Louise Grabell, Pinal County Master Gardener I’m dreaming of a white Christmas—just like the ones I used to know—NOT! Puleeze—no snow, no sleet, no slush for me! What fun going to your favorite garden center in December and buying a fabulous collection of flowers to beautify your home for the holidays. Yes, by cracky, it’s…
Louise Grabell, Pinal County Master Gardener Summer’s heat is long gone, so let’s talk irrigation for the winter months ahead. This is the time of year when you can save on your monthly water bills. As the weather gets cooler and many trees and shrubs enter a period of winter dormancy, you should be reducing…
Louise Grabell October is a great month for gardening. The danger of you getting heat stroke is gone and there is much to do outside in the fresh air. Some fall cleaning is probably needed, and most of your annuals have probably finished their performance for this year; however, there are lots of things you…
Louise Grabell, Pinal County Master Gardener There is some bad news out there. Yes, gardeners, beware and be aware! First, ask yourself how many oleander trees/shrubs do we have in SaddleBrooke? A rough guess would be thousands! If you have any variety of oleander on your property and you have one of our technically-capable and…
Louise Grabell What? It’s too hot? True gardeners never pay attention to the weather! They do what has to be done whenever necessary and it is necessary now to plan for your fall garden. This is the time of year to tidy up things, amend and fertilize and start thinking about removing those annuals that…
Louise Grabell It’s hot and getting hotter as the month of June progresses. Your irrigation system will keep everything alive. But you must attend to anything growing in a container. With a shovel and a bit of ingenuity, you can install extra “spaghetti” tubes to reach your containers and get them on the watering system.…
Louise Grabell I was outside in my yard looking at all the perennials that are growing and feeling so thankful for these steadfast performers. Among them are bearded irises, daylilies, carnations (dianthus), amaryllis, Echinacea, blue salvia and penstemon, just to name a few. But there is also one little beauty that I stuck in a…
Louise Grabell Spring has sprung and hopefully your garden has as well. There is so much to attend to if you are a gardener. Just like the seasons, there are phases for gardening and if you are well-organized (don’t look at me!) you have already completed some important gardening chores. You may have even added…
Louise Grabell The tail of two snails: It was the best of times, out in the garden preparing the soil for spring planting. To my great surprise, a pretty little snail was crawling along the soil surface and I thought: isn’t that curious? This is the desert. It’s hot and dry here. Where on Earth…
Louise Grabell February is a great time for transplants. Most plants are still dormant and will not suffer from being moved to a new location. Well, that’s if you move the plant properly. But before you go ahead and start to dig, let me advise you not to move any well-established trees or shrubs. Anything…