Volume 6, Issue 3

March, 2010

Good morning, and welcome to another e-gardens. We're here with tips and tidbits to help you get the most from your early-spring efforts. If you enjoy e-gardens, please let your friends know about us. We need your help in getting our message out!

Neil Sperry's Texas Best Products -
Our family has grown!


We're proud to announce new products and new packaging. We still offer our top-quality 24-6-12 (for sandy soils) and 24-0-0 (for clay soils) lawn and garden fertilizers. (We've made them even better.) New: we've added a water-soluble plant food, a timed-release encapsulated 8-month fertilizer, and the best potting soil you've ever tried. Click for all the details.
Ask Neil

Have a question you'd like Neil to tackle? This is the place! All he asks are (1) a photograph and (2) the name of your city, so that he can tailor the answer to be more accurate. Click here to see this month's answers. Click here to send Neil your question and photos for the next e-gardens.

From the Magazine

The March/April 2010 issue of Neil Sperry's GARDENS Magazine features articles on window boxes, peppers, and Texas-loving plants. Diane Morey Sitton writes about dressing up the garden with great containers. Click here to read her article.
Plant of the Month

Meet a hybrid gaillardia that matches old-fashioned Texas toughness with dazzling new colors! Jimmy Turner tested these at the Dallas Arboretum and urges readers to give them a whirl. Click here to read his article.
Timely Tips

It's a pivotal time in the lives of Texas gardeners. Lots of things to do, and a real sequence in which to do them. Click for this month's details.
My Favorite Things

Leslie Finical Halleck focuses many of her efforts on growing "a greener garden." Click here to read her article about sustainable -- and edible -- landscapes.
From the Sperry Garden

This wonderful old heirloom shrub has been growing in a dry part of our hillside for 15 years. It's been a star of late spring every one of those years, but it's gotten a little bit leggy. Click to see how we pruned it.

March Events

The month of March ushers in Spring Fever! Special events and seminars of interest to gardeners abound this month in all corners of the state. Click here to access the newest e-gardens events calendar.
Native Son

Some road trips start with cookies and end with fear of the devil. Click here to read Steven Chamblee's story about agaritos, yuccas, and a climb up Enchanted Rock.
Radio Update

You may be aware that I will not be broadcasting from KRLD 1080AM after July 4. Click here for an explanation and to see where things stand now.
Find Us on Facebook!

We're on Facebook now, and I'm hoping I'll soon see your name there as a "fan." I'll keep you updated on my radio station happenings, places I'll be and things you need to be doing in your landscape and garden. We even post periodic prizes and special offers for Facebook fans. You can link there directly from our home page at www.neilsperry.com. Join us today!

Rose Cuttings

Yes, it's the season to "move it"! This month Mike Shoup of the Antique Rose Emporium explains the basics of successfully moving any rose, large or small, from one location to another. Click here to read his article.
Wild About Texas

This is the month to tackle those garden clean-up chores that we've put off. Andrea DeLong-Amaya of the Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center shares her "Dirty Dozen" clean-up tips for spring. Click here to read her article.
Refer Us to a Friend

Our goal is to "grow" e-gardens to 50,000 subscribers, but I tend to be impatient. My accountant tells me I can't spend even a dime advertising a free publication, so word-of-mouth becomes critical. That would be your words from your mouth! Or, use your fingers to click here, so you can help us electronically. I'm asking your help. If every one of our current subscribers reached out to one additional gardener, we'd reach our goal this spring!
All Texas Garden Show Special!

Neil will be making guest appearances both Saturday and Sunday afternoons at 3, and all Sperry products (books, magazine, fertilizers, potting soil, etc.) will be 20% off their regular prices for the duration of the show Friday-Sunday, Feb. 26-28, at the Arlington Convention Center. Click for more details.
Pest Check

The spring months mark swarming season for one subterranean group of termites. Click here to read Extension entomologist Kimberly Schofield's article about this pest and to learn about a helpful website for insect identification and collecting.
SPCA

This month, meet Roxie, Miss Kitty, Spike and Maxine, lovable, deserving pets waiting at Dallas-area SPCAs for new families. Click here to learn more about them and to read about allergies that sometimes affect pets.
    Neil Sperry's e-gardens newsletter
    400 W Louisiana St
    McKinney, TX 75069

      Neil Sperry - Publisher
      Carolyn Skei - Editor
      Gretchen Drew - Administrator

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In Closing ...

That's it for this edition. Remember, if you find e-gardens useful, we ask only that you tell your friends. I hope to see you for my Q&A sessions this weekend at the All Texas Garden Show.

In the meantime…

Happy gardening!

Neil Sperry