Texas Spring/Summer Thread

[Bird]

Jinman mentioned that we needed to start this thread, so I decided I would. And to start with . . . I hate Live Oak trees, unless they're a long ways from the house, and mine are not. For those who don't know it, they stay green year round, but they also shed leaves year round, and especially this time of year. And those leaves fill the rain gutters, stop up the downspouts, etc. So yesterday I was up and down the ladder, cleaning them out again. And then I put the bagger on the mower and filled three and a half contractor bags with a mix of green grass and dry Live Oak leaves. And now it won't be long before these two Live Oak trees produce their catkins that are as bad, if not worse, than the leaves.

But with a low temperature of 66 going for a high of 78 in March. Hard to believe. But everything, yards, highway right-of-ways, etc. is either getting mowed or needs mowing.

 

[NativeSon]

Jinman mentioned that we needed to start this thread, so I decided I would. And to start with . . . I hate Live Oak trees, unless they're a long ways from the house, and mine are not. For those who don't know it, they stay green year round, but they also shed leaves year round, and especially this time of year. And those leaves fill the rain gutters, stop up the downspouts, etc. So yesterday I was up and down the ladder, cleaning them out again. And then I put the bagger on the mower and filled three and a half contractor bags with a mix of green grass and dry Live Oak leaves. And now it won't be long before these two Live Oak trees produce their catkins that are as bad, if not worse, than the leaves.

But with a low temperature of 66 going for a high of 78 in March. Hard to believe. But everything, yards, highway right-of-ways, etc. is either getting mowed or needs mowing.

Bird glad you finally got this started....we've already been in spring a long time. We have Pin Oaks out here and they're not much trouble.....it's the Sweet Gum that are a real pain here. They drop Sweet Gum Balls all over and the grow like a weed and if you cut them down you can't kill the roots so they start growing back. I really hate Sweet Gums. I wish I could get rid of all of them.

I had to mow the culverts out by the road (for the 2nd time) and the yard yesterday.

Here's hoping a better Spring and Summer for all of us!!!

Charlie

 

[houstonscott]

Anyone who lost all their pond or tank water after drought restocking fish this year. We have added 10lbs of fathead minnows last month and will add another 6lbs very soon. That is about 6000 in total. 50 sunfish and 25 bass go in soon. That should get it going for this year. The tank is about .7 acres and 18' deep now. Anyone have plans to restock and what are you going to do?

HS

 

[Western]

Anyone who lost all their pond or tank water after drought restocking fish this year. We have added 10lbs of fathead minnows last month and will add another 6lbs very soon. That is about 6000 in total. 50 sunfish and 25 bass go in soon. That should get it going for this year. The tank is about .7 acres and 18' deep now. Anyone have plans to restock and what are you going to do?

HS

I only have a small pond, maybe 65' across, but I will add golden shiners or flatheads to keep the mosquitoes down. Thinking I will loose the pond again this summer.

Over the last weekend, I scalped my yard, 2 days later I added (sprayed) some Ortho Weed be Gone plus crabgrass control, the one you connect to the water hose. I sprayed by 9am, went to a small job and returned around 5:45pm, the 2,4-D had already started wilting the broadleafs:thumbsup: Some good stuff.

 

[rsewill]

 

[jinman]

Well, well, well. . . look at the new thread for me to spend countless hours readin' and respondin'. I guess I can't say that I didn't get my wish.:laughing:

You know its springtime when the repair jobs on your mowers suddenly move up the list to the top because the grass is over ankle deep. At least I have my grandson to help with half of the yard. I mow inside the trees and around obstacles and let him mow the clear areas. He needs a growth spurt to be able to run the mower. He's so short that even with the seat adjusted to the forward stop, pressing on the brake lifts the back of the seat and the darn engine quits. I just laugh and tell him that he needs to start growing longer legs. He wants to start cutting as soon as the grass grows a couple of inches. I have to say he's a quick learner and does pretty good.

While I saw bluebonnets yesterday on the west face of Cougar Mound in Bowie, my bluebonnets don't seem to even have buds yet. They are on target to really be spectacular the first week in March. . .just a guess.

I bought cantaloupe, bean, and squash seed yesterday. I'm gonna try to get them into the ground before next week's predicted rain. My wife has already planted potatoes, cucumbers, and onion sets and bulbs. I need to buy a bag of blackeyed peas at the store because I haven't had much luck with packaged seeds. We'll set out tomato and pepper sets soon and plant a couple of rows of okra. That should just about round out our garden this year.

 

[Bird]

I've mentioned in the past that a fellow in this area always has a big patch of bluebonnets. I don't know whether he will this year, but he does already have about 2' circle of bluebonnets in one place.

And another sign of Spring and rain . . . I've noticed fire ant mounds around my neighborhood, so far only one in our yard.

And I just finished spraying Thompson's Advanced Clear Multi-surface water sealer on my woodend fences this morning. It was on "clearance sale" cheap at Home Depot a few months ago and I bought 3 gallons. I used about 2.5 gallons today.

 

[NativeSon]

I tilled the garden yesterday and it was a little wet. Maybe it will dry out enough by Sunday to get started planting some tomatos. Suppose to have some heavy rain next week so that'll slow down the planting for a while. We've got to go to Carrollton this moring to see youngest son's new house, so I hope I can get in to the garden Sunday and get something done.

Charlie

 

[blueriver]

I like these Texas threads ... cause I'm close enough to "thread" in on the subject. Everything this year is early going... fertilizer out early, lawn being mowed, fence lines getting sprayed, gopher plow going ... I'm behind on the garden cause everything else has my attention. Got the onions and potatoes in ... thinking sweet corn, peas, radish, beans .... next week got a full mile of 5 strand barbed wire fence to get in.

And the forecast is for 3-5 inches of rain first part of the week ... if that happens I quess the balers and hay cutters will all get an early service. I think my first cutting of hay will go about the first week or so of April.

 

[jinman]

I tilled the garden yesterday and it was a little wet. Maybe it will dry out enough by Sunday to get started planting some tomatos.

Charlie, I bought some veggie seeds at TSC and asked my wife yesterday how the garden was since the last rain storm. She said it was still a bit muddy when she was checking it Thur. morning. So I'm gonna wait until tomorrow to see if I can get stuff planted. I don't want to wait until the end of March to get the seed into the ground.

 

[Western]

And another sign of Spring and rain . . . I've noticed fire ant mounds around my neighborhood, so far only one in our yard.

Fire ants seem to have exploded around here, hardly saw any during the drought last summer, but now they are everywhere.

One thing my wife and I have noticed, is the lack of honey bees, I have had 2 hives on my place, 1 for 6 years and one that showed up 2 years ago, both hives seem to have vanished. Waling around the flower beds and in the plum patches, hardly a bee when usually there so think you can hear them.

 

[foreman Etexas]

Sure is green around here,grabbed a few picture while at my parents at the other end of the place.


In the last picture looks like going to lose some oaks

 

[NativeSon]

Charlie, I bought some veggie seeds at TSC and asked my wife yesterday how the garden was since the last rain storm. She said it was still a bit muddy when she was checking it Thur. morning. So I'm gonna wait until tomorrow to see if I can get stuff planted. I don't want to wait until the end of March to get the seed into the ground.

Jim, I got a late start last year then the weather really hurt us. I'm hoping Mother Nature is a little better to us this year. I found some nice looking Celebrity tomatos the other day and I'm going to run to nursery over towards Pittsburg that is suppose to have some good looking tomatos on Monday, but I'm going to try to get what I've got in the ground today, and move my spot for Herbs over closer to the house.

It was pretty windy yesterday so maybe it will be dry enough.

Charlie

 

[jinman]

Has anyone ever seen white bluebonnets? Okay, that's a bit of an oxymoron, I know, so maybe I should say white lupines in with the bluebonnets since they are both lupines. On a hillside (bridge underpass) in Bowie, Tx, there are white lupines mixed in with the bluebonnets. Everything about them is the same except they are white. I can only guess that the state provided seeds includes some of both types. There are far more blue than white, but the white ones really stand out. I'm just wondering if anyone else has seen them? If they are rare, I'll try to get a picture of them and post it here.

 

[Traxx]

We added about a football field to the yard Sat. Been finding scorpions when we are cleaning up, they are still sluggish but still scared the Lovely Wife. Letty and I are looking to get started on cutting in a garden, we are thinking of the north end of the hill. We took a few pictures of the bluebonnets and the kids.

 

[WM75Guy]

I am off today, going for some seat time mowing this morning. The rain is coming, heavy stuff still out west by Abilene and Wichita Falls. According to the radar Jinman and Western should be getting wet now with light rain. Flash flood watch till Tuesday night, forecast is 3"-6" inches.

 

[JESSE1]

Ponds are full, lots of green grass. Summer grasses are just starting to come up, I'll be putting out fertilizer in a few weeks. More rain is on the way, hope this trend keeps up. I took my '56 White to a small tractor show Saturday, people are feeling much better about the weather, hoping to have good pastures and cut lots of hay if the rain continues.

 

[Western]

I am off today, going for some seat time mowing this morning. The rain is coming, heavy stuff still out west by Abilene and Wichita Falls. According to the radar Jinman and Western should be getting wet now with light rain. Flash flood watch till Tuesday night, forecast is 3"-6" inches.

Not a drop here so far, The storm is West of Jim and I about a county and a half. I can see how this one will hand out allot of rain, the way it is moving NNE, it is running where the back of the storm follows the front somewhat.

I have the high winds though, every bit of what NOAA says (40mph)

 

[Western]

Storms getting closer, wind has dropped to near zero!

 

[Bird]

Storms getting closer, wind has dropped to near zero!

An hour ago, we had 35 mph wind gusting to 55 mph. It's come down about 10 mph now.