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The Shovel-Ready Garden

Stimulating growth, one seed at a time

Posts

August 20, 2023

Summer Woes, 2023 Edition: Goodbye, red oak; hello, full sun

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5 comments

January 15, 2023

Year-end update: Fall/Winter 2022/2023

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8 comments

March 03, 2022

Slow progress

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1 comment

February 14, 2021

Impeccable timing

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6 comments

January 15, 2021

First look: new baby garden in the front yard

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3 comments

December 05, 2020

Clean slate!

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10 comments

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Check out my photography

Caroline Homer Photography on Flickr

about the gardener

Caroline gardens on Blackland Prairie clay-over-caliche soil on a standard-sized urban lot in Austin, Texas (USDA zone 8b).

I'm Flinging in 2023!

September 21-24, 2023. Hosted by Karl Gercens of Longwood Gardens

Texas Drought Monitor

Click on the map for the most current data

Gardening Resources for Central Texas

Aggie Horticulture Home Vegetable Gardening
Austin Bug Collection
Austin Grow Green
Basic Urban Fertilizer Calculator
Central Texas Gardener (KLRU/PBS)
Central TX Horticulture - TAMU
Earth-Kind (TAMU)
Earth-Kind Roses
LCRA Drought Information
NPIN Native Plants Database
Rangeplants of Texas
Texas Fruit and Nut Planting Guides
Texas Invasives
Texas Tree Planting Guide
Travis Co Master Gardeners' Public Workshops
Vegetable Planting Calendar for Travis County
Vegetable Varieties for Central Texas

good stuff

Botanical Interests Seeds
Cobrahead
DiG Drip Irrigation
Espoma Products
Felco Pruners
Filaree Garlic Farm
Forever Yong Farm
Green Cure
High Country Gardens
High Mowing Seeds
Holdredge Enterprises
Ladybug Natural Brand Products
Medina Products
Monrovia
Native American Seed
Proven Winners
Rabbit Hill Farm Plant Food
Renee's Garden Seeds
Seed Savers Exchange
Southern Exposure Seed Exchange
Southern Living Plant Collection

where I get stuff

Antique Rose Emporium - Brenham, TX
Barton Springs Nursery - Austin
Breed & Co. - Austin
Callahan's General Store - Austin
Dromgoole's Natural Gardener - Austin
Easy to Grow Bulbs - California
Old House Gardens - Michigan
Plant Delights Nursery - North Carolina
Shoal Creek Nursery - Austin
Sledd Nursery - Austin
Southern Bulb Co. - Golden, TX
Wildseed Farms - Frederickburg, TX

reap what they've sown

Boggy Creek Farm
HausBar Farms
Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Middle Ground Farm
Sustainable Food Center
Tecolote Farm
Texas Farmers Market
Travis County Master Gardeners
Zilker Botanical Gardens

like I was sayin'...

2024 1
- September 1
  - A serendipitous rain

2023 2
- August 1
- January 1
2022 1
- March 1
2021 2
- February 1
- January 1
2020 7
2019 1
- January 1
2018 2
- October 2
2017 3
2016 7
- July 1
- May 2
- January 4
2015 5
2014 16
- December 1
- August 1
- July 1
- June 1
- May 1
- April 4
- March 3
- February 3
- January 1
2013 15
- December 2
- October 2
- September 2
- August 2
- May 3
- April 1
- March 2
- February 1
2012 33
- December 2
- October 4
- September 3
- August 1
- June 1
- May 10
- April 1
- March 6
- February 3
- January 2
2011 71
- December 2
- November 2
- October 8
- September 6
- August 15
- July 4
- June 3
- May 6
- April 7
- March 7
- February 7
- January 4
2010 53
- December 5
- November 3
- October 2
- September 1
- August 4
- July 2
- June 9
- May 2
- April 4
- March 6
- February 8
- January 7
2009 73
- December 7
- November 6
- October 7
- September 8
- August 11
- July 7
- June 6
- May 10
- April 11

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Labels

"Ruby Crystals"1
agave1
agaves10
ants1
argula1
asparagus3
aster1
awards1
backyard garden14
backyard overhaul1

Balmorhea1
beans3
bees15
beets1
before and after7
berries2
Big Bend National Park2
bird bath2
birds7
Blotanical1
Boggy Creek Farm1
bonsai1
boxwood3
broccoli4
brushy1
bulbs15
butterflies10
cabbage1
cactus3
cannas1
carrots2
catalogs1
caterpillars8
change1
chard4
chickens2
chores4
citrus12
city parks1
clematis1
cocktails4
color wheel1
columbine3
compost3
coneflower1
container gardening4
corn4
craigslist1
crocus2
cucumbers1
dagnabbit11
daisies1
dandelions1
Denver1
desert2
DIY6
drought13
Dunn Gardens1
duranta1
earth-kind2
East Austin Urban Farm Tour2
Eastside Cafe1
education1
Eucomis1
evergreen1
fall22
farming1
fences2
ferns1
fertilizer1
field trips36
fireflies1
flagstone path3
floating row cover1
flowers44
foliage24
fountains1
freezes9
front yard overhaul13
fungus3
garden art1
Garden Bloggers Fling23
garden bloggers' bloom day39
garden maladies6
garlic1
gazebo3
geranium1
GGW Picture This Photo Contest11
gladiolus1
grasses7
greenhouses2
Ground to Ground1
hanging baskets1
hardscape1
HausBar Farm1
heirloom1
herbs3
hesperaloe1
hollyhocks3
houseplants2
hummingbirds1
Hydrangea1
Inside Austin Gardens5
iris3
irrigation5
jasmine1
kohlrabi1
ladybugs3
lantana1
larkspur2
lettuce2
Ligularia1
lilies5
lizards3
mallow2
Master Gardeners11
Mayfield Park1
memories1
Minneapolis1
mint1
mockingbirds1
monarda1
moon1
mums1
mutabilis2
national parks2
native plants1
native texas plants32
nom nom nom3
Nurseries2
oaks3
onions1
otherworldly3
owls5
patio1
peacocks1
peas3
peppers1
pest control3
Phlomis1
pill bugs1
plants you can eat77
politics1
ponds2
poppies2
Portland5
possums4
potatoes5
primrose1
projects8
PSA1
rain13
raised beds4
recycling1
Rose Round-Up1
roses19
rudbeckia2
saffron1
sage4
salvia13
santolina1
Seattle15
secret life of insects5
sedges2
seeds6
shade1
sheet mulching1
shopping cart garden1
snails2
snow2
soil5
spiders4
spring41
Springdale Farm1
squash3
squirrels1
state parks1
succulents3
summer13
sunset1
sweet peas1
Texas AgriLife Extension Service3
TIL8
tomatoes8
trees7
tropical plants6
tulips3
vacation2
vines1
weeds5
white1
wildflowers14
wildlife habitat3
winter23
Wordless Wednesday11
xeriscape7
yucca5

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these folks get me.

more austin bloggers

Digging

Crevice garden and secret-garden path in Mike Kintgen’s garden
My Gardener Says...

Cheers for Crinums
East Side Patch

Lemon Casino Online – oficjalna strona pl 155 fs.11694 (3)
Playin' Outside

My "Gardeners' Dozen" for Waterwise Pollinator Gardens
Lisa's Landscape & Design

Austin’s Landscape Consultation Station!
Urban IPM

Red imported fire ants
ROCK ROSE

WHAT WINTER!
Sharing Nature's Garden

Puget Sound Gardeners Fling – People, Plants, and More
Sharing Nature's Garden

Puget Sound Gardeners Fling – People, Plants, and More
J Peterson Garden Design

Designing a Healing Oasis in the Form of a Therapy Garden
Vivero's Garden

Fall is Coming!
The Divas of the Dirt

2018 JUNE – Karla’s Garden Day
Yard Fanatic

Things in the garden I wished I'd never learned and the lies I tell myself
Urban Beekeeping in Austin, Texas

Coming this Spring 2019
Gardening in Austin

Camera Things (Part 1)
Wills Family Acres

Veggie Garden Update
Central Texas Gardening

AND THE WINNERS ARE……..
The Transplantable Rose

April 2018 Garden Scrapbook
Central Texas Gardener Blog

Living it Up Pond & Patio Design
The Rabid Gardener

(Belated) September successes!
Austin Urban Gardens

Calendula Flowers for Healing
Xeric Front Yard

Happy Thanksgiving!
Gardener of Good and Evil

A walk through the fall garden…
Cool as a cucumber

Review: Two Picture Books With Birds
Rebecca’s Retreat

Bee Balm
Travis Heights Garden Mama

May flowers
Watching my garden grow

The evolving garden
The Whimsical Gardener

Hey, There! It's Been A While...
Garden Ally

Are You in the Moody?
AUSTIN AGRODOLCE

Happy Spring (or, the Swearin' O' the Green)
Great Stems

10 Unexpected Benefits of Having a Snake Loose in Your Car
Garden Austin

Zebra heliconian
Waiting for Plumeria

Garden Bloggers Bloom Day: May 2015
The Lazy Shady Gardener

Moving Sparklers
The Grackle

Garden from Above
Gardening at Draco

Back to Gardening
Getting Grounded

My new waterfall and grotto
Kiss of Sun

Prickly Pear is Buzzing with Blooms
Conscious Gardening

Tree Folks Urban Forest Steward Program at Hornsby Bend
Society Garlic

garden bloggers' bloom day
Dry Creek Bed

Show 5 Show All

Other Texas Bloggers

Lagniappe

Skybourne Beauty
Window on a Texas Wildscape

Jimsonweed bloom
It's A Dry Heat

Deep Purple
Lifescapes

All About Thyme: October, 2021
Foraging Texas

llms.txt
An Eye for Texas

Cacti Part 10 ~ Queen of the Night (Peniocereus gregii)
Rock-Oak-Deer

Happy New Year!
The latest dirt from my garden

Rare Harry Potters Mandrake Root Atropa Mandragora officinarum
From My Corner of Katy

Absobloominlutely January: Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, January 2019
Earthly Gardener

Update on Earthly Gardener
transplant studio

suburb city country
Masters of Horticulture

The World’s Most Expensive Beans
The Bicycle Garden

Work In Progress: The Winter Road
Patchwork Garden

February Weather...
Hill Country Mysteries

Learning acceptance
TROPICAL TEXANA

GARDENING AFTER HOUSTON'S HURRICANE HARVEY
Houston Garden Girl

Possibly the Very Best Citrus
Roses and Other Gardening Joys

SFA Plant Sale
Dirtiest Kid in the World

Sowing Seeds: December
Merriwether's Guide to Edible Wild Plants of Texas and the Southwest

Betony

Show 5 Show All

Regional Blogs Outside Texas

danger garden

A stop at Doug and Bruce's garden (it was the agave)
A Growing Obsession

more San Francisco Botanical Garden in July
Get Busy Gardening

The 3 Pillars of a Healthy Garden
Dirt Therapy

The Chaotic August Garden
Prairiebreak

Chris Moritz: landscape architect extraordinaire!
clay and limestone

Wildflower Wednesday: Phyla lanceolata, aka Fog Fruit deserves a spot in your garden
Piece of Eden

Wrong, Right?
Commonweeder

A Beautiful Summer for All
Veg Plotting

Easy Recipe: Tomato and bread soup
Root Simple

Pain is inevitable. Suffering is optional: Murakami on Running
My Northern Garden

Keystone Species: Key to Greener Gardening
Garden in a City

Sewing the Seasons
Harmony in the Garden

Designing an HOA Garden You Love
The Plant Provocateur

플랜트 프로보케이터 카지노 – 깨끗한 스포츠토토를 위한 안전한 토토사이트 추천 및 철저한 검증 정보
Gardening and Gardens

Natives: Just One Can Make a Difference
Cold Climate Gardening

Will I see you at the Galanthus Gala?
Tales from Awkward Hill

What my garden really looks like
Gardens of the Wild Wild West

Plants that made the cut
Ledge and Gardens

High Summer
Toronto Gardens – It's a noun. It's a verb.

The 70th Canadian Tulip Festival, 2022
May Dreams Gardens

Over here. I'm over here now!
Red Dirt Ramblings

Grow your own transplants from seed
Kitten Heels & Compost

Installing A Sprinkler System For Your Lawn
Bonney Lassie

Wednesday Vignette -- The Lurie Garden in June
THE VILLAGE VOICE

AUTUMN DINNER ~ ROASTED SAGE SPAGHETTI SQUASH With GUYERE, SAUTÉED FRESH GARLIC, PARSLEY and TOASTED PINE NUTS
Greenbow

Garden Bloggers Bloom Day - October 2019
Our Little Acre

Green Envy™ - An Exceptional Echinacea for Your Epidermis
Dig, Grow, Compost, Blog

Intro to My February Bulbs
Plants are the Strangest People

Anthurium no. 1733 "Jayyvon Monroe"
Blue Planet Garden Blog

Vancouver Design Inspiration
Growing A Garden In Davis

Garden Blogger Bloom Day April 2018
gravy lessons

My Ten Favorite Photos From 2017
Bumblebee Blog

Fall Message: A Rare Post
Fairegarden

Muhly Grass Now In Session
The Garden Life

PLUS MINUS DIET KETO
The Sun is Killing Me

The Stumpery
Greenish Thumb

Interesting vegetables to grow this season
29minutegardener

Space-Saving Indoor Herb Garden
Floradora

Eloise Butler Garden
My Skinny Garden

Re-entry
bwisegardening

Growing Up Crescent
An Alameda Garden

What to Do in the Garden in February
Miss Rumphius' Rules

Garden Design Details: Container Planting
Todays Bouquet

The Valentine Bouquet: Love as an Aesthetic
Northern Gardeners Almanac

Buy My Book
Star Apple Edible Gardens

The Bagrada Bug
Plant Soup, Inc.

Keyhole Gardens – a new take on growing vegetables with less water
Northwest Flower Garden Show's Blog
VintageGardenGal
Dirt Du Jour Daily Blog

Show 5 Show All

Other Garden Websites I Dig

Garden Rant

Six Things About Hiring A Gardener
A Way To Garden

really getting to know radicchio, with lane selman
Southern Exposure Seed Exchange

Choosing the Right Soil Amendments
Horticulture Magazine

‘Crazy Fortune’ Anise Hyssop Stands Out With Variegated Foliage
Debra Prinzing

Episode 780: Doing it All – Flowers, Plants, and Weddings, with Corinne Bryson of Flora Good Times in Beacon, New York
The Garden Professors™

The climate outlook for the rest of 2026 and what it means for your garden
The Dirt

Climate & Biodiversity News (December 2025)
Alice's Garden Travel Buzz

The Wave Garden : San Francisco Garden Travel
Living Homegrown

The Ultimate Guide to Growing Dahlias & Floret
Growing A Greener World

1013: The Year-Round Vegetable Gardener
Gardening Gone Wild

12 Tips on How To Use Color Effectively In The Garden
Gardeners Journal

Add Height to Garden Beds with an Obelisk
American Meadows Blog

Announcing The $2,000+ Ultimate Gift Giveaway - Enter Today!
Nature Hills Nursery Garden Blog

Juneberries, Serviceberries, or Amelanchier Plants … All The Same Thing
grounded design: landscape + culture

Grounded Design has moved!
Renee's Garden Seeds: Renee's Blog

Organic Garden Management – Part 2
Life on the Balcony

Hello 1970! How to Make a Tiny Terrarium and Macrame Hanger
Horticultural Myths (Wash St U)

The Myth of Beneficial Bone Meal
Northwest Flower Garden Show's Blog