Sirhornsalot

@TFloss32 or @Aaron Carrara, could either of you swap out the new landscape thread for me please? TIA!

When choosing plants, go with what works in your area! This spring, many of you will move forward with a transformation of your landscape, or maybe install a new landscape for a new home. This is a very exciting time. Through that process, many homeowners will be scouring the internet for photos of plants they like, sending them to their landscape planner for inclusion in the new landscape. Unfortunately, this can lead to some disappointment and frustration because often times the plants you found are not available in your area and aren’t known to grow well there, either. For this reason, your local nurseries won’t carry those types of plants. Nobody wants to sell a plant that they know will die soon after planting. In Texas, we have a unique climate that can be in the extremes at times, but also an extended growing season that a wide variety plants can grow and thrive in . . . but not all. For example, I once fielded a request from a customer for an Australian Tree Fern. These are gorgeous ferns and live in certain locations in Australia. The conditions for this plant have to be perfect. I cautioned the customer against it, but he insisted. So I found him an Australian Tree Fern. Two months later, it was dead. If tried in our area, a plant like that would require daily attention. Most folks don’t have that time to give or don’t want to commit to it. Best to stick with what has proven to work here. Another situation is where a new hybrid version of a plant is introduced and a large number of photos are circulated on the internet as part of its marketing. The average consumer, surfing for ideas, finds the new hybrid in a photo and requests it for her new landscape. The problem with new hybrids is the numbers aren’t enough to wide distribution. Also, many nurseries prefer to let new hybrids prove themselves elsewhere before investing in an inventory of them. So they can be hard to find. What I would recommend for idea-generation would be to visit a few local nurseries. Find out what sells because those will be the same plants that perform well in your area. Don’t go to buy, just go to look and formulate a list for yourself. Then, when you meet with your landscape designer, you can give him your list for inclusion in the new plan. Its his/her job to figure out where they would best be located. Or simply ask your landscaper to provide a plan with his/her choice of plants. Landscapers will know what does and does not work in your area. Keep these things in mind when plant shopping this spring. Brace yourselves for the annual Live Oak Molt! One of our native trees that are found in so many Texas landscapes is the Live Oak. Once they begin maturing, they transform into a huge, graceful, beautiful tree when properly maintained. They are evergreen, never being without leaves. But they do have a molting season where they drop every leaf on the tree, day by day, over a three-week period in February and March and at times into April. During this process, the tree drops its leaves while at the same time, growing new leaves. So it is never without leaves. For property owners who have Live Oaks (myself included), this can be a nightmare. It is the three weeks of the year when you hate Live Oaks. The rest of the year, you love them. Lol Because the leaves are smaller, they can get into the darnedest of places. Removing them must become a part of the weekly maintenance while the molt is going on. To allow them to accumulate can cause your turf to not emerge from dormancy when it should, makes it difficult on turf because of the blocked sunlight. Again, it will last for at least three weeks, depending on the size of your Live Oak. An example of "hacked" Crape Myrtles, above. Crape Myrtle Trimming Don’t do it. Don’t hack your Crape Myrtles, that is. Every year it never fails, Crape Myrtle trees will get trimmed back to nothing, becoming sticks in the ground for a month or so. This not only presents an ugly appearance for that length of time, its bad for the tree in the long term. Each year, a hacked Crape Myrtle has to grow out new limbs. These are young, tender growth and are susceptible to damage from storms, wind, etc. Limbs are never allowed to mature or develop. A publication from Texas A&M even calls the process “Crape Murder” because of the long-term damage at risk. My advice is – don’t do it – just trim a Crape Myrtle the same way you would trim any other tree. Eliminate the erratic growth, redundant limbs, remove the sucker growth at the bottom, trim for shape, etc. Above, a before and after example of a properly trimmed Crape Myrtle. First mow of the season The season’s first mow should be happening soon. Its your call on the when but when you do, make the first mow a much shorter cut. This will get rid of much of the thatch from the dormant turf and will allow sunlight to hit the soil surface, heating it up and causing your turf to emerge from dormancy faster. Do not scalp it, but mow it shorter than usual that first time. This is also the time when weeds begin to germinate and appear. You will want to mow, even if your grass is not green, to prevent these weeds from seeding out and multiplying. It takes a weed 1.5 weeks to produce a seed. We want to stop that from happening. Take the time now to get your lawnmowers, weed eaters, etc. in good shape, performing repairs and maintenance before the season gets started. This will include changing the spark plug, filters, oil, etc. Sharpen the blade as well.

I would like to say thank you, from the bottom of my heart, to all of you who have reached out to me, lifted me up in prayer, donated to Brandon, and for the outpouring of love. It has been a blessing to me. I've been quietly keeping up with the board. It has been one of the few things that could take my mind away. We were able to put Brandon to rest Friday in a beautiful spot under three large Oak trees in Rolling Oaks Memorial Park in Coppell. I think he would have picked this spot himself. Thank you all for helping me get through this. You are some good, good friends.

Here ya go. Right there in Temple and Belton. https://templebeltonfeed.com/catalog/product/201697/back-to-nature-cotton-burr-compost

I recommend right now. Turf is dormant. Follow that aeration up by putting compost all over the lawn. If you can let me know where you are, I can help you get the compost you need. You want cotton burr compost. CBC will make your lawn retain more water. It is highly nutritious and is a natural clay softener. We're in the middle of doing this for our customers. I have 150 who do this almost every January.

You need to remedy this quickly. Get as much ice off of the tree as you can. Install a bamboo stake that will be as high as the tree itself. Put it right next to the trunk. Tie the trunk to the stake to keep it upright. You may need more than one stake. The weight of the ice is why the tree is leaning over. So get some of that load off and stake it.

I lost my youngest son, Brandon, 27, Saturday night. It was an accidental overdose and is under investigation for the possibility of Fetnynal in play. Needless to say, I am a broken man right now. I'll need a little time before I can get my head straight again. Brandon had no savings or life insurance. He was about to marry and had a daughter coming in a couple months. He was a big Longhorn fan (like me) and had been to a UT game with me there in Austin. So we're trying to cover his funeral expenses during our down time of year. Any help you can lend would be appreciated. https://www.gofundme.com/f/brandon-lyon-funeral-arrangements?utm_source=customer&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_campaign=p_cf+share-flow-1

TFB's update makes it sound like Roberson will be a Horn by end of his visit.

Tenn is playing well. We're playing timid. Gotta cut it loose in the 2nd half. Relax. Play ball.

Veterans served to protect every last one of us. That is highly inclusive. Sexual preferences are not something you celebrate at football games, nor should you celebrate heterosexual ness either. But please tell me, when was the last time you saw a hetero pride celebration of any kind?

TCU coaches

Had the pleasure of speaking with a long-time customer today. He and his family are more or less sorta royalty at TCU, so he rubs shoulders with higher ups and coaches over there. He straight up told me today that we're getting Duce. My friend is a solid football fan, but really a novice when it comes to recruiting. So him even bringing Duce up was a surprise to me. I asked him how he knew this (or based on what) . . he said he overheard coaching chatter this week.

If you want to see some high comedy, watch the interviewer try to carry on a positive interview with Perroni about aggy next season.

Is Duce in Austin?

Surprised and embarrassed that she's not prepared.

Anytime you want to do a Kate appreciation day, just let me know. lol

You're opening a Pandora's box. Why not use football for all kinds of activism? Plaster anti-abortion messages on the sides of their helmets. Or have furry white uniforms to benefit the polar bears. The list is literally endless. Football is football. Leave the politics out of it. And yes, seeking acceptance from football fans based on your sexual preference is pretty absurd in the first place, not to mention you're likely not doing this in front of a receptive audience. Football is where we go to leave life's problems. You're doing nothing less than bringing those problems right into that sacred place. Mind you, I don't see people bashing LBGTSQ or whatever so much. I think it's more that people get tired of it being waved in their face.

When asked about the idea that S Allen may transfer and little brother may decommit due to the abundance of talent accumulating at safety with the seemingly imminent commitment of Roberson. DT (from TFB) answered: Yes, that might happen. I wouldn't get too worked up about it. The Red Oak kid is a stud.

TFB says this is the second-most important WR recruit in the 2024 class, behind Hudson. Watch the clips. He won the state 100 meters with a 10.32. DO WANT. Ernest Campbell, WR, Refugio https://www.hudl.com/video/3/14954940/63a4e27f4205b80f1c17cea3

Swoopes was self-inflicted. He never once looked like a QB. When you see an athlete play football, you can always tell which ones have "it," no matter the classification.

I think you can assume that there are not very many Freshman players who start the entire season, from game 1.

Let me know when you're ready to make your case. Allen has gotten bigger. He has been in a weight program.