I think it's just it's a really great option,
especially for shade when yes, everyone really struggles with what
to put in shade gardens, and I think there's a
(28:31):
lot of great options and this is one of them.
Speaker 1 (28:35):
Yeah, when I've when I've grown it, with the seed
heads coming up like they do and arching, weeping, over
arching over, I think it's been about knee high. Does
that sound about right terms of size, just to get
people an idea, so like a taller groundcover. But it's
not that the leaves are all up there. That's the
that's the seed heads coming up above the foliage. And
(28:55):
you know, we were just talking about penstemann being a
good one for arrangements both fresh and dried. Inland seos
is another nice thing to add to a natural looking arrangement. Zach,
I'm up against him.
Speaker 2 (29:11):
I'll let you go.
Speaker 1 (29:12):
Yeah, yeah, I'm up against a heartbreak. Hold that thought
and we'll come back to it. We also have a
question from Daniel when we come back to be right back, folks,
All right, folks, welcome back to guarden Line. We are
visiting with Zach Buchanan from Buchanan's Native Plants on eleven
Street in the Heights, and I've given Zach the impossible
(29:34):
task of coming up with top ten list of native plants,
and we're going through those right now, so we'll just
take off and and do that. Zach. We have a
we have a caller that I'm going to put on
has a question I believe about natives. We're going to
go to Daniel and Cyprus. Hey, Daniel, welcome to Guardian.
Speaker 3 (29:57):
Thank you. My question is I'd like to get that
list of the top ten Texas native plants and also
that that nut tailler tree?
Speaker 2 (30:12):
Is that?
Speaker 3 (30:12):
Am I saying that?
Speaker 2 (30:13):
Right? O? N U T T A L L.
Speaker 3 (30:21):
Yeah? I have a live oak in my front yard
and the root system, man, it's terrible that they've got big,
huge roots on the top and I can't cut my
yard and I have to go around them. Uh is
it nutella oak? Is the root system like that.
Speaker 2 (30:48):
No prominent or elevated and sometimes live oaks can get
And I think a lot of that can have to
do with like how it's planted and established from the
(31:09):
from the outset. But but it shouldn't be as as
kind of elevated as live oaks are.
Speaker 3 (31:19):
Okay, so so you're also the yeah, Daniel.
Speaker 1 (31:26):
The one other comment on that is when we have
a heavy clay soil that doesn't have good oxygen down deep.
The roots start out shallower than they could and as
a result, as they get bigger, then you see them
on the surface more and so the soil also has
an impact on that as well. Uh, did you have
a follow up you want to ask?
Speaker 3 (31:50):
I wanted to.
Speaker 1 (31:52):
So you're located on eleventh Street, yes.
Speaker 2 (31:56):
And the heights between Studa Wood and Heights Boulevard.
Speaker 3 (32:00):
What what is a physical address.
Speaker 2 (32:04):
Six eleven East Eleventh Street.
Speaker 3 (32:08):
Okay, I used to so, Daniel, I ask the questions.
Speaker 1 (32:17):
Yeah, yes, you go pick them apart. They've got knowledgeable
staff and all kinds of things, and you get to
see these plants. Do Hey, Daniel, thank you. I appreciate
I appreciate a lot your question coming in. Uh, let's see, uh, Zach,
let's go on to your next plant, and then I'm
gonna take another call.
Speaker 2 (32:36):
Okay, I was going to go into you know, some
of these plants on the list are ones that I've
been familiar with for a long time and that we've
carried for a long time. But also some of them
are kind of new to me. They've they've been around
a long time. As all these plants have longer than me. Uh,
(32:58):
but but some of sometimes I learn about new things,
and one I've recently learned about that we're carrying more
frequently that I really like is rattlesnake master, which is
a cool sounding plant. I think it's it's got a
really cool name, but it's got a really unique look
(33:21):
and extremely beneficial again to like the pollinators and insects
that we're talking about, the base of the plant kind
of resembles like a soft leaf yucca with kind of
like little soft spines on the on the blades. But
(33:42):
then once it's established, it sends up these tall, sometimes
six feet stalks that have kind of like golf ball
looking blooms on them that are it's just like a
three six the flower source of nectar for our insects
(34:07):
and pollinators, and it's just it's related to a carrot,
so it kind of has like a really really uh
established an extensive root system. But I just think it's
a it's a really cool looking plant. And again talking
(34:29):
about texture, uh, breaking up you know, more conventional looking plants,
breaking it up with something unique, especially in in like
a grouping. It's a really cool, uh you know, conversation
piece in the garden if anything else.
Speaker 1 (34:49):
Yeah, well the name alone. I wonder how it came
up with that name. Maybe I don't want to know.
Speaker 2 (34:53):
I was I was reading reading like I think Native
Americans use it for use the root to eat rattlesnake bites.
So take that with a grain of salt.
Speaker 1 (35:07):
But yeah, by the way, this is not medical advice
for those of you out there, right, Yeah, that's true.
That is true.
Speaker 2 (35:22):
Uh.
Speaker 1 (35:23):
Let's go now to Jim and a Taska scene. Hey, Jim,
welcome to garden Line. We're coming up on the top
of the hour. But let's see if we can get
your question in.
Speaker 2 (35:30):
Okay, real quick, help help.
Speaker 4 (35:33):
What I've done is I have an eleven inch border
around my whole front yard planner. Okay, it's about one
hundred feet. I put volcano rock in there. Not a
good idea. It's all over the place. I would like
to take a plant and put that plant a plant
in there to make a nice low hedge border around
(35:54):
my planter and my whole front yard and around the
trees or whatever what you recommend.
Speaker 1 (35:59):
Okay, all right, zach he grower recommendations.
Speaker 2 (36:04):
How low are you looking for?
Speaker 4 (36:07):
Well, I'm looking for something like six or eight inches.
Speaker 2 (36:11):
Okay, I mean it can get it can get a
little aggressive. But one that I like if it's constrained,
one that I really like and have in my garden
is frog fruit. It's a it's a groundcover, but it gets.
It can get to about six inches tall.
Speaker 1 (36:35):
And all right, folks, we're going to have to continue
this right after the break. We just hit it. We
ran out of time here, hang around, we'll come back
to you. Jim, I'm gonna just jump in fast and listening.
We got a lot of things to talk about. So
here we go. Welcome back to Guardline. Good to have
you with us. Listen, it is hurricane season, and even
(36:58):
if it's not hurricane season, and we can have summer
storms that devastate trees. Remember last year two storms, one
hurricane one knot like power out for two weeks for
each of those. In some areas of the city. You
need to get your trees trimmed properly. It needs to
start at planting with good training and then continue with
(37:18):
appropriate trimming. And if you haven't had that done, you
need to have Martin spoon More from Affordable Tree come out,
take a look at your trees and assess them. And
see what needs to be done. Proper pruning is going
to help reduce property damage from limbs that fall, protect
power lines and chilis. That's why the power goes out
during these storms. Tree hits the power line, reise the
(37:41):
risk of injury to people. That's incredibly important. And just
keep your trees healthier and more stable. Plus you're not
spending money on emergency removal. You know, when storm comes through,
trees are down everywhere and everybody wants them out today
and what that ain't going to happen right is just
too much and mainly just to give you peace of mine. Now,
Martin Spoonmore's company, Affordable Tree, you can reach them at
(38:04):
seven to one three six nine nine two six sixty three.
That's seven one three six nine nine two six six
three carton. Call Martin today, get on the schedule and
get this done, because don't wait until the hurricanes in
the Gulf and try to hurry up and get it done.
Then call them today. We're going to head back out
to the to the show lines. Here we are visiting
(38:27):
with Zach Buchanan from Buchanan's Native Plants on eleven Street
in the Heights, and we got a call from a
gym in a task casita and one hundred. If you
can hook us both up together, then we can continue
this call. We were talking about a very low growing
plant a foreg in front and Zach you had suggested
(38:48):
frog fruit, which I think it's like my favorite native groundcover.
I mean, I'll go to a bend in parking lots
in Houston and there's a crack in the parking lot
and there's a frog fruit plant six feet wide and
it has come out of the crack and is just
making a beautiful groundcover over the abandoned, abandon concrete. That
(39:08):
is a tough plant that looks good.
Speaker 2 (39:12):
Yeah, it really is. And before the break, I was
going to say, like when when it gets out of hand,
I just take a weed eater to it and trim
it back, and it has it has no issue with that,
like it loves abuse. I've got it. I've got it
planted on a western exposure right next to my driveway
(39:36):
and it starts like creeping out over the hot driveway,
getting blasted by that afternoon sun and it I barely
if ever water it. And it's right now it's covered
with blooms, which again it's a. It's a good pollinator attractor. Yeah,
so I think.
Speaker 1 (39:56):
That's like, Yeah, they look like litt matchheads almost sticking
up with little white flowers around the matchhead. Right, that's
really bright. Hey, Jim, did that cover your question on that?
Speaker 2 (40:08):
Well?
Speaker 4 (40:08):
The question I was looking My question is I would
like something like a hedge because I didn't want to
lay rock or a.
Speaker 2 (40:15):
Paper around it.
Speaker 4 (40:16):
I've got it divided with metal right now, six inches
eleven all around my whole front yard. But I wanted
something like a low hedge that I can shape, and
that's what I was looking for.
Speaker 2 (40:28):
No, I liked a fog I did. Well.
Speaker 1 (40:32):
Did I understand you wanted it's six inches high though?
Or what was that? How high do you want the
hedge to be?
Speaker 2 (40:38):
Yeah, I want the hedge I've seen.
Speaker 4 (40:40):
I've seen the hedge design six or eight inches high,
and I've seen it before, but I don't I can't
find out what plant that is. I've asked people.
Speaker 2 (40:50):
No one knows. I've I've also seen in the neighborhood.
I think some people have like I guess they're getting
like four inch dwarf he upon Holly, which we talked
about earlier in the episode, they're getting a little dwarfo
ponds and planting those as a as a really really
low hedge and keeping that trimmed are the option.
Speaker 1 (41:20):
Okay, I've never seen that. All right, y'all, go ahead,
any ideas aed on on something something low like that, something.
Speaker 4 (41:29):
A little bit more formal shape where I can just
shape it with my tools, you know, something like I said,
I've got at least the feet.
Speaker 2 (41:37):
So yeah, I mean so that dwarf upon Holly, I
mean another one that, well, that probably wouldn't work. I mean,
I'd probably trying to think of other options. Oh. The
other thing I was going to recommend, uh, Mexican heather,
(41:59):
I think. I mean, all these are left to their
own devices are gonna probably get a little bit taller
than six inches, but they can be they can be
shaped and maintained. But Mexican heather is really low growing,
kind of dense perennial that it gets it gets covered
(42:19):
with purple flowers and it's a huge tractor. Yeah. I
love seeing like honey Bee's going crazy for it. And
it's got kind of that like formal look to it too.
Speaker 1 (42:37):
All Right, Well, hey, I'm gonna I'm gonna have to
cut this one short, so we keep going. We've got
a lot of plants to do. Jim, I appreciate that call.
Just remember on that Mexican heather that it is coal tender,
and so in the in the winter, when a freeze hits,
it's gonna take it down. And if you got a
little mulch around, it'll come back out of the mult
just fine. But it's not going to be a midwinter
hedge for you. It'll turn brown. But I appreciate your call,
(42:59):
Thank you, Thank you very much for that.
Speaker 2 (43:02):
Than Jim.
Speaker 1 (43:03):
Yeah, Zach, we were on number eight was Rattlesnak Master.
What's the next one?
Speaker 2 (43:12):
So one that I don't have a ton of personal
hands on experience with, but I wanted to share because
I was talking to a customer a while ago and
they were just seeing the praises of Barbados cherry or
dwarf Barbados cherry. I think both are equally good. But
(43:37):
she was talking about how she put dwarf Barbados cherry
in her garden and it I think something else kind
of like grew over it and overtook it, and that
later later in the season she like got in the
garden and trimmed everything up and uncovered this Barbados cherry
(43:57):
that was just like or this dwarf Barbados that was
just like thriving. Uh and and didn't skip a beat
being covered up by all this other stuff. And she
was just like going on and on about how great
it was. So I any opportunity I have to kind
of share this excitement that she had, I like to
(44:20):
share like anecdotal evidence with customers. And I think it's
a really nice, kind of delicate looking perennial shrub that
gets these really beautiful and kind of unique pink flowers
that can be followed by a fruit as well.
Speaker 1 (44:42):
Yeah, and and and the fruit will bring birds in too,
that yes for sure. On that one listen, I'm gonna
I want to add one thing before we go to
our next break here, and that is somebody had asked
about where can I get the list, folks. I'm going
to post Zach's list to our Facebook and Instagram pages
(45:03):
on social media, So follow Gardenline on Facebook or Instagram
you can see it there, and we will be posting
them to that spot. But I also want to let
you know that if you go to their website, buchanans
Plants dot com. There's a resources section buchanons plants dot com.
There's a resources section and in that is a plant library,
(45:26):
and there is a long list of plants, and there's
a box you can check for North American natives or
another box for Texas Natives. And on the Texas Natives
you're going to see things like we were talking about
Inland Coo. It's a minute ago. What does that look like?
They're describing it, but I can't picture it. There's a
picture of it on there and a lot more information.
So buchanans plants dot com. No Natives in the website
(45:48):
name bu cannons plants dot com Resources Plant Library, and
that the ten list isn't on there, but more than
the ten are on there, and it's really really helpful resource.
I got to go to a break. When we come back,
we are going to talk to Kurt in Cypress, who
has a question about live oak sprouts. Okay, hey, welcome
(46:10):
back to garden Line. Glad to have you with us today.
We're going to jump right in here. Uh, let's see
Kurt in Cypress. Can you connect me with Zach and
Kirt at the same time, please we Kurt has a
question about oak sprouts, and I think I'm gonna curty
you there.
Speaker 2 (46:30):
Hey, Kurt, Yes, sir, all right, I.
Speaker 1 (46:34):
Think I know what you're talking about. But is your
what is your question about oak sprouts?
Speaker 5 (46:39):
I've got these oak sprouts in my grass. I've got
two Southern live oak trees in my front yard and
these little sprouts keep popping up all over in the
yard inside of Saint Augustine's my grass.
Speaker 1 (46:52):
Yeah, so so. Live oaks are native along the Gulf Coast,
but there's a there's a group of live oaks that's
up in Central Texas and it's still a live oak,
but it's just a little different strain, a little population
that is different in a little way. And one of
the ways is the live oaks from Central Sexes. And
it's not just central but I'm trying to oversimplify it.
(47:13):
They root sprout very readily, and that's why when you
drive through the hill country, you'll out in a pasture,
you'll see clumps of oak trees. You'll see that all
the way down. I've seen it in de wat County,
run Quero in places, just clumps of oaks that are
growing together and that is a that is just that strain,
and so when those are selected for yard trees, you're
(47:34):
more likely to get the little sprouts to come up
when you damn it, when you mess with the soil
like a rototiller, when you put in a flower bed
and water it a lot, that that just encourages them more.
There's always a possibility that it could actually be an
acorn that fell on the ground that is sprouting as
a little tree. But when you see a whole bunch
of them, I lean toward thinking that's probably connected to
(47:56):
a root, and you can always dig down and check.
Speaker 2 (47:59):
So is there any way to control that? I mean,
one barbarus told me I.
Speaker 5 (48:03):
Could put some of that that micro fertilizer on there,
And he told me to use a that won't a
punch if you will, and poke some holes and put
that fertilizer around it and they'll make it go, make
them re resind or reduce.
Speaker 1 (48:20):
No, you never heard of a life makes things grow.
Now microlife makes grow. That's not going to do it.
And you don't want to spram with a herbicide because
if they're connected to the mother tree, you're getting the
herbicide into that mother tree, and that's a bad deal.
I've seen people use a very thick ground cloth fabric
over it and then put something heavy over that, you know,
like gravel kind of things or something to just kind
(48:43):
of hold them down and suppress them. Zach, Do you
have any other thoughts on trying to deal with those
sprouts unfortunately?
Speaker 2 (48:53):
Now? I mean I live. Yeah, if if possible, I'd
probably just try a over them along with my grass
and try to help that grass kind of overtake them.
But yeah, I think that's a it's a tough place
to be in.
Speaker 1 (49:17):
Yeah, anything you do to get rid of them, there's
gonna come back, you know. So I don't have a
good answer to that one, Kurt, but I do appreciate
your call. Thanks, and appreciate to Garland. You bet so, Zach.
Let's see we did Barbados. Cherry is number nine. Oh
you're cheating here. You gave me eleven. Just count that's okay.
(49:39):
I may add some of my own to it if
we have time. What is number ten for you?
Speaker 2 (49:45):
So? Yeah, I mean I could, I could include them together,
but but like I think one that I a native salvia,
which we haven't talked about any salvias this list, but
tropical sage is kind of the common name for it.
(50:06):
It's not really tropical in appearance, but that's the name
it was given. But I think it's a really cool
native salvia that kind of like some of the other
bloomers that we've talked about, gets kind of long, tall
spires of kind of reddish calvia flowers which are great
(50:33):
for hummingbirds, bees, pollinators. And something that I think is
really cool about it is it can be it. You know,
some people say there's nothing that's deer resistant really, but
tropical stage is one of those that can be deer
(50:54):
resistant because of kind of the smell and texture of
the of the folio. And it gets about thirty inches tall. Again,
but I just think it's a really cool and kind
of I don't know, different salvia for the for your
(51:15):
landscape and bring something different to the garden.
Speaker 1 (51:20):
Yeah, and salvia is like a lot of sun, but
I've noticed tropical sage in moderate shade with some dapple
sun and stuff, it does pretty well.
Speaker 2 (51:28):
Yeah as a plant.
Speaker 1 (51:30):
Yeah. And also it's red blooms, so here come the hummingbirds.
Speaker 2 (51:34):
Right right exactly.
Speaker 1 (51:36):
Yeah, Yeah, another good reason to planet well Okay, that's
a good one. And by the way, it's been used
in breeding for a lot of others. There's one called
Lady in Red that is a more compact floriferous version.
But that's what always happens to the native plants. We
take them and we try to turn them into look
like something that's not native, but tropical. Sage is a
(51:59):
parent for a lot of other good salvia Salvia coccinia. Uh,
all right, give us another one. I believe you have
one more here on the.
Speaker 2 (52:06):
List, so kind of my my last one, Greg's miss Flower,
Greg's blue missflower. This is one that it's kind of
low growing, kind of grows out rather than up, so
(52:28):
you can give it a lot of room and it'll
fill up an area. Has kind of the leaves are
maybe I want to liken them to like, I don't know,
like a almost like a partially shaped leaf but a
little bigger. So it's kind of again a good texture there.
(52:52):
But then what what you're really growing it for is
the flowers, and they are really prevalent on top of
this massive of foliage, and it gets this kind of
lavender blue cluster of a little hairy flowers that that
(53:15):
butterflies just go crazy for and they do excellent nectar source.
Speaker 1 (53:23):
Yeah that the monarchs and queens both I believe like
that plant a lot, uh and others. You know, I've
never seen so many butterflies on a plants as on
that plant. You know how you're not supposed to yell
fire in a crowded theater. I'm pretty sure if you
go out in your garden and you yell Greg's missflower,
You're gonna be stampeded by butterflies because they just love
(53:46):
that thing. Yeah, that is a good one. Well, let
me throw let me throw one more on my own
in here. We got just a little bit of time here.
I know I gave you the impossible task of coming
up with just about ten. Only there's so many good ones.
But I really think a lot of purple cone flower.
(54:06):
And it's again been bred into different colors and sizes
and shapes so it behaves like we want it to
and everything, But just the standard purple cone flower. There's
a native type that's very taller with strappy petals as well,
but just the standard purple cone flower. You've got a
shady area, and you want some things that are perennial
that come out in it where maybe it gets some
(54:27):
morning sun or fairly bright but not full sun. It'll
put up with that and it does really well. And
that's another butterfly magnet. Have you any other thoughts on
the cone flowers.
Speaker 2 (54:41):
No, I think they're amazing, and I think just the
original native variety like you're talking about, you know, you
see all the different colors and stuff. But you know,
I was trying to think of like an analogy for
natives and like you were saying, how they eat like
(55:01):
these hybrids or new varieties using natives. Natives are like
the original. They've been around forever and as much as
people might try to improve on them, there's really nothing
they can be improved on. These these amazing plants that
have adapted over over millions of years to be what
(55:23):
they are, which is like made for our area and
nothing to do with that.
Speaker 1 (55:31):
Is a that is a good point. Uh, let's see,
Carol and sugar Land. I'm not gonna have enough time
to take you before the break, but if you want
to hang around until after the bottom of the hour,
we'll taco your question then as well. Let's see. I
wanted to well, there was another plant that I wanted to, Oh, oh,
(55:54):
I know it is red buck Eye. You know, a
lot of our neighborhoods, including like the Heights where your
garden center is on a love East eleventh Street. In time,
they just get shadier and shadier, and so flowers in general,
like sun and there's exceptions, but red buck Eye is
an awesome plan. Would you talk about that just a
(56:16):
little bit we have I have like fifteen twenty seconds.
Speaker 2 (56:19):
I'm sorry, Well, I think so so what I see
a lot around how a lot is a lot of
red buds, But like red buck Eye, I think is
a similar looking has a similar looking bloom, and it's
similarly a you know, mid sized tree. But this the
(56:42):
thing is a lot better.
Speaker 1 (56:44):
I'm sorry, I'm not think I've run out of time.
Thank you so much for being on. I really appreciate you.
Sorry to have to catch off at the end. This
has been great.
All right, let's get going again here. We got plenty
of business to take care of today on garden Line.
Welcome back. I'm your host, Skip Richter, and you're listening
to garden Line. If you just tuned in for the
first time, Welcome. We're here every Saturday and Sunday in
the morning from six am to ten am. And if
you don't listen to pass shows, you can do that
(00:23):
by going to the ktr H website to the garden
Line section. The pass shows are all posted up there,
or if you want to download the iHeartMedia app, you
can listen live on the app on your even listener
or your phone just driving around wherever you are, or
out in the garden. That's the cool way to listen
to garden Line. Get out there and be doing work
while we talk about doing work in the garden. And
(00:46):
you can also listen to pass shows on the iHeart
Media app. So what we're going to do now is
we're gonna shift gears and we're going to talk about
native plants specifically this hour. If you got a phone
question about a native plants, feel free to give us
a call. Otherwise we're going to hold the other calls
for now because we want to focus our attention on natives,
(01:07):
and I know there'll be a lot of people that
are interested in learning about natives. I have Zach Buchanan
from Buchanan's Native Plants on Eleventh Street and the Heights
as a guest today, and I want to welcome Zach. Hey, Zach,
welcome to Garden Line. It is so good to have
you with us.
Speaker 2 (01:24):
Hey, thank you for having me.
Speaker 1 (01:27):
You bet well, when I was thinking about native plants, naturally,
I thought, well, I got to talk to somebody from Buchanans,
because you guys are the experts in that. I appreciate
the fact that you have such a focus on natives
that not only are native to the region maybe, but
(01:48):
native even specifically as Houston. You have a table that's
just Harris County Natives, and I don't know if people
realize that, but that is that is kind of cool,
and the ones that carry just some real beauty. I
think for a lot of people, uh, they just haven't
delved into natives.
Speaker 2 (02:06):
You know.
Speaker 1 (02:07):
Maybe there I don't know, maybe they have a misconception
about natives. But when they get there or they go
to your website, which is great Buchanan's Native Plants dot Com.
I believe I'm saying that one right. Uh, the photos
and information you have is just outstanding. So I don't
want to compliment you on that, but we're glad to
(02:28):
have you here and i'd like to I'd like to
visit with you. What what has been your experience, you know,
their Buchanans over the years with people and native plants,
you know, in terms of the amount of interest and
maybe some some attitude changes or things like that. Can
you elaborate a little bit on what you guys have
been seeing.
Speaker 2 (02:50):
Sure, yes, well, thank you for first, thank you for
thinking about us, and we appreciate the recognition at our
At our up, we don't carry exclusively natives, but we
carry We try to promote natives as often as possible
and inform people of the benefits of native plants, but
(03:13):
we also carry other things that maybe act native in
Houston and surrounding areas, so you know, we we always
try to when talking with customers and assessing, you know,
what they're looking for, we try to recommend native plants
(03:34):
that will work in those situations. And what we're seeing
is kind of a increased interest in native plants over
the last I don't know, three years or so. And
we think a lot of that has to do with
kind of like the the annual freezes that we're getting
(03:58):
that are that people are have to replace plants that
maybe didn't survive through the freeze. They're they're coming to
us after our semi annual hurricane events that are causing
disruption and looking for things, looking for uh, attractive plants
(04:21):
that are low maintenance. And and I think that's the
biggest draw that customer for customers with native plants is
that they're they're made for our area. They require little
to know human intervention to really thrive and and be
(04:44):
showy in the garden.
Speaker 1 (04:46):
Mm hmm. That that is. That is cool. Yeah, go ahead.
I didn't want to cut you off there.
Speaker 2 (04:53):
Well, I mean, I just I think that it can
be it can be daunting for h new homeowners, new
people new to gardening when they come in and see
native plants in like a four inch or one gallon container.
(05:13):
They're not maybe at their most showy when they're in containers,
but when they're when they're in the garden and when
they're planted and established is when they really take off
and it's it's I always tell people it's kind of
the long game. You're playing the long game with natives,
(05:35):
where it's not instant gratification, but the eventual gratification is
so much more than I think conventional kind of big
box store landscape merchandise. So I think it's it's kind
(05:59):
of like natives surprise you when they come up in
spring after they've been you know, died back to the
ground in the winter. You get that first spring show
or sometimes a summer bloom or a fall bloom, and
(06:20):
when it when that happened, I think it's it's really magical,
and I think that's what kind of endears definitely what
what I love about natives, and I think that that
other people agree, and more and more people are kind
of coming around to that way of thinking, is our
is our experience?
Speaker 1 (06:38):
That's good. Yeah, you're you know, your point is so
well taken, and that's true. Not just a native. I
remember there used to be a salvia called uh indigo
spires and it was a big, old floppy thing, but
it's hard to get it to look pretty in a
container in the garden center, and it just wasn't as
popular as some of the more dwarf types now that
look better in a container. And uh, that is true
(07:00):
of natives. Don't buy plants based on how big the
giant red flower is on top. Buy a plant based
on is it a good healthy plant and bring it home.
And actually you're probably better off with the plant being
more in a vegetative state when you buy it, for
it having the energy to get established and start growing
so that it can bloom or whatever it is that
(07:21):
you want the plant for. So those are very good points.
I appreciate. I appreciate that a lot. So I want
to get into We're going to get into in a moment,
some specifics natives that that you think are great. And
so why don't I just have you start off on that.
Let's go through something close to the equivalent of a
(07:44):
top ten list. After I throw in a one or two,
we end up with a Baker's dozen. But let's let's
have you tell us about what is one native we
can start off with. We you know what I said that,
and I've got to go to a break, Zach, I'm
sitting there not watching my plock. I get into talking
about plants. We'll start off with that. When we come back.
(08:05):
I have an idea though, I have an idea for
your non You mentioned plants that are not native, because yeah,
you guys carry I talk about all the time when
I talk about Buchanans. You know, the incredible houseplant greenhouse
and the fruit trees and everything you have. You said
that they're plants that are not native, but they act
like natives, And so I have an idea. We need
to make a There used to be a bun There
(08:26):
is a bumper sticker on cars. You need to make
a sticker and it says I'm not from Texas, but
I got here as fast as I could. And you
need to stay on the non natives that live like
their natives. Just the marketing idea. All right, let's take
a break. We'll be right back with Zach Buchanan from
Buchanan's Native Plants in just a moment. All right, welcome back.
(08:50):
We are here with Zach Buchanan from Buchanans Native Plants,
and today we're talking about natives and specifically we're going
to go into some natives that you definfinitely need to
include in your landscape. Maybe you're not a native enthusiasal.
Some people do the whole landscape in natives. But maybe
you're like, Okay, I don't want to do that. Well,
here's some natives that you that you really need to
(09:12):
have in any kind of landscape in our area. And Zach, well,
why don't you go ahead and kick it off without
any further ado.
Speaker 2 (09:21):
Yeah. So, my my number one that is probably most
prominent in my yard and that we sell a whole
lot of, and for good reason, is a turk's cap.
I think it's kind of a unbeatable plant. It can
(09:42):
do shade parts on full sun. It's really adaptable, and
the flowers are kind of always on the plant and
they'reautiful red, kind of really unique shape, looks like a
(10:06):
turk's cap where it gets its name. But it's also
like a huge pollinator attractor, a real good hummingbird attractor.
I've got it planted out plant a big window at
our house, and during hummingbird season, I'll see them out
there getting nectar from its almost daily.
Speaker 1 (10:29):
Hmm. Cool. Yeah, I've got I've got one in my
I have an area just for hummingbirds that's out from
where I sit, just so we can sit out there
and watch them. And I've had turks cap in there,
and boy it is it is amazingly tough.
Speaker 2 (10:42):
Plan.
Speaker 1 (10:42):
In fact, I'm going to post something to our social media.
I found one up on the campus gardens at Texas
A and M. That was huge. It was so tall,
it was like, I don't know, six seven feet almost,
And normally they're not nearly that big, aren't they. I
think of Turk's cap typically being maybe shoulder high, but
(11:06):
not much more than that.
Speaker 2 (11:08):
My mosture one, the one in my garden that's most mature,
is taller than me, probably about seven feet right now.
And I've got to, you know, trim up, trim up
the bottom a little maybe a little more narrow, but
but yeah, it's just, uh, it's going great guns And
I think it all again with natives, like being self sufficient.
(11:33):
A big thing about them is is because they're adapted
to our area, they're really good at being drought tolerant.
A lot of these where you know, if you if
you go, you know, a week or two without turning
on the sprinkler or something, and they're established, they'll be fine,
(11:54):
and and they might even benefit from that and put
on a greater show.
Speaker 1 (11:58):
Yeah that's cool. Yeah, Okay, what's the plant Number two.
Speaker 2 (12:06):
I've got to say, like a through in a couple
of grasses, because I just love the texture that that
ornamental grasses and native grasses bring to a landscape. And
I mean the one that I feel like everybody should
have is Gulf Coast Mealy. It's a real thin blade
(12:29):
grass doesn't get huge, probably about three to four feet mature.
But what I think is, again, they these natives, if
they're not putting on like a show all year long,
when they bloom, they they have like this real grand explosion.
(12:54):
And I think Golf Coast merely is a perfect perfect
example of that, where in fall mhm, it will get
covered and when they're planted it like un mass you
can get this really great pink cloud that just kind
of hovers over the plant. And I think when it's
(13:18):
it's really beautiful and and I think they're they're a
great thing to bring some unique texture to the landscape
and kind of break up, you know, maybe the monotony
of of ever green, always green, kind of leaves that
all look the same that that landscapes can sometimes devolve into.
Speaker 1 (13:45):
That's a good point. A couple of tips for people
that are listening about this Gulf merely if you have
an area where water is going across and you need
to stabilize so to prevent erosion, a bed of that
and it could be masked. It doesn't just have to
be An agil plant is a great way to slow
the water down and do that. And also, if you're
(14:05):
going to plant one, and you can put it where
you're going to view it from the side opposite of
where the sun is shining on it, if you can
picture that, that is better. And from this, if you're
standing like with the sun to your back looking at
the plant, it's kind of a burgundy looking cloud above it.
But when you walk around the other side and the
sun is coming through, oh gosh, it lights up incredibly.
(14:28):
So just a little added tip of there on that one.
What would be plant number three?
Speaker 2 (14:37):
I'm going to include a tree and I think you know,
we we carry a lot of different trees, a lot
of native trees, non native trees or close to Houston
native trees, but one that's native to kind of Houston
(14:57):
and Harris County that we kind of sing the praises
of all the time is not all oak. It's a
variety of oak tree that it's about seventy five feet
tall and full size, and and it gets fall color
(15:18):
late in fall where it's kind of red or orange,
but it is it's really kind of made for our
heavy clay soil and can thrive in that in that situation.
And for that reason, I think it's it'd be my
(15:38):
number one. And you know, in my neighborhood, I see
a lot of people putting like just the go to
is live oaks, like, oh, I need a planet, treat
planet live oak and live oaks are awesome. There's nothing
wrong with live oaks, but we need to we need
to think about diversity too, and and the benefits that
(15:58):
that brings to ourighborhood and our and kind of our
urban forest is plant different stuff and be that person
on the block that has that showy tree that's putting
off fall color and its not lose them all its
leaves and spring. Yeah, and you got to clean them
(16:19):
all up.
Speaker 1 (16:19):
I know that's a good point. Houston is already a
live oak forest, folks, and so we're we're covered on that.
I love nutall too. A lot of people have heard
of Schumart oak. Nuttall is a red oak like Schumart
oak is and Schumart's great. If you've got a nice,
well drained, deep soil, you know, quality soil and stuff,
it's fine. But nuttall, if you've got a spot that's
(16:41):
a little soggy wet, you know, doesn't drain really great,
nuttall will grow in that. And it's very versatile. Like
Zach said, and nuttall is the oak that was chosen
to plant as a memorial to Randy Lemon out at
the Brookwood community. If you go out to Brookwood, ask
them to see Randy's nuttall oak and you can. You
can see one out there that's doing real well. All right, Zach,
(17:03):
let's hit plant number four.
Speaker 2 (17:06):
Okay, let's just dive into I'm gonna I'm gonna go
kind of with a large shrub, smaller tree. Yopon holly
goes by pride of Houston. Yopon holly. Sometimes there's a
(17:27):
dwarf variety of yopon holly that's a good substitute, a
good native substitute for boxwoods. When planting a row of
something that you want to be evergreen and kind of
muldible or shapeable, dwarf yopon holly is the way to go.
But also just full size yopon holly can turn into
(17:49):
a really beautiful and unique shaped kind of mid size
to large tree over time. It's evergreen and it's gonna
it's gonna berry. It's gonna fruit, and that fruit attracts wildlife.
(18:10):
It feeds birds. It'll feed birds going into winter when
they need that that food source the most. And I
think it's just an awesome plant that again, it's it's
kind of weird looking in a pot, but then you
see it like there's a there's the house that I
(18:31):
walk by that's got a bunch of them that are
just kind of massive and mature, and I think it
just it. It doesn't look like anything else. It's it's
just kind of sprawling out and reaching out over the
over the rest of the yard. And it's uh. And
those berries in the winter are awesome.
Speaker 1 (18:53):
That's good. I like that plant too. And you know
you can you can train it like you want. I've
seen it trained up where they like make a mini
tree out of it. They clean up the trunk and
you put it in the middle of a flower bed
and then you have all things around it that are
pretty also, and it stands above it with the berries
and everything. It's really beautiful, so it's a versatile plant.
(19:14):
We're gonna have to go to a break here in
less than thirty seconds, so we'll come back to this list.
I think we have to shift gears. We're four into
a ten plant list, so that this is all really
really helpful, good information. We're visiting with Zac Buchanan from
Buchanan's Native Plants on Eleventh Street, and if you are
(19:35):
interested in checking them out, you ought to check them
out on the web also as well as stopping buy there.
We'll be right back folks. Alrighty, welcome back, Welcome back
to Guardline. Good to have you with us today. Hey,
you know I talk all the time about ACE hardware stores.
ACE is the place for and you just get to
fill in the blank. It's a place for your gardening supplies.
(19:57):
It's a place for paint. It's the place for all
the stuff you'd expect from a hardware store. But it's
also the place for quality hand tools to fit your budget.
From ACE from Milwaukee, Stanley Blackendeck or Craftsman de Walt,
they've got you covered for all of those things. Now
you need to know too, though, that ACE makes it
easy if you know what you want or need, you
(20:17):
can simply buy it online from that store's website and
then pick it up at the store. You can sign
up online also for the ACE Rewards program. I belong
to that and I hope you will too, because you
get discounts and special offers only for ACE Rewards customers.
They're emailed directly to you. So hey, if you're can
go through the register, you might as well go through
the register as an ACE Rewards member. It really pays off.
(20:41):
ACE stores are all over. You can go to ACE
Hardware Texas dot com to find yours. Places like out
East in Childs at Child's Building Supply on North sixteenth
and Orange. How about Southwest Way, Southwest Wartenfeed and ACE
on North Richmond Road, Brenham Ace on North Parkway, North
Austin Park, rather Fulsher Ace on FM three fifty nine,
(21:02):
and Hamilton Ace on Highway six in the Bear Creek area,
and then as well as Bay Cliff Ace. It's on
Grad Avenue down south of Keema. ACE Hardware stores are
all over. Go to Acehardware Texas dot com. We are
visiting with Zach Buchin in this hour on native plants,
So just a little instruction on call in. If you
have a native plant question, please feel free to call
(21:24):
in between now and nine to thirty. Zach's going to
be with us till nine thirty and we'll take the
call about that. If you have an other kind of
gardening question, I'll be taking those between nine thirty and
ten as we wind up the show today. So either
way you want to go about it, well, Zach, let's
jump back into your list. Thanks for hanging around. By
the way, what would be the fifth plant? I think
(21:46):
we've gone through four.
Speaker 2 (21:49):
So let's get some some showy blooms in there. So
one that we try to promote, especially around like fall
time when people are are buying mums and uh and
stuff like that to put in their garden or on
their patio, we like to recommend fall aster, which is
(22:12):
a native to our area and it's a fall bloomer
and it it has a kind of purple daisy, small
daisy like flower, but it gets kind of covered with them,
similar to yeah, and I think it's it's a great
(22:36):
source of nectar for h and pollen for native bees,
which I kind of want to I want to take
a second just to promote natives for the insect population
and the importance of natives for native insects, which they
(22:57):
have a kind of a symbia relationship. You know, not
all insects in the garden are bad. Native plants bring
good insects to your garden, which then bring good birds
to your garden to eat those insects. And when we
have when we have plants from different parts of the
(23:18):
country or different parts of the world, even that's when
we introduce kind of harmful can introduce harmful insects into
our garden that are that become more of a problem.
And so it just can't be overstated the benefits of
native plants in the garden and that relationship that they
(23:41):
have with the rest of the ecosystem.
Speaker 1 (23:44):
That's a good point.
Speaker 2 (23:45):
You know.
Speaker 1 (23:45):
If I had to give a top five list of
natives in my book, fall Asters on that list, it
is it makes a small shrub that it's just a
green shrub. During the year, you don't you notice it,
I mean, you know, not spectActor is pretty green. Uh,
but then in the fall you know it. You're right,
It's just it's hard to find a spot that doesn't
(24:06):
have a bloom on it on that plant and those
little daisy like blooms. Being a little small daisy like
bloom really attract beneficial insects too. I was out in
Fredericksburg in their market plots one year when the fall
astro was blooming and I walked up to him and
I have never seen so many surfing flies and hoverflies
another name for it. They were just going to town.
(24:29):
And that's an insect whose larvae eats our aphens, for example,
and little tiny parasitoid wasps on it and things. So
if you want to if you want to have an
organic garden, if you want to bring in beneficials, that
is one of many plants that needs to be part
of your landscape.
Speaker 2 (24:44):
So yeah, we have a kind of a go ahead
on the on the same on the same kind of trajectory,
I was going to go into another one. The Gulf
Coast penstemen for the as those penstamen, I think is
another really kind of underrated but showy native plant that
(25:10):
gets thirty inches tall and it has these really kind
of delicate, beautiful purple blooms that are really good for
cut flowers, which a lot of these natives can be
used for cut flowers and bringing them into the home,
(25:33):
and and I think just to throw out some really
showy things, this brass gulfos penstemen. I think it is
a great option.
Speaker 1 (25:45):
It is, it is outstanding and being a perennial here,
it's almost fool proof. I mean, you know, water it's some,
but it's a good tough plant and it does better
as you water it. I like the way those tall
spikes you were describing. They the blooms are sort of
out in the air on them. You know, it's not
(26:06):
like this tight lot of blooms. It's it's very open
and so in an arrangement that is a really pretty addition.
You know, so many of the store bought flowers are
all compact and everything like that, but it is a
it makes a very natural, beautiful arrangement and a nice statement,
you know. Being thirty inches high, you can put it
behind some lower growing flowers or in front of some
(26:27):
taller maybe green shrubs or something like that. That's a
great choice. Well, I'll I'll talk and let you go
on to where are we at now? Number seven?
Speaker 2 (26:37):
Okay, Yeah, moving right along. I'm gonna I'm gonna go
with another another ornamental graph that I think is very
different in look than the golf, than the Gulf Coast
Mew League that we mentioned earlier, this one. What I
(26:58):
love about the plant is inland coeoats. What I love
about inland coeoats is that it can do shade or
parts on where most ornamental grasses kind of want as
much sun as possible. The inland fiots can take a
lot less and do really well. And so it has
(27:21):
a texture similar to bamboo. I tell people a lot
like kind of big broad blades that grow up a
stalk and then kind of lates well I guess summer
into fall. At the top of that stalk, it starts
to develop these keeed clusters that look like oats and
(27:46):
they're just kind of they're dangling. And if it's in
an area that gets that gets a lot of wind
or breezes going through it. The dangling oats on this
on you know, big clusters of inland coots. It looks
it just looks amazing and again bringing a different texture
(28:09):
even in the even with a bunch of grasses, this
is a different texture of grass that it's it's unique
and it I think it's just it's a really great option,
especially for shade when yes, everyone really struggles with what
to put in shade gardens, and I think there's a
(28:31):
lot of great options and this is one of them.
Speaker 1 (28:35):
Yeah, when I've when I've grown it, with the seed
heads coming up like they do and arching, weeping, over
arching over, I think it's been about knee high. Does
that sound about right terms of size, just to get
people an idea, so like a taller groundcover. But it's
not that the leaves are all up there. That's the
that's the seed heads coming up above the foliage. And
(28:55):
you know, we were just talking about penstemann being a
good one for arrangements both fresh and dried. Inland seos
is another nice thing to add to a natural looking arrangement. Zach,
I'm up against him.
Speaker 2 (29:11):
I'll let you go.
Speaker 1 (29:12):
Yeah, yeah, I'm up against a heartbreak. Hold that thought
and we'll come back to it. We also have a
question from Daniel when we come back to be right back, folks,
All right, folks, welcome back to guarden Line. We are
visiting with Zach Buchanan from Buchanan's Native Plants on eleven
Street in the Heights, and I've given Zach the impossible
(29:34):
task of coming up with top ten list of native plants,
and we're going through those right now, so we'll just
take off and and do that. Zach. We have a
we have a caller that I'm going to put on
has a question I believe about natives. We're going to
go to Daniel and Cyprus. Hey, Daniel, welcome to Guardian.
Speaker 3 (29:57):
Thank you. My question is I'd like to get that
list of the top ten Texas native plants and also
that that nut tailler tree?
Speaker 2 (30:12):
Is that?
Speaker 3 (30:12):
Am I saying that?
Speaker 2 (30:13):
Right? O? N U T T A L L.
Speaker 3 (30:21):
Yeah? I have a live oak in my front yard
and the root system, man, it's terrible that they've got big,
huge roots on the top and I can't cut my
yard and I have to go around them. Uh is
it nutella oak? Is the root system like that.
Speaker 2 (30:48):
No prominent or elevated and sometimes live oaks can get
And I think a lot of that can have to
do with like how it's planted and established from the
(31:09):
from the outset. But but it shouldn't be as as
kind of elevated as live oaks are.
Speaker 3 (31:19):
Okay, so so you're also the yeah, Daniel.
Speaker 1 (31:26):
The one other comment on that is when we have
a heavy clay soil that doesn't have good oxygen down deep.
The roots start out shallower than they could and as
a result, as they get bigger, then you see them
on the surface more and so the soil also has
an impact on that as well. Uh, did you have
a follow up you want to ask?
Speaker 3 (31:50):
I wanted to.
Speaker 1 (31:52):
So you're located on eleventh Street, yes.
Speaker 2 (31:56):
And the heights between Studa Wood and Heights Boulevard.
Speaker 3 (32:00):
What what is a physical address.
Speaker 2 (32:04):
Six eleven East Eleventh Street.
Speaker 3 (32:08):
Okay, I used to so, Daniel, I ask the questions.
Speaker 1 (32:17):
Yeah, yes, you go pick them apart. They've got knowledgeable
staff and all kinds of things, and you get to
see these plants. Do Hey, Daniel, thank you. I appreciate
I appreciate a lot your question coming in. Uh, let's see, uh, Zach,
let's go on to your next plant, and then I'm
gonna take another call.
Speaker 2 (32:36):
Okay, I was going to go into you know, some
of these plants on the list are ones that I've
been familiar with for a long time and that we've
carried for a long time. But also some of them
are kind of new to me. They've they've been around
a long time. As all these plants have longer than me. Uh,
(32:58):
but but some of sometimes I learn about new things,
and one I've recently learned about that we're carrying more
frequently that I really like is rattlesnake master, which is
a cool sounding plant. I think it's it's got a
really cool name, but it's got a really unique look
(33:21):
and extremely beneficial again to like the pollinators and insects
that we're talking about, the base of the plant kind
of resembles like a soft leaf yucca with kind of
like little soft spines on the on the blades. But
(33:42):
then once it's established, it sends up these tall, sometimes
six feet stalks that have kind of like golf ball
looking blooms on them that are it's just like a
three six the flower source of nectar for our insects
(34:07):
and pollinators, and it's just it's related to a carrot,
so it kind of has like a really really uh
established an extensive root system. But I just think it's
a it's a really cool looking plant. And again talking
(34:29):
about texture, uh, breaking up you know, more conventional looking plants,
breaking it up with something unique, especially in in like
a grouping. It's a really cool, uh you know, conversation
piece in the garden if anything else.
Speaker 1 (34:49):
Yeah, well the name alone. I wonder how it came
up with that name. Maybe I don't want to know.
Speaker 2 (34:53):
I was I was reading reading like I think Native
Americans use it for use the root to eat rattlesnake bites.
So take that with a grain of salt.
Speaker 1 (35:07):
But yeah, by the way, this is not medical advice
for those of you out there, right, Yeah, that's true.
That is true.
Speaker 2 (35:22):
Uh.
Speaker 1 (35:23):
Let's go now to Jim and a Taska scene. Hey, Jim,
welcome to garden Line. We're coming up on the top
of the hour. But let's see if we can get
your question in.
Speaker 2 (35:30):
Okay, real quick, help help.
Speaker 4 (35:33):
What I've done is I have an eleven inch border
around my whole front yard planner. Okay, it's about one
hundred feet. I put volcano rock in there. Not a
good idea. It's all over the place. I would like
to take a plant and put that plant a plant
in there to make a nice low hedge border around
(35:54):
my planter and my whole front yard and around the
trees or whatever what you recommend.
Speaker 1 (35:59):
Okay, all right, zach he grower recommendations.
Speaker 2 (36:04):
How low are you looking for?
Speaker 4 (36:07):
Well, I'm looking for something like six or eight inches.
Speaker 2 (36:11):
Okay, I mean it can get it can get a
little aggressive. But one that I like if it's constrained,
one that I really like and have in my garden
is frog fruit. It's a it's a groundcover, but it gets.
It can get to about six inches tall.
Speaker 1 (36:35):
And all right, folks, we're going to have to continue
this right after the break. We just hit it. We
ran out of time here, hang around, we'll come back
to you. Jim, I'm gonna just jump in fast and listening.
We got a lot of things to talk about. So
here we go. Welcome back to Guardline. Good to have
you with us. Listen, it is hurricane season, and even
(36:58):
if it's not hurricane season, and we can have summer
storms that devastate trees. Remember last year two storms, one
hurricane one knot like power out for two weeks for
each of those. In some areas of the city. You
need to get your trees trimmed properly. It needs to
start at planting with good training and then continue with
(37:18):
appropriate trimming. And if you haven't had that done, you
need to have Martin spoon More from Affordable Tree come out,
take a look at your trees and assess them. And
see what needs to be done. Proper pruning is going
to help reduce property damage from limbs that fall, protect
power lines and chilis. That's why the power goes out
during these storms. Tree hits the power line, reise the
(37:41):
risk of injury to people. That's incredibly important. And just
keep your trees healthier and more stable. Plus you're not
spending money on emergency removal. You know, when storm comes through,
trees are down everywhere and everybody wants them out today
and what that ain't going to happen right is just
too much and mainly just to give you peace of mine. Now,
Martin Spoonmore's company, Affordable Tree, you can reach them at
(38:04):
seven to one three six nine nine two six sixty three.
That's seven one three six nine nine two six six
three carton. Call Martin today, get on the schedule and
get this done, because don't wait until the hurricanes in
the Gulf and try to hurry up and get it done.
Then call them today. We're going to head back out
to the to the show lines. Here we are visiting
(38:27):
with Zach Buchanan from Buchanan's Native Plants on eleven Street
in the Heights, and we got a call from a
gym in a task casita and one hundred. If you
can hook us both up together, then we can continue
this call. We were talking about a very low growing
plant a foreg in front and Zach you had suggested
(38:48):
frog fruit, which I think it's like my favorite native groundcover.
I mean, I'll go to a bend in parking lots
in Houston and there's a crack in the parking lot
and there's a frog fruit plant six feet wide and
it has come out of the crack and is just
making a beautiful groundcover over the abandoned, abandon concrete. That
(39:08):
is a tough plant that looks good.
Speaker 2 (39:12):
Yeah, it really is. And before the break, I was
going to say, like when when it gets out of hand,
I just take a weed eater to it and trim
it back, and it has it has no issue with that,
like it loves abuse. I've got it. I've got it
planted on a western exposure right next to my driveway
(39:36):
and it starts like creeping out over the hot driveway,
getting blasted by that afternoon sun and it I barely
if ever water it. And it's right now it's covered
with blooms, which again it's a. It's a good pollinator attractor. Yeah,
so I think.
Speaker 1 (39:56):
That's like, Yeah, they look like litt matchheads almost sticking
up with little white flowers around the matchhead. Right, that's
really bright. Hey, Jim, did that cover your question on that?
Speaker 2 (40:08):
Well?
Speaker 4 (40:08):
The question I was looking My question is I would
like something like a hedge because I didn't want to
lay rock or a.
Speaker 2 (40:15):
Paper around it.
Speaker 4 (40:16):
I've got it divided with metal right now, six inches
eleven all around my whole front yard. But I wanted
something like a low hedge that I can shape, and
that's what I was looking for.
Speaker 2 (40:28):
No, I liked a fog I did. Well.
Speaker 1 (40:32):
Did I understand you wanted it's six inches high though?
Or what was that? How high do you want the
hedge to be?
Speaker 2 (40:38):
Yeah, I want the hedge I've seen.
Speaker 4 (40:40):
I've seen the hedge design six or eight inches high,
and I've seen it before, but I don't I can't
find out what plant that is. I've asked people.
Speaker 2 (40:50):
No one knows. I've I've also seen in the neighborhood.
I think some people have like I guess they're getting
like four inch dwarf he upon Holly, which we talked
about earlier in the episode, they're getting a little dwarfo
ponds and planting those as a as a really really
low hedge and keeping that trimmed are the option.
Speaker 1 (41:20):
Okay, I've never seen that. All right, y'all, go ahead,
any ideas aed on on something something low like that, something.
Speaker 4 (41:29):
A little bit more formal shape where I can just
shape it with my tools, you know, something like I said,
I've got at least the feet.
Speaker 2 (41:37):
So yeah, I mean so that dwarf upon Holly, I
mean another one that, well, that probably wouldn't work. I mean,
I'd probably trying to think of other options. Oh. The
other thing I was going to recommend, uh, Mexican heather,
(41:59):
I think. I mean, all these are left to their
own devices are gonna probably get a little bit taller
than six inches, but they can be they can be
shaped and maintained. But Mexican heather is really low growing,
kind of dense perennial that it gets it gets covered
(42:19):
with purple flowers and it's a huge tractor. Yeah. I
love seeing like honey Bee's going crazy for it. And
it's got kind of that like formal look to it too.
Speaker 1 (42:37):
All Right, Well, hey, I'm gonna I'm gonna have to
cut this one short, so we keep going. We've got
a lot of plants to do. Jim, I appreciate that call.
Just remember on that Mexican heather that it is coal tender,
and so in the in the winter, when a freeze hits,
it's gonna take it down. And if you got a
little mulch around, it'll come back out of the mult
just fine. But it's not going to be a midwinter
hedge for you. It'll turn brown. But I appreciate your call,
(42:59):
Thank you, Thank you very much for that.
Speaker 2 (43:02):
Than Jim.
Speaker 1 (43:03):
Yeah, Zach, we were on number eight was Rattlesnak Master.
What's the next one?
Speaker 2 (43:12):
So one that I don't have a ton of personal
hands on experience with, but I wanted to share because
I was talking to a customer a while ago and
they were just seeing the praises of Barbados cherry or
dwarf Barbados cherry. I think both are equally good. But
(43:37):
she was talking about how she put dwarf Barbados cherry
in her garden and it I think something else kind
of like grew over it and overtook it, and that
later later in the season she like got in the
garden and trimmed everything up and uncovered this Barbados cherry
(43:57):
that was just like or this dwarf Barbados that was
just like thriving. Uh and and didn't skip a beat
being covered up by all this other stuff. And she
was just like going on and on about how great
it was. So I any opportunity I have to kind
of share this excitement that she had, I like to
(44:20):
share like anecdotal evidence with customers. And I think it's
a really nice, kind of delicate looking perennial shrub that
gets these really beautiful and kind of unique pink flowers
that can be followed by a fruit as well.
Speaker 1 (44:42):
Yeah, and and and the fruit will bring birds in too,
that yes for sure. On that one listen, I'm gonna
I want to add one thing before we go to
our next break here, and that is somebody had asked
about where can I get the list, folks. I'm going
to post Zach's list to our Facebook and Instagram pages
(45:03):
on social media, So follow Gardenline on Facebook or Instagram
you can see it there, and we will be posting
them to that spot. But I also want to let
you know that if you go to their website, buchanans
Plants dot com. There's a resources section buchanons plants dot com.
There's a resources section and in that is a plant library,
(45:26):
and there is a long list of plants, and there's
a box you can check for North American natives or
another box for Texas Natives. And on the Texas Natives
you're going to see things like we were talking about
Inland Coo. It's a minute ago. What does that look like?
They're describing it, but I can't picture it. There's a
picture of it on there and a lot more information.
So buchanans plants dot com. No Natives in the website
(45:48):
name bu cannons plants dot com Resources Plant Library, and
that the ten list isn't on there, but more than
the ten are on there, and it's really really helpful resource.
I got to go to a break. When we come back,
we are going to talk to Kurt in Cypress, who
has a question about live oak sprouts. Okay, hey, welcome
(46:10):
back to garden Line. Glad to have you with us today.
We're going to jump right in here. Uh, let's see
Kurt in Cypress. Can you connect me with Zach and
Kirt at the same time, please we Kurt has a
question about oak sprouts, and I think I'm gonna curty
you there.
Speaker 2 (46:30):
Hey, Kurt, Yes, sir, all right, I.
Speaker 1 (46:34):
Think I know what you're talking about. But is your
what is your question about oak sprouts?
Speaker 5 (46:39):
I've got these oak sprouts in my grass. I've got
two Southern live oak trees in my front yard and
these little sprouts keep popping up all over in the
yard inside of Saint Augustine's my grass.
Speaker 1 (46:52):
Yeah, so so. Live oaks are native along the Gulf Coast,
but there's a there's a group of live oaks that's
up in Central Texas and it's still a live oak,
but it's just a little different strain, a little population
that is different in a little way. And one of
the ways is the live oaks from Central Sexes. And
it's not just central but I'm trying to oversimplify it.
(47:13):
They root sprout very readily, and that's why when you
drive through the hill country, you'll out in a pasture,
you'll see clumps of oak trees. You'll see that all
the way down. I've seen it in de wat County,
run Quero in places, just clumps of oaks that are
growing together and that is a that is just that strain,
and so when those are selected for yard trees, you're
(47:34):
more likely to get the little sprouts to come up
when you damn it, when you mess with the soil
like a rototiller, when you put in a flower bed
and water it a lot, that that just encourages them more.
There's always a possibility that it could actually be an
acorn that fell on the ground that is sprouting as
a little tree. But when you see a whole bunch
of them, I lean toward thinking that's probably connected to
(47:56):
a root, and you can always dig down and check.
Speaker 2 (47:59):
So is there any way to control that? I mean,
one barbarus told me I.
Speaker 5 (48:03):
Could put some of that that micro fertilizer on there,
And he told me to use a that won't a
punch if you will, and poke some holes and put
that fertilizer around it and they'll make it go, make
them re resind or reduce.
Speaker 1 (48:20):
No, you never heard of a life makes things grow.
Now microlife makes grow. That's not going to do it.
And you don't want to spram with a herbicide because
if they're connected to the mother tree, you're getting the
herbicide into that mother tree, and that's a bad deal.
I've seen people use a very thick ground cloth fabric
over it and then put something heavy over that, you know,
like gravel kind of things or something to just kind
(48:43):
of hold them down and suppress them. Zach, Do you
have any other thoughts on trying to deal with those
sprouts unfortunately?
Speaker 2 (48:53):
Now? I mean I live. Yeah, if if possible, I'd
probably just try a over them along with my grass
and try to help that grass kind of overtake them.
But yeah, I think that's a it's a tough place
to be in.
Speaker 1 (49:17):
Yeah, anything you do to get rid of them, there's
gonna come back, you know. So I don't have a
good answer to that one, Kurt, but I do appreciate
your call. Thanks, and appreciate to Garland. You bet so, Zach.
Let's see we did Barbados. Cherry is number nine. Oh
you're cheating here. You gave me eleven. Just count that's okay.
(49:39):
I may add some of my own to it if
we have time. What is number ten for you?
Speaker 2 (49:45):
So? Yeah, I mean I could, I could include them together,
but but like I think one that I a native salvia,
which we haven't talked about any salvias this list, but
tropical sage is kind of the common name for it.
(50:06):
It's not really tropical in appearance, but that's the name
it was given. But I think it's a really cool
native salvia that kind of like some of the other
bloomers that we've talked about, gets kind of long, tall
spires of kind of reddish calvia flowers which are great
(50:33):
for hummingbirds, bees, pollinators. And something that I think is
really cool about it is it can be it. You know,
some people say there's nothing that's deer resistant really, but
tropical stage is one of those that can be deer
(50:54):
resistant because of kind of the smell and texture of
the of the folio. And it gets about thirty inches tall. Again,
but I just think it's a really cool and kind
of I don't know, different salvia for the for your
(51:15):
landscape and bring something different to the garden.
Speaker 1 (51:20):
Yeah, and salvia is like a lot of sun, but
I've noticed tropical sage in moderate shade with some dapple
sun and stuff, it does pretty well.
Speaker 2 (51:28):
Yeah as a plant.
Speaker 1 (51:30):
Yeah. And also it's red blooms, so here come the hummingbirds.
Speaker 2 (51:34):
Right right exactly.
Speaker 1 (51:36):
Yeah, Yeah, another good reason to planet well Okay, that's
a good one. And by the way, it's been used
in breeding for a lot of others. There's one called
Lady in Red that is a more compact floriferous version.
But that's what always happens to the native plants. We
take them and we try to turn them into look
like something that's not native, but tropical. Sage is a
(51:59):
parent for a lot of other good salvia Salvia coccinia. Uh,
all right, give us another one. I believe you have
one more here on the.
Speaker 2 (52:06):
List, so kind of my my last one, Greg's miss Flower,
Greg's blue missflower. This is one that it's kind of
low growing, kind of grows out rather than up, so
(52:28):
you can give it a lot of room and it'll
fill up an area. Has kind of the leaves are
maybe I want to liken them to like, I don't know,
like a almost like a partially shaped leaf but a
little bigger. So it's kind of again a good texture there.
(52:52):
But then what what you're really growing it for is
the flowers, and they are really prevalent on top of
this massive of foliage, and it gets this kind of
lavender blue cluster of a little hairy flowers that that
(53:15):
butterflies just go crazy for and they do excellent nectar source.
Speaker 1 (53:23):
Yeah that the monarchs and queens both I believe like
that plant a lot, uh and others. You know, I've
never seen so many butterflies on a plants as on
that plant. You know how you're not supposed to yell
fire in a crowded theater. I'm pretty sure if you
go out in your garden and you yell Greg's missflower,
You're gonna be stampeded by butterflies because they just love
(53:46):
that thing. Yeah, that is a good one. Well, let
me throw let me throw one more on my own
in here. We got just a little bit of time here.
I know I gave you the impossible task of coming
up with just about ten. Only there's so many good ones.
But I really think a lot of purple cone flower.
(54:06):
And it's again been bred into different colors and sizes
and shapes so it behaves like we want it to
and everything, But just the standard purple cone flower. There's
a native type that's very taller with strappy petals as well,
but just the standard purple cone flower. You've got a
shady area, and you want some things that are perennial
that come out in it where maybe it gets some
(54:27):
morning sun or fairly bright but not full sun. It'll
put up with that and it does really well. And
that's another butterfly magnet. Have you any other thoughts on
the cone flowers.
Speaker 2 (54:41):
No, I think they're amazing, and I think just the
original native variety like you're talking about, you know, you
see all the different colors and stuff. But you know,
I was trying to think of like an analogy for
natives and like you were saying, how they eat like
(55:01):
these hybrids or new varieties using natives. Natives are like
the original. They've been around forever and as much as
people might try to improve on them, there's really nothing
they can be improved on. These these amazing plants that
have adapted over over millions of years to be what
(55:23):
they are, which is like made for our area and
nothing to do with that.
Speaker 1 (55:31):
Is a that is a good point. Uh, let's see,
Carol and sugar Land. I'm not gonna have enough time
to take you before the break, but if you want
to hang around until after the bottom of the hour,
we'll taco your question then as well. Let's see. I
wanted to well, there was another plant that I wanted to, Oh, oh,
(55:54):
I know it is red buck Eye. You know, a
lot of our neighborhoods, including like the Heights where your
garden center is on a love East eleventh Street. In time,
they just get shadier and shadier, and so flowers in general,
like sun and there's exceptions, but red buck Eye is
an awesome plan. Would you talk about that just a
(56:16):
little bit we have I have like fifteen twenty seconds.
Speaker 2 (56:19):
I'm sorry, Well, I think so so what I see
a lot around how a lot is a lot of
red buds, But like red buck Eye, I think is
a similar looking has a similar looking bloom, and it's
similarly a you know, mid sized tree. But this the
(56:42):
thing is a lot better.
Speaker 1 (56:44):
I'm sorry, I'm not think I've run out of time.
Thank you so much for being on. I really appreciate you.
Sorry to have to catch off at the end. This
has been great.
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