Hello
Gardener,
Welcome to Emerald Gardens Newsletter Strawberry Tree
Hybrid of a
native west coast tree
Arbutus "Marina"
is in the same family as our Texas Madrone and
looks very similar.
Beautiful Cinnamon colored bark peels away from
the trunk in thin layers revealing smooth lighter
colored bark beneath. This feature continues through the
year at different stages through the tree. The branch
work is rugged and open canopy with glossy oval leaves
bunched at the branch ends.Early in the spring the tree
blooms long clusters of light pink bell shaped flowers
about 1/4 in size. The fruit follows the flower in the
spring and early summer and looks like small red
strawberries when mature.
All Arbutus need very good drainage to do well. Just
less than a full days sun is the best exposure. Arbutus
grows to a mature height of less than 15 feet and almost
as wide with out training. The trees have a tropical
look but showed no damage at 12 deg. and tolerated a
full summer of 105 deg. Strawberry tree should be
considered a viable choice for a Texas Madrone
substitute.
Winter Weeds
February
is the month most broadleaf winter weeds appear in
lawns, gardens and flowers beds.There are several ways
to control these types of weeds and the right option
depends on your circumstances. Pre-emergent herbicides
are the best control in lawn areas and should be applied
as a granular product several weeks before the weeds
appear. Existing weeds are not controlled by
pre-emergents but more types of weeds can be controlled
with a single product if the application is timed right.
Pre-emergent weed killers will kill the weed seed as it
germinates and will kill both broadleaf weed problems
and grassy weeds.
If the
weeds appear to have a leaf of any type they can be
controlled with a targeted spray to the weed without
harming most lawns, several brands of broadleaf weed
killers are available for direct spray over lawns and
will kill most weeds like Clover, Dandelions, Thistle
and others. Broad leaf weed killers will damage or kill
shrubs and trees and any other leafy looking plant. Take
care when spraying around shrubs and trees. Many times
the best way to control weeds in beds and gardens is
just to pull the problems and don't allow them to seed
out for the next year as well as a applying a thick
layer of mulch.
Very
limited spraying can be done with a hand sprayer
targeting only the problem and using a cardboard box to
block over-spray.
Grassy
weeds are more of a problem and should be treated with
pre-emergent and limited spraying with a Roundup type
product that will kill all it contacts.
Many times
covering a garden in the winter with black plastic or
other barrier will prevent growth and block wind born
seeds from landing in the garden.
Winter
Hardy Palms
After one of the coldest winter storms seen in Austin
several varieties of palms stood fast and showed little
or no damage.  These palms have always been considered hardy
here but have really been tested by the recent cold that
killed or severely injured other palms sold as being
hardy in our area over the recent years of mild winters.
Palms that wintered very well are Windmill Palm,
Mediterranean Fan Palm, Pindo Palm, Majestic Texas Sable
Palm and The dwarf Sable Minor Palm.
Don't be afraid to replant any palms with these very
hardy specimens. Most Mexican Fan Palms took extreme
damage and some will take years to fully recover and
others wont recover. Date palms of almost all types
froze hard and the touted Medjool was no exception. Few
Queen Palms will survive and should never be planted
here. Most Sago Palms will recover quickly from their
crown and just need to be trimmed. Hardy Windmill palms
are great for a tight area and grow straight up with a
whorl of fronds at the top. these are the best around
pools and in courtyards or planters because of there
size and lack of debris and sharp edges.
Mediterranean Fan Palms Cluster at the base with many
pups and should be allowed plenty of room due to spread
and sharp spines on the fronds.
Pindo Palms slowly form a trunk and take a while to get
tall even though the are very fast growing. They are
date palm like in appearance with long arching fronds
that have a slightly blue color. The arching fronds take
up space and the Pindo should be allowed at least 15'
for the spread of a single palm. 
Texas Sable palm is the tallest of the hardy palms and
its huge deep green fronds are like a Mexican Fan Palm
on steroids with up to 6-8 feet of stem before the
massive fronds begin. Sables grow in height very slowly
because of their stature with usually less than a foot a
year in trunk growth.With about a 15'-20' frond spread
Sable Palms should be planted 20' from any structure.
Sable Minor is a miniature version of the larger that
does not form a trunk and bunches to a thick clump that
is used primarily for understory plantings under trees
and in semi-shade areas.
Winter String Algae
Even with
extreme cold weather pond algae grows where the
conditions are right.
Winter is a time of dormancy for most pond plants and
nutrients normally absorbed are free in the water.
String algae feeds on nutrient and minerals in the water
and can grow prolific in the winter blanketing a pond
with bright green growth. Although this can be unsightly
this algae is performing a needed function as it absorbs
unwanted nutrient.
The recommended action is to let it grow to a point that
doesn't choke the pond.
Begin manual removal of winter string algae with a stick
or brush(being careful of your liner) as march
approaches. As other water plants begin to emerge from
dormancy you should remove as much algae as possible to
prevent it from affecting new plant growth. By removing
the algae you are removing the bad nutrient that caused
it to grow and may be able to avoid the common cloudy
water seen in the spring.
String algae is also beneficial as it allows your fish
to hide from predators and feeds hungry fish a natural
winter diet.
String algae is a great addition to your compost pile
and is high in nutrients. 
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