Good book/site for S. Texas specific landscaping? (San Antonio, Live Oak: how much, house)

[Lauren0319]

Now that all our foundation/plumbing work is finished, we need to re-landscape....*sigh* They tried to save as many bushes as they could but we lost some... and decided to pull and transplant others. Basically, we have a nice big blank slate to work with (trying to be positive here!!!!) It's in the front of our house... and is mainly all shade. We want drought resistant shrubs etc... but they can't require sun. Our house faces west so these plants might get some afternoon sun but not much at all as we have some pretty massive oak trees that keep the front of our home well-shaded.

So I'm not really sure where to begin.... at all. I know the fall is the perfect time to plant shrubs/bushes. Does anyone have any good websites/books that would help me in my planning? I'm going to go up to Milberger's Nursery and wander... any other nursery recs?

Also, we're thinking of planting a tree or two in the back yard. We have a v. big yard (almost 1/2 acre.) I think the previous owner was planning to put in a pool bc all the trees that were in the middle of the yard were taken down. My husband and I went up to Lowes (I know, not the best place to purchase plants/trees) and they had 5 gl Live Oaks for $20... the 10 gl were $54... is it worth it to pay an additional $35 for a 10 gl tree? Or will a 5 gl grow just as quickly?

Thanks!!!!!!

[Turtle_Mom]

We love this book - Amazon.com: Neil Sperry's Complete Guide to Texas Gardening, 2nd Edition: Neil Sperry: Books

You can get it at Home Depot. It has cowboy boots on the front - looks just like the one in the Amazon link.

Oh - in case the link doesn't work. It's Neil Sperry Complete Guide to Texas Gardening.

[Chaka]

I like Neil Sperry's Complete Guide to Texas Gardening. It's not S. Texas specific but has a ton of useful information.

Also check out the SAWS website SAWS Approved Landscape Plant List
I got a book from the Botanic Gardens specific for San Antonio, which lists all the properties of the drought tolerant plants including shade tolerance, height, flowering season, etc. The Botanic Gardens also has the "Water Saver Lane" which shows different garden types for xeriscaping which is fun for ideas.

There are some that prefer morning sun/afternoon shade, so make sure you don't get those...we have that issue in one area. I can't recommend specifics, I'm drawing a blank, but these books will help.

Also, I LOVE Fannick's nursery on the east side. They really know their stuff and have excellent prices. You can get a feel for what plants would work where depending on how they're housed at the nursery. However, they're not as well organized as some others, so plants aren't very well labelled. One advantage, when I ask how much one is, I usually hear "Um...how about $5.99?" Ok

Rainbow Gardens (have only been to the Bandera location, but there's also one on Thousand Oaks I think) is also great. They're a lot better labelled than Fannick's, have a wide variety and clearly note the shade and drought tolerance. I haven't found the staff to be as helpful though - not unhelpful, just not as willing to really work with me on ideas and such, you know? Fannick's is like going to someone's back yard I do really like RG though.

Trees - we had so many mature trees the only ones we got new were free ones from CPS on Earth Day, planted to eventually replace the mature ones that will eventually die off. I've read that it's better to go with the bigger trees, but there's more risk too - make sure they're planted properly, in the right space, and well cared for.

I highly recommend that garden forums at The GardenWeb Forums - GardenWeb There are a ton of different groups, lots of excellent help.

Good luck and have fun! I've been doing pretty extensive landscaping since April....DH says I'm obsessed, but it's paying off!

[wCat]

A trip to the Botanical Gardens would be a great treat....and an educational one too. They are probably the best local resource for xeriscaping ideas and landscaping with San Antonio friendly plants and trees. Depending on the time you want to spend in your yard/garden, be sure to ask about high and low maintenance ideas. There are a lots of beautiful plants that do well, but require a lot of tending, which is fine if gardening is your hobby. Otherwise you may want to focus on more hearty plants and trees that can grow without much tending. You can still get a beautiful landscaped yard with plants that are native to the area.

I also agree with SAWS being another great resource for water conservation ideas....but the Botanical Gardens will have all that info as well.

RE: Oaks....since they are so slow growing, you probably just need to decide which one looks good now because that's what it will look like for quite a while.

[Mister]

Originally Posted by Turtle_Mom

We love this book - Amazon.com: Neil Sperry's Complete Guide to Texas Gardening, 2nd Edition: Neil Sperry: Books

Thanks for the tip. There are several copies on eBay, too.

[Lauren0319]

Thanks to the wonderful search feature, I found this thread- //www.city-data.com/forum/san-a...rees-help.html

I called two places, Alfaro and The Arrangement. Alfaro quoted me $90 for a 15 gl Monterey Oak... The arrangement quoted me $55... sooo.... we headed over to The Arrangement and bought 2 15 gl Monterey Oaks and 2 5 gl yellow bell Esperanzas ($9). Total- $139 (including tax.) The hubs got them planted today. (of course, I helped a little. But being 7 month pregnant and in such a delicate state (shhhh!!! Don't tell him otherwise) I just kept him company while he dug the holes.)
Jose couldn't have been nicer (though I wished my Spanish was better!!!) We had a great experience and will go back next week once I figure out what we'll be planting in the front. So thanks for the rec, Cookiemeister!!!!!!!