Tarrant County Master Gardener Association

In this episode of “Digging In,” Elizabeth McCarthy is joined by gardening experts Laura Mumme and Rick Heim to explore the pivotal role trees play in the North Texas landscape. The conversation covers essential considerations like choosing the right tree species, proper planting techniques, and ongoing care—helping ensure that the trees you plant today will thrive for decades. With the right tree in the right place, the trio discusses how trees can enhance your home environment, provide shade, and lower energy costs—all while benefiting the local ecosystem.

Notable Quotes:

• “Plant a tree in the right place and it could be part of your landscape for decades, providing shade, beauty, and habitat.” - Elizabeth McCarthy
• “If it’s crossing another branch and rubbing, that’s something you should prune off.” - Laura Mumme
• “The first thing you want to do when you’re going to plant a tree is look up, and if there’s wires there or structures, don’t plant it.” - Rick Heim

Resources:

• Texas A&M AgriLife Extension: https://agrilifeextension.tamu.edu
• Texas A&M University: Texas Superstar Plants List: https://texassuperstar.com
• Tarrant County Master Gardener Association: https://tarrantmg.org
• Help desk gardening queries: 817-884-1944 or helpdeskarrantmg.org
• Tree resources and free mulch: Rolling Hills Tree Farm, Fort Worth, TX
• Native alternatives for under-tree planting: Horse herb and Frog fruit

In this episode of “Digging In,” host Elizabeth McCarthy is joined by Sheryl Whited to explore the fascinating world of perennial gardening beyond just plant selection. With a focus on long-term care and sustainable practices, this episode delves into the essentials of maintaining a healthy perennial garden, from knowing when to prune or divide plants to leveraging fallen leaves for organic benefits in your landscape.

Then, Donna from the Master Gardener Association help desk joins Elizabeth to talk about how to become a master gardener.

Notable Quotes:

• “Keeping it beautiful year after year, well, that’s where things begin to get interesting…” - Elizabeth McCarthy
• “Before you spend money buying bags of stuff to improve your soil, maybe don’t throw away the stuff your trees just gave you for free.” - Elizabeth McCarthy
• “The ideal time for root growth to happen is when the soil is between 40 and 60 degrees.” - Sheryl Whited

Resources:

• Tarrant County Master Gardener Association: http://tarrantmg.org/
• Texas A&M AgriLife Extension: https://agrilifeextension.tamu.edu
• Aggie Turf for information on weeds: https://aggieturf.tamu.edu/
• Tarrant County Master Gardener Help Desk Phone: 817-884-1944
• Help Desk Email: helpdesk@tarrantmg.org

In this engaging installment of “Digging In” with host Elizabeth McCarthy, we dive into the advanced techniques of fall vegetable gardening with expert insights from Rick Heim, Tarrant County’s very own Master Gardener. Continuing from a previous episode where basics were covered, this discussion moves beyond initial planting to explore what it takes to maintain and optimize a fall garden that thrives in North Texas’ unique climate. Elizabeth and Rick walk listeners through details on companion planting, succession planting, and the strategic use of perennial vegetables.

Then, Donna joins us from the Tarrant County Master Gardener Association Help Desk with tips on pre emergent.

Notable Quotes:

• “If you wait, you will be rewarded with a vegetable, an expensive vegetable, by the way, that you can harvest for up to 20 years.” – Rick Heim
• “The funnest things about vegetable gardening is experimentation.” – Rick Heim
• "If your grass is not growing, it doesn’t need to be fed." – Donna Smith

Resources:

• Tarrant County Master Gardener Association: http://tarrantmg.org
• Aggie Turf for information on weeds: https://aggieturf.tamu.edu/
• Seed Source: Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds at https://www.rareseeds.com/
• Soil temperature resource: http://soiltemps.com
• Tarrant County Master Gardener Help Desk Phone: 817-884-1944
• Help Desk Email: helpdesk@tarrantmg.org

Host Elizabeth McCarthy highlights the benefits of investing in perennials for your North Texas garden. With fall signaling the ideal planting season, Elizabeth walks us through the significance of selecting the right perennials that promise long-term rewards.

Today, she is joined by Sheryl Whited, an expert gardener, affectionately known as "Mama Sis," who shares her wisdom on nurturing and planting perennials that benefit both your garden's aesthetics and biodiversity. In this informative discussion, Elizabeth and Sheryl unpack the advantages of planting perennials in the fall due to the conducive Texas climate.

Then Donna from the help desk joins Elizabeth to talk about the benefits of mulch.

Notable Quotes:

"Garden like you will live forever." – Sheryl Whited

"The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is today." – Elizabeth McCarthy

"Perennials have the potential to outlive us, outlive our children, our grandchildren." – Sheryl Whited

Resources:

Water is Awesome: www.WaterIsAwesome.com

Texas A&M AgriLife Extension: https://agrilifeextension.tamu.edu

Texas A&M AgriLife Soil Testing: https://agrilifeextension.tamu.edu/assets/environment-natural-resources/soil/soil-testing/

Tarrant County Master Gardener Association Help Desk: https://tarrantmg.org/contact

In the debut episode of Digging In, host Elizabeth McCarthy explores fall vegetable gardening in North Texas with Tarrant County Master Gardeners Rick Heim and Donna Smith.

Rick explains how gardeners can take advantage of North Texas’ two growing seasons, including which summer crops can continue producing and which cool-season vegetables—such as greens, carrots and beets—are best planted for fall. He also shares practical advice on timing, seed selection, watering, shade protection and improving the region’s challenging clay soil.

As Rick says, “Great gardeners grow the soil.”

Donna discusses the value of soil testing and how it can identify nutrient deficiencies and help gardeners make better planting decisions.

Resources:

Water is Awesome: https://WaterIsAwesome.com

Texas A&M AgriLife Extension: https://agrilifeextension.tamu.edu

Texas A&M AgriLife Soil Testing: https://agrilifeextension.tamu.edu/assets/environment-natural-resources/soil/soil-testing/

Tarrant County Master Gardener Association Help Desk: https://tarrantmg.org/contact

Welcome to Digging In, a podcast from the Tarrant County Master Gardeners, where we get our hands dirty and “dig in” to gardening right here in North Texas.

I'm your host Elizabeth McCarthy, a Tarrant County Master Gardener and fellow soil enthusiast, and like every gardener I know, I’m still learning something new every time I step outside.

Whether you’re a seasoned gardener… or you’re still trying to figure out why that “easy-to-grow” plant didn’t quite get the memo… you’re in the right place.

Each episode, I’ll sit down with gardeners, specialists, and other folks who really know their stuff — not just because they’ve studied it, but because they’ve actually gotten their hands dirty doing it.

So grab your mug, / bring your questions… and let’s Dig In!

https://www.tarrantmg.org