Friday, May 7, 2021
What The......?! More Texas freeze aftermath issues!!
Sunday, May 2, 2021
Just Hanging Around!
Every so often, I get asked to test a product, review a product, or just get asked my opinion. I try to respond to all requests.
Today, I will give you a short review of one of the recent products I got asked about. It was a Set of 3- 12 inch Hanging coco planter baskets. I know what you are saying, "I see those all of the time everywhere!" I would agree with you, so I was hesitant to try them. How much different could they be?
Monday, April 19, 2021
The Great Texas Freeze and What it Did to Your Citrus Trees
Over the past month or so, I have gotten SO MANY e-mails, I just have not been able to reply to all of them, I would have had to quit work! So, my apologies to those in Texas that have e-mailed me and I haven't responded.
More than likely, if you are reading this, you are from Texas and googled what to do for your poor citrus tree after the freeze in February. For those that are just reading this from other parts of the country/world, let me lay a little groundwork.
February, 2021-Texas: A record low temperature at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport of −2 °F (−19 °C) on February 16 was the coldest in North Texas in 72 years. While the damage is still being assessed, this will likely go down as the first billion-dollar disaster of 2021 globally, and potentially the most costly weather disaster for the state of Texas in history. (Excerpt from the National Weather Service) For another take on just how cold it was, Dallas had a high temperature of 22 degrees, 14, 18, 27 from Sunday, February 14th through, Wednesday, February 17th.
HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY.....NOT!!
Texas is considered a Citrus producing state, On average it produces close to 1.5 million boxes of Non-Valencia type Oranges, with an average weight of 85 pounds per box. They produce close to 5 million boxes of Grapefruit, with an average rate of 80 pounds per box. (Information courtesy of the USDA )
Monday, January 13, 2020
A New Year and Change of Venue
Happy New Year, Folks!
For my long-time followers, you have probably realized that I am no longer in Charleston, SC. If you are new to my blog, I had lived the past 22 years in Charleston and my blog was heavily centered on being in that location.
Many of my articles were fairly generic and were useful for anybody, anywhere, in the world. Today, I wanted to give you some food for thought on what goes into a move from a gardener's perspective. Especially, if it is to a different USDA growing zone.
If you have never seen this map, it is very useful when trying to figure out what to grow, when to plant it, and when you can expect cold/freezing temperatures. Just to let you know, Charleston was a Zone 8b, almost a 9a. I am now in a 7b, just over an entire zone difference.
I know what some of you are asking, "What is the big deal?" It can't be that different?
Check out this, Average Last Frost Date and you tell me.
Gardening and yard work have always been a little luck, a little knowledge, and a whole bunch of trial and error. That will probably never change. But, if you go into it with as much knowledge and information as you can, your success rate will rise dramatically.
If you have any questions about this or any of my other articles, please feel free to drop me an e-mail to TheCitrusGuy@netzero.net or .com. You can also follow me on Facebook.
Happy Growing!
Darren
Saturday, December 14, 2019
On The 12th Day of Christmas-Citrus Guy Style
Well, here we are, Day #12 of Gardener Christmas Gift Ideas. I saved the very best, most personal things that you could give anybody during the holidays.
Love and Time
Spend time with the ones you love. If they love spending time in the garden, give them a Gift Certificate to help, like this:
Offer them Gift Certificates of your time. Not only will you get to spend quality time, they will appreciate the help.
Isn't that what the holidays are TRULY about?
Love, time spent with family, and caring.
I hope you have enjoyed this series of posts as much as I have writing them?
From the deepest part of my heart I want to wish every person that reads this a
Merry Christmas
Happy Hanukkah
Happy Kwanzaa
Insert Your Preferred Holiday Here
and a
Joyous and Prosperous New Year
Happy Growing!
Darren
Friday, December 13, 2019
On The 11th Day of Christmas-Citrus Guy Style
Tomorrow, for the 12th day of Christmas I will have the biggest, bestest, nicest, gift of them ALL!
But first, for the 11th day of Christmas, let's bunch together the first 10 days in a neat little basket.
On the 10th Day of Christmas, we discussed little stocking stuffers.
On the 9th Day of Christmas, we discussed saving all that great food.
On the 8th Day of Christmas, we discussed gardening magazines.
On the 7th Day of Christmas, we discussed gardening memberships.
On the 6th Day of Christmas, we discussed indoor garden kits.
On the 5th Day of Christmas, we discussed organic pest products.
On the 4th Day of Christmas, we discussed garden fertilizers.
On the 3rd Day of Christmas, we discussed finding camellia plants.
On the 2nd Day of Christmas, we discussed many seed vendors.
On the 1st Day of Christmas, we discussed finding citrus plants.
On Black Friday we discussed The Citrus Guy's Books.
So, how do we put ALL of this info into one neat little basket?
By putting them all in a NEAT LITTLE BASKET, of course!!
These are just a few ideas that I found on Pinterest. You can very easily use any of the links/ideas that I have been talking about for the past 11 days or more and create something special for your gardener.
This is again a Pinterest idea I saw. You can add some pretty artificial flowers, fruit or vegetables to yours to make it that much more personal.
It does not even need to be a "basket" a pretty colorful pot, pail or bucket would work. What about a wheelbarrow, or utility cart? The only limits would be your imagination.
I hope you have enjoyed these Christmas gift ideas for your gardener. I enjoyed....what?
I didn't do the whole 12 days of Christmas? This only day 11?
Tomorrow is not here yet my friend.
The best always comes last!
As always I am available to answer any questions, please e-mail me at TheCitrusGuy@netzero.com or .net.
You can also follow me on FACEBOOK or check out my WEBSITE.
Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays!
Happy Growing!
Darren
Thursday, December 12, 2019
On The 10th Day of Christmas-Citrus Guy Style
My mother may disagree with me on this, but, tagging plants is very important! Especially when you have multiples of the same thing planted, i.e. seeds in pots. You need to know whether that little thing coming up is a carrot, fennel, tomato, or a weed. These multi-color tags are ideal for grouping things into different categories. All of your peppers could be blue, tomatoes red, etc.
#2-Twist Tie Roll-
This handy roll of 328 feet of coated twist tie material is ideal for tieing up tomatoes or other plants that are rather sprawly. Having a roll of this material with a handy cutter makes it easier to use as much or as little as you need for any particular job.
#3- Aluminum Plant Tags-
These tags are designed more for already established plants. I use them on all of my citrus, camellias, and fruiting plants. These plant labels are made of high-quality aluminum material, which is sturdy and durable, can be used for years in any environment. They are Waterproof and Sun Resistant and your label is permanent and remains legible for years. You have plenty of space to write on with a ballpoint pen, pencil, or another sharp object.
Your gardener will love these little items. Again, they are not very sexy by themselves but believe me, they DO come in handy!
As always I am available to answer any questions, please e-mail me at TheCitrusGuy@netzero.com or .net.
You can also follow me on FACEBOOK or check out my WEBSITE
Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays!
Happy Growing!
Darren