Crepe Myrtles in Cedar Park, TXButchered Crepe Myrtles

I love to garden and I love to see plantings that are well nurtured, well taken care of. These photos, taken today in Cedar Park, Texas are the opposite of what I like to see. I, like so many others call this ”Crepe Murder”. The butchering of Crepe Myrtles is also called topping and is not the correct way to prune and nurture this beautiful botanical species. Crepe Myrtles bloom all summer long, providing shade and beauty to our Central Texas landscapes. Crepe Myrtle varieties are available with many different colors of flowers. White, pink, lavender and red are some of the most popular bloom colors. In the winter, their deciduous leaves fall and they allow the sun to shine in. The least we can do is provide them the minimal care they need to live long and healthy lives. Committing Crepe Murder leaves the poor plants in a weakened state, more susceptible to disease, drought and other life threatening and life shortening events. This bad practice not only makes them look like an ugly stump but also makes them bloom less. There are dwarf and semi-dwarf varieties if you want them to stay small. I like to allow the big ones to stretch out their limbs an provide abundant shade for my yard and home. Let’s reward Crepe Myrtles for their hard work and not make them ugly, heart broken and forlorn.

Properly Pruning Crepe Myrtles

Crepe Murder! There Oughta Be a Law!!!

Crepe Murder in Cedar Park, Texas

Sweet Red Peaches

I just love my front yard organic grocery store. I enjoy picking my own fruits of my own labor knowing they were produced without being sprayed by some harmful chemical and my fruit is not waxed or picked green to gas ripen after shipping in some cold gas chamber. Geez! What has happened to our food supply?! One has to only watch “Super Size Me” and “Food Inc” to understand our dilemma in the United States. That is why I am so happy to grow some of my own. Gardening in Central Texas is not hard. I am no rocket scientist and I manage easily enough. It’s easy to grow some of your own food.

Nature's Bounty

I started my 2010 year with the sweetest, tastiest most melt in your mouth apricots!!! Picking fruit is easy! Next it was the reddest, juiciest, sweetest large red-skinned freestone peaches and also blackberries. For 4th of July we had homemade peach ice cream out of our old White Mountain ice cream freezer. Then on to sweet little figs! Getting a second fig crop now. Yum! I always share some fruit with the birds who visit my National Wildlife Federation Certified Wildlife Habitat yard. Currently it is a great apple harvest. Delightful juicy sweet and slightly tart green apples. The tree was bowing down it is so laden with fruit!! Fresh apple pies baked from scratch this weekend!! Next will be pomegranites. And I always have plenty of herbs – two kinds of oregano, mint, parsley, rosemary, thyme, lemon grass, dill, basil and more… 

Luscious Peaches

Next year I bet my nectarine and plums will come into full bloom and subsequent production!! I have some papaya and citrus trees too. And guess what?? I am raising catfish and crappie in my backyard pond. All this organic produce and food on a 60′ cty lot in Leander, Texas, Williamson County. Yippee!!! 

Contact the organic gardening REALTOR Betty Saenz to buy or sell a home, farm or ranch. I’ll help you get your own organic garden growing on your own piece of Real Estate!!

The Central Texas Electric Lawnmower Program is a great way to reduce smog & live more sustainable for those of us with lawns.  Trade in your old gasoline powered beast for a clean, electric model at the next  event.  For more information call Scott at (512) 389-2250.

Even Perdernales Electric Coop  has an electricity generated from renewable sources choice of where your electricity comes from.  Renewable energy is only $0.005 (half of one cent) more per kilowatt hour than their regular energy.