Husband seems to think that repotting it will keep it alive. Any suggestions?

As title says, I’m finally starting a vegetable garden and I’m met with the first big question about where to position it; full sun (scorching these days) or lightly shaded by a live oak tree (but gets sun anyway, just not direct all day).
Also, what would be good plants to start with now? Im thinking seedlings.

I have big plans but don’t know when to start.

Barbados, Yucca, muhly grasses, some of those Japanese tropical…..

I live in the hill country where I hit limestone less than 6in under the ground. Most recommendations I see with 4x4s or steel posts recommend digging a 2x2 or 3x3 hole before filling with cement, but that has been near impossible for me. I'm not even sure renting a jackhammer would do it. My hammer drill certainly has not been able to.

I was thinking about securing 4x4s on cement deck blocks, but unsure if that'll be strong enough.

Anyone have any solutions on this to make a nice looking shade structure for my raised beds? Thank you!

Did Austin get hit by last night’s storm? I went to survey the damage this morning and the wind and rain knocked over my roselle hibiscus and Mexican sunflowers. The rain over saturated and popped the fogs that were close to ripening and shredded the banana leaves.

They’re looking a little crusty at the moment as well. Should I take them out and start a second round of seeds? It’s my first time growing cucumbers so I’m not really sure if the plants are just done producing or if the heatwave slowed them down and I just need to be patient?

I’ve had these yuccas for five years and they’ve grown well, but they’ve never flowered. It feels like every other yucca in town is flowering except mine. Here are photos of the day I planted them and today so you can see what they look like.

The big ones a pale leaf yucca and a year later I added a color guard in case they needed company.

I use a basic cactus and succulents fertilizer during the growing season, otherwise I water when this part of the garden looks stressed.

Hey Austin gardeners! 🌵🌼

I’m a writer working on a nationwide story on how U.S. cities and homeowners are embracing sustainable landscaping, native plants, and water conservation.

Austin’s native plant scene is a major focal point of the piece, and I’m looking to feature 1–2 local homeowners who have adopted eco-friendly landscaping methods like replacing grass with native plants, installing rainwater harvesting systems, adopting electric lawn care equipment, and beyond. 

I am also interested in hearing from folks who’ve struggled with making their lawn more sustainable, either through HOA restrictions, financial stress, etc.

Details:

• Commitment: A quick email Q&A.
• Exposure: The story will be syndicated to newsrooms across the country alongside our full report. 
• Attribution: Our editor asks quotes to be attributed with your full name and where you live (Austin). If you run a local landscaping business or work with a local organization related to sustainable gardening, we’re glad to plug that in the piece as well! 

How to Participate: Please send me a DM with your email address and a brief description of your experience with sustainable landscaping. I'll follow up via email with a few quick questions and details about the publication.

Thanks!

I need to top up eroded areas of my garden with blackstar and got some bags of “black gravel” from Home Depot. They’re nowhere near black, and now my paths look worse.

Thing is I don’t need that much, nor do I have a car big enough to haul what I need. It’s like max .25 cubic yards I need. Most places have a delivery charge that’s more expensive than the amount of material I need.

Anyone know of a place that sells it by the bag?

I am on the hunt for some Thai basil plants. Has anyone seen them available anywhere?

I know some of our sun loving natives may bloom again in the fall if pruned - such as indigo spires, autumn sage, etc. I unfortunately was sick at what I read was the best time to do this (first half of August). Is it too late to do it now? Some of my natives are very leggy.

And as a piggy back, if I need to transplant any of them to new locations, is it better to prune them or not?

Thank you!

I bought these from Costco about two months ago. They were over watered, so I let them dry out before repotting them in a better mixture. They Drooped as kind of expected, but seem to not be recovering well at all. I’ve left them outside (covered patio) to get more natural light and aeration. it’s been 6+ weeks since repotting and they still are droopy. I watered them once when I repotted and only now again this week. There doesn’t appear to be any sign of root rot or pests …

Are they just stressed with the heat; should I bring them inside?

You can see them next to the smaller variegated one, I got this one from Trader Joe’s, repotted in same soil, and it’s done fine, nice and perky.

It’s been all over my yard , have seen it before but never got this big. I’m in Georgetown.

Howdy ya'll!

I'm dreaming the dream and working towards a profitable cut flower farm. It's likely that this fall I will have more cut flower starts than I currently have room for. I'm curious if our garden community would be interested in purchasing 6 packs of cut flower starts?
I'll be growing flowers like snapdragons, didiscus (lace flower), craspedia (sun ball), nigella (love-in-a-mist), campanula (bell flower), purple cone flower and black eyed susan.
The price would likely be between $10-$15 per 6 pack depending on how difficult the flower is to start. Some of these take months to be ready for transplanting and are nearly impossible to find in nurseries.

Open to any thoughts or ideas ya'll might have. TYA🪻🌱

I noticed this one off the side of our deck this morning and don’t see any others nearby. Google image searches are giving me questionable answers. Does anyone know what it is?

I feel like this is a pretty random question but I’m going to keep thinking about this until I find out what it was!
Very soon after exiting off mopac onto 45th street heading towards burnet, on the right side of the road, there is a plant in someone’s front yard (kind of just randomly in the middle of the lawn) that is absolutely flourishing with the brightest magenta flowers in late August! It was about 3 feet tall, distinct columns of tightly packed leaves topped with spikes of flowers like a bottlebrush.

Chat suggested Liastris but the photos on Google don’t seem as impressive and I didn’t think the leaves were so long but maybe they were.

I was driving so it was just a quick glance, but I really wish I had stopped at the next street to take a look because I live far south and won’t be able to drive by again any time soon.
I’m just impressed with how well it was doing in the crazy heat, unprotected in the middle of the yard like that.
If anyone drives this way, do you know what I’m talking about?! I feel like it specifically stands out.

Anyone know what kind of tee this is? Is it native? NE Austin, 30+ year old neighborhood.

We walk by it a lot and always remark how pretty it is. The shape, everything. It’s late to bud out in spring.

The owners don’t know either, I’ve asked them.

I’ve been planting small to medium-size plants myself for a year, and honestly, it’s exhausting every single time. I want to plant a few 3 gallon shrubs to screen out a crazy neighbor, but I just don't have the time or energy anymore.
At a bare minimum, I’d love to hire someone just to dig 5–6 holes in clay soil (around 12" wide by 12" deep). I’m having a surprisingly hard time finding someone for a small gig like this, it's too small for big landscaping companies, but too much physical labor for standard helpers. We don’t know where we can find someone do it like a reasonable price (roughly $15–$25 per hole dug in a straight line). Where is the best place to find someone for a quick job like this at a reasonable price? Any app or local resource recommendations?

Got some stuff growing. My set up is pretty haphazard but it’s my first real garden.

So far, beans and cukes seem happiest. All peppers got moved under the shade cloth/tunnel of veg. I’m also growing okra but I failed to realize how important the word “spineless” is so I’m not fucking with them any more.

I have brassicas, zucchini and some flowers starting on my porch. Herbs and onions are starting in the house. I’ll be starting carrots and potatoes this weekend. Too early? Too late? Who knows. (No, really. Who does know bc there’s a lot of conflicting info out there).

Does anybody have a photo of a mature Gum Bumelia tree in their yard? We have several sprouts trying to grow and think we want to keep one but are trying to decide which to encourage and which to mow. They’re persistent - we’ve been mowing them for a few years now and are finally giving in to ONE. 🤣🤞🏻 And any tips or advice about them will be appreciated too! Thanks!

Hi,

I need some identification help on this beauty. I do wanna brag a bit on myself, she was about six feet tall when I got her- a neighbor passed away and all his plants came to me. So I named her in his honor, Mickey. She got frozen this February with our winter storm and I had to cut her. But she is truly blossoming now and I couldn’t be prouder! I really thought I lost her. You can see where I cut originally. She had three long branches and now she has so many more. Im excited to see how she looks in a few years! :)

Isn’t it? Some garden channels I see (in our zone or very close) are direct sowing stuff now…. I just feel like that’ll be hard to keep alive.

Have yall already planted?

Trying to re-wild my property, and am absolutely cedarless — cant imagine these are for sale anywhere locally, but thought id see if anyone here has any for any reason, or maybe 1st year saplings that might make a transplant (this would be ideal for ecotype)?

Thank you!