Thanks for looking Fox and thanks for the encouragement to grow the Bird of Paradise plant, Element. Thought some might be interested in an upcoming event at the S. A. Botanical Center: Walk Across Texas at the Botanical Garden Take a "walk across Texas" at the San Antonio Botanical Garden, enjoying the beauty of spring wildflowers right in the heart of San Antonio. Hike the loop trail system of the Texas Native Trail which winds through an 11-acre native area of the Botanical Garden, where you will experience the diverse ecosystems of the Hill Country, East Texas Piney Woods and South Texas Plains. Enter the world of early Texas by visiting the historic cabins and living historians dressed in period clothing from the Sons of the Republic, Chapter 7. Enjoy Pioneer biscuits and gravy, compliments of sponsor C.H. Guenther & Son. The Alamo Area Master Naturalists will offer various displays, bird walks and art activities. PLANT SALE: Just in time for spring planting, gardeners may purchase all types of plants made available by various plant societies. Botanical Society members may enter early at 8:00 a.m. Saturday, April 19, 9 a.m. Â Noon Free admission! San Antonio Botanical Garden 555 Funston @ N. New Braunfels San Antonio, Texas Free admission from 9 a.m. to noon on this day. For more information, the public can call 210-829-5100 or visit www.sabot.org.

I live in Austin, not in San Antonio, and I garden on caliche/limestone. While I've never gardened on sand, I have a friend and a co-worker who have. One in Bellville and one in Dale, Texas whose husband is actually a farmer. Given the choice, I'd pick the sand. Where I live, I have about 3-5 inches of soil over caliche. In some places it's hard rock. The amount of topsoil you have various with location. Planting anything in caliche is a pain. It takes a breaker bar and an hour or so to dig a fair sized hole. As Linda mentioned, she grows many things in raised beds and I have begun to do so too after learning the hard way. I also have fruit trees--a fig and a native persimmon--planted in the caliche 8 years ago, and they have only grown about two feet in that time. They are both only about five-six feet tall. They should be taller. The fig and the persimmon produce, but they are stunted. I also have an American Beauty Berry planted in 2000 that has not grown at all in all of that time. It has three branches and is 2 feet tall but should be 6 feet tall. My friends who grow on sand seem to have healthy plants. They do have to add a lot of soil ammendments and water because everything seems to go through the soil, but at least their plants are able to put down deep roots. On the positive side of caliche, my house foundation, fence posts, and clothesline posts have never moved. It's the only positive thing I can say about the stuff.

Hello Flutterby ! I hope you love gardening as much as the rest of us do ! GardenWeb is a great research tool for you, as there is lots to learn, and plenty of valuable people here who can point you in the right direction. Depending on what part of town you're in, your soil could be different than others. North usually has a lot of rock, while other areas are great blackland. Either way, a raised bed is definitely the way to go. Personally, I don't think that I would grow herbs in pots (unless they are large) because our hot summers just seem to dry out the pots too quickly. That being said, I don't grow herbs, so I really can't say that firsthand. I do grow hundreds in pots though, and water constantly during the hot months. What grows well here ? Well, I'm terribly fond of salvias, and natives. I venture to say that many here will agree with the native side of that. A good way to determine what will do well in your area is a drive around the neighborhood to see what plants are doing nicely in yards and public areas. Starter plants -- one of my favorite nurseries is Rainbow Gardens. There are two locations in SA. Pretty soon (maybe March) they will start running a weekly ad in the Express News with great plants at great prices, and usually a freebie when you make a purchase. They have an awesome choice of herbs, as well. I also like the Antique Rose Emporium. Many of us also drop by Lowes clearance racks now and then for some really good deals ! Some stores are better than others. I prefer plants rather than seeds, just to get a headstart on things. But I don't usually buy large plants, because of the cost. Stick with 4" or 1-gallon and they'll get to that larger size soon enough at a fraction of the cost. Something else you may want to consider is attending our plant swaps. You may find the San Antonio swap post on the first page of GardenWeb, or it may have gotten to the second page by now. Or look for it also listed on the Texas Exchange sub-forum. The spring swap is March 10. You will learn a lot by attending the swaps and no doubt will go home with some plants. I also attend the Buda swap, which is April 17. I've been going to these swaps since the first one for Central Texas was started over 12 years ago. They are awesome ! You go home with all kinds of plants you couldn't find in a local nursery, and you make the best friends ! Please feel free to contact me directly by email if you want more information. Regarding your other questions, I'll let those with more knowledge about the timeline answer those for you. Mainly, you just need to watch out for those late freezes ! patty

The San Antonio garden of Brett and Heather was featured on Central Texas Gardener today. If you missed it a YouTube link is below. Some of you may remember meeting them and their children at the SAPS last fall. Heather was very brave (and water/design smart!) in taking out the existing shrubs and grass when they bought their home and making it into a beautiful xericscape in a short time. Heather blogs here: http://xericstyle.wordpress.com/author/xericstyle/ Here is a link that might be useful: Brett and Heather's garden on YouTube ...