1. You can’t take the ’70s college student out of the middle-aged boomer.

Before the words recycle and repurpose came into use, when macramé was prominent, it was commonplace to furnish first apartments with discards and inexpensive foliage plants.

Carl Youngberg and David McNair haven’t been able to shake their youthful habits. They head out for their morning walk and are likely to return lugging a discarded door or a declining plant picked up curbside. Their shared prowess at salvaging has transformed a respectably landscaped back yard into lush but quirky outdoor rooms where, from spring through fall, they linger over morning coffee, entertain friends and wind down evenings relaxing in the pool.

Read more here:

2. A national poll conducted in January for Scotts Miracle-Gro suggests there will be a 20 percent increase in vegetable gardening over last year.

Retailers scrambled to keep up with demand in 2008, but this year they’re prepared. Local retailers have expanded their inventory of vegetable transplants, and North Haven Gardens, for example, has built several new display gardens to show customers how to plant and what to grow in their own personal versions of a Victory Garden — both in large containers and in raised beds.

In North Texas, early spring is prime time to get nutritious vegetables going before the heat and humidity can take their toll on tender young plants. You can plant onions, potatoes, lettuces, spinach, peas and root crops like carrots, beets and radishes this month.

Get your veggie fix here:

3. Gardeners demand a lot from plants: good looks, low maintenance, and flowers and fruit to attract wildlife. Natives can live up to those expectations.

When we asked Linda Knowles her 10 favorite natives, she quickly shared the list below. A Texas Master Naturalist and president of the Houston Chapter of the Native Plant Society of Texas, she’s especially drawn to this group.

In fact, she says, “This list of 10 great natives could easily be expanded to a list of hundreds; there are so many other great native plants that could be grown. Texas has more than 5,000 native plants, second only to California in the number of native plants.”

What are those great natives (at least for Houston)? Check it out here:

Do not let any gardener tell you he or she loves spring, because for gardeners, spring means anxiety, pressure, backaches, leg cramps, fears of needing hip replacements. It means cleaning up the winter detritus and planning ahead and wondering if it is the right time to plant the zinnia seeds. 

For gardeners, spring is a race against time. Those who beat the relentless deadlines stand a chance of having a great garden. Those who don’t have a long wait until next year.

Good essay about us crazy gardeners. Read the rest here:

Winter and butterflies don’t normally go hand in hand in most people’s minds. However, thanks to the prolific use of an exotic plant in our landscapes, one butterfly’s behavior has been altered, allowing it to be on the wing in North Texas throughout the year.

Read the rest of the article, by the acknowledged butterfly expert in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, here:

Here’s an interesting take on whether President-Elect Obama should dig up a patch of White House grounds to plant a veggie garden. (Maybe he should make George do it; wouldn’t hurt him to do some good.)

The home vegetable garden, a thing of much toil and simple pleasure, has taken on enormous political and environmental symbolism. Voices in the local-food movement have formed a chorus urging the Obamas to dig up a good chunk of the South Lawn for a garden to feed the first family and local food banks.

It would only be symbolism, of course. But it would be powerful symbolism. Just another small piece of taking control of your life back from the agribusinesses that control what we eat.

And, no, I don’t have a veggie garden that could feed anyone for more than a day. I grow lettuces, onions, garlic and herbs. But to feed my family, I would have to grow veggies on more land than I have. Perhaps: Start a community garden! Not a bad idea.

Anyone had success growing veggies on small patches of land? Or how to start a community garden? I am itching to get my fingers into some dirt, but I need guidance (and I’m sure others do, too).