Watch Out for Mealy Bugs

 By mid to late winter the mealy bugs have decided to descend in full force on plants in the greenhouse. Lack of air circulation seems to be the prime factor with these pesky little bugs because this is when I always have the most trouble with them, when they...

Keeping Your Cactus Warm

 When I started this, we had had below freezing weather for too many days in a row. I lost count, but suffice it say I have worn my long underwear under my jeans to stay warm in and out of the house. I probably don’t need them in the house, but it saves having to...

When It Finally Rains, It Pours

  Or, “How to Drown Your Cactus!’’ Keep in mind that we have been in a severe drought for, what, about six years? But today, June 18, the bottom fell out of a cloud, not once, but twice, serving up a quintessential example of the classic gully-washer/turd...

Cactus and Rain

  Cactus, being drought-tolerant plants, don’t like rain, right? Select ones may not, but it has been my experience that while cactus and succulents certainly survive without water, they thrive with it. In moderate amounts, of course. Give them a good rain shower...

Watering Outside Cactus in the Winter

Texas, along with many other states, has been in a drought for the last few years, so many I have lost count, and this winter was especially dry. And even though cactus and succulents are supposed to live in dry, arid conditions, mine took a deadly hit from this...

Don’t Be Afraid to Prune Your Jade Tree

Crassula ovata, commonly referred to as a jade tree, is one of the more popular and easily grown succulents. If it is given the right growing conditions. With enough sunlight and correct watering and trimming, crassula ovata will grow into a lovely plant shaped like a...