• Mike Forman •
• Originally published January 7, 2009 at 5:11 p.m., updated January 7, 2009 at 5:11 p.m.

This time of year, many of us find it hard to get the motivation to work in our gardens. Although, many days are beautiful, sunny and warm. Many others can be damp (notice I didn't say wet), cloudy and cold. I know it's much easier to get myself up and out in the garden on the spring-like days. On the damp cold days, I just want to be in the house with a hot cup of tea and a good book. But, this is the time of year to get that spring garden ready. Like it or not, good weather or bad, we've got garden chores.

This time of year could really be one of the most important times of the year for our gardens. This is the preparation time. Planning ahead, for at least the season, can save you many redo chores later on. I find the lack of planning to be one of the most common mistakes gardeners make. Especially new gardeners.

If you are planning a spring garden, first decide where it will be located. Vegetables need at least six to seven hours of sunlight. The location will also need to drain well.

Next, decide what size garden you will need to accommodate the amount of plants you want to grow. Keep in mind that plants need good air circulation to help prevent different types of diseases. Knowing the correct distance each individual plant needs to be planted from it's neighbor plant will help with the overall health of the garden. Overgrown gardens can also be difficult to harvest from, hard to spot diseases and to see insect problems.

This is a good time to plan our spring gardens, but, this is a great time to plant fruit and nut trees. Not to say that you don't need to have a bit of preparation work done first.

As with a garden, first decide where the new tree will be planted. Consider the mature size of the tree before planting it. The tree will look small when you buy it, but at it's maximum size a fruit tree will need to be at least ten feet apart from any other tree. Nut trees need even more space.

Lots of sun will be a very important part of the success of the fruit or nut tree. Find a location that gets at least six hours of full sun per day.

Good drainage is a must for fruit and nut trees. You may need to consider raised beds if you have a heavy soil that holds moisture for period of time.

Be sure you are buying a tree that will produce well in our area. This is very important. Always ask if the tree is adapted to our growing conditions.

This is the time of year when junipers, and other narrow leaf evergreen plants, might get bagworms. These pests hide inside pouches they make from tiny twigs and foliage. The pouches are cone-shaped and are tightly attached to the foliage. The mother bagworm lays her eggs in this pouch. Bagworms strip the foliage of many types of shrubs, but tend to prefer the evergreens. Clip off any bagworm pouch you see on your plants. You can spray the plant with BT spray to kill bagworms or any other type of worms or caterpillar.

You can still plant rye grass this month to fill in as a temporary lawn until the St. Augustine or Bermuda lawn comes back. It's a good thing to loosen the soil prior to spreading the rye seeds. Water the seeded area on a regular basis as the seeds are germinating and beginning to grow.

I now want to apologize to anyone that has e-mailed me with a question within the past several weeks. My computer deletes many of my e-mails before I am able to reply back to the sender. If you haven't gotten a reply back from me please resend your question, and I'll try again. So sorry for the inconvenience.

Until next time, let's try to garden with nature, not against it, and maybe all our weeds will become wildflowers.

Laurie Garretson is a Victoria gardener and nursery owner. Send your gardening questions to laurie@vicad.com or in care of the Advocate, P.O. Box 1518, Victoria, TX 77902.

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