- Hi there I'm Tom Spencer.

This week on Central
Texas Gardeners

see how to grow Olive Trees.

Monte Nesbitt from Texas A and M

shows off the best varieties

and how to cultivate them.

On tour a family dumped
lawn for a resourceful

wildlife garden and
kid friendly spaces.

Daphne explains what
affects photosynthesis

and Trisha joins fitness
expert Paul Smith

to demonstrate
stretches for gardeners.

So let's get growing
right here, right now.

- [Voiceover] Central Texas
Gardener is sponsored by

the Austin area garden center
in Zilker botanical garden,

home of the 31
local garden clubs

and the Zilker garden festival.

Zilkergarden.org.

(xylophone music)

- When this family
updated their house

for more resourceful living,

they matched their
design outside,

dumping most of the lawn
for wildlife plants.

They went for water conservation
and floodwater control.

- [Voicover] After
Stephanie and Tom Sloss

remodeled their home,
they turned to landscape

architect Robert Leeper
to renovate outside.

- There were some
native plant materials

that had grown and matured

and so what we did,
is we wanted to keep

those things that were
really positive plantings,

that had done well

and then take their
sort of remodeled style,

the contemporary modern
style out into the landscape,

make it fit the
new remodeled home

and be really conscious
of water conservation

and thier lifestyle.

They have two young
kids, so we needed to

include them in this.

- [Voiceover] In front
they changed the tempo from

static lawn to energetic
plants for wildlife.

But first they tackled the
speed of run-off on the slope.

- It's very rocky out here.

There's a little bit of
soil but it's a lot of rock.

So there's a real water issue;

on every home there always is,

but on this one in particular,

we really had to pay
close attention to where

the water was going to fall.

There was some drainage
that we had to install

to make sure that we diverted
it away from the house.

It was really helpful to
create some low retaining walls

and put a drainage
pipe behind that,

so we could catch
whatever runoff there was.

We created a lot of garden
space for perennials

and native plants and shrubs.

We wanted all of that to
benefit from the rainfall.

But anything that was extra,
we needed to make sure

that, that didn't end up
near the foot of the house.

- [Voiceover] Levels of poured
in place concrete blocks

slow down runoff and make
navigation comfortable.

- The interior of the
home has concrete floors.

It's very contemporary style,
so we wanted there to be an

indoor, outdoor transition.

We wanted the interior
architecture to come out

into the landscape.

One reason I like
using concrete is,

it's a forever material.

You know once you create
it's there forever.

You don't have to replace it,
you don't have to maintain it.

With concrete as
far as walkways,

you can do a light room finish

and it keeps the material
from being slippery

when it gets wet or we have ice.

90% of what people
experience is coming

and going from the home
and looking out the window.

So I really wanted
the remodel style,

the contemporary
style of the home

to be reflected
in the landscape,

so it all felt like part
of one home, one project.

And so we brought
that contemporary feel

out into the landscape.

- [Voiceover] Gravel lets
rainfall gently soak in

around grout tolerant additions.

Since deer often drop by,

Robert went for plants that
stand a chance against browsing.

In this recent makeover,
he gave young grasses,

flowering perennials and
ground covers, room to grow.

- We always want out landscapes
to feel very balanced.

We don't want them to
feel too minimal and empty

and we don't want
them to feel too full.

It's a balance of what
I call white and green,

between the hard-scapes
and the plantings.

You have to be restrained when
you're doing the plantings

because you know the plants
are going to get so big

in the future, so you
start slow and you

let those plants
grow in over time

so that you're not
having to pull stuff out.

- [Voiceover] Every viewpoint
generates a sensation,

from ground huggers
to sky walkers.

A Mexican Sycamore presides
over a curbside companions.

Sotols diversify with
evergreen intensity,

offering an occasional
dramatic bloom

which doesn't end
their life cycles.

- There's a lot of
square footage out there

and we didn't want
it just to feel like

this endless landscape,

so we used the
geometry of the circles

to sort of bread up the space,

because it was a big
giant lawn at one point,

but we didn't want to
have a lawn that we

had to take care of
and water excessively.

We wanted the native
plants to fill in,

but at the same time we
wanted to use geometry

and different colored gravels
to sort of make a statement

and fit with the
style of the interior

and exterior of the home

and just break up the
space a little bit.

One thing I did want
to mention is the

irrigation system here

is the irrigation system
that that city of Austin

really wants people to use.

It's very efficient.

Each plant has it's own
little micro emitter

which is really the
way it should be

instead of using spray heads

that cover the entire
square footage.

Each individual plant
gets its own water source,

It's very efficient,
it works very well

and it's really the way
of the future as far as

irrigation for landscapes.

If you have ground covers you
have to use the spray heads.

But when you have the
individual plants,

especially with shrubs that
are going to get larger,

it really helps for each one
to have it's own water source.

- [Voiceover] In back,
Robert re-framed a

cumbersome soil trail
for easier access.

- They had no effective way
to get into their backyard.

We created a walkway
system so that they could

maneuver around the
house and walk around it.

- [Voiceover] Since the
harsh inclines shed runoff

toward the house, this design
controls it and fends off

perpetual erosion.

- [Robert] And where
those walkways are we put

retaining walls to
catch the water.

And we put drainage
pipes behind those.

And those divert the water
from going to the house.

- [Voiceover] Various patios
now engage family and friends

outdoors and from inside.

To fend off erosion
on the shady slopes,

Robert anchored them with
layers of deer resistant plants.

- [Robert] This is a landscape
where there are a lot of deer

coming and going.

We didn't want to
build a giant fence

that they couldn't access,

so we really just tried to
design with the deer in mind

knowing that they were
going to be back here,

they were going to
walk through it.

This is a path that they
go through all the time

and so we just took
that into account.

And we've had very good
success with plants

that the deer don't eat

and they coexist with
the deer population

which is nice.

We really wanted to create
a garden experience.

You know we wanted to
use all the best native

and well adapted perennials
and evergreen plants

so that you're viewing
into this garden

and enjoying all the
flowers and stuff,

instead of just a traditional
lawn and shrub experience.

We wanted something
that was vibrant,

that brought a lot
of butterflies and
bees and wildlife

into the landscape.

There's a lot of bird here too.

So we really wanted
you to feel like

you're sitting in a garden.

These are all of our best
plants that work here.

- [Voiceover] The
only turf he planted

is in the sunken garden,
made in the shade for

Tommy and Jonothan's
romps with Roxy.

Palisade Zoysia makes for soft
landings off the zip line.

- This landscape, it
had to be kid friendly,

it had to be dog friendly
and deer friendly.

There's a lot going on
here so we couldn't use

anything that was too precious

or could hurt the kids with
thorns or anything like that.

So that was our goal, was
to make it kid friendly

and pet friendly.

- Thanks Robert for sharing
that great design with us.

Before we talk olives
with Monte Nesbitt,

I want to invite you to
Zilker Garden Festival

on April second and third.

This years theme,
cultivate Austin,

live here, grow here.

It includes growing
food, bee keeping,

local authors and
a whole lot more.

You can get details
at Zilkergarden.org.

And right now we're
going to be talking about

growing olives in Central Texas.

And we are indeed
joined by Monte Nesbitt,

who is a program specialist
with Texas A and M

Agrilife extension,

Great to have you here.

- Hey thanks for having me back.

- And olives are a
very evocative plant,

and you say Olive
Tree in your mind

automatically tunes
into the picture of the

Mediterranean coast somewhere,

and a gnarled little tree,

They really got that
romance don't they?

- It's tremendous passion.

I think passion is a word that
connects people to olives.

Lots of people that go on
vacations, they go to Tuscany,

they go see all these majestic

fruit bearing Olive Trees.

They're ornate, the shape

the texture they want to
bring that back to Texas.

- All right, well

the good news is you
can grow them here.

Before we dive in, there is a
kind of a bad news piece here

that the actual
fruit production here

is a little disappointing
for home gardeners.

- Well when you're
growing an olive

you got to either pickle it,

which is a home
canning process and...

Or you've got to
press it and make oil.

And you need about 40 to 50

pounds of olives to produce

a gallon of oil.

So it's a lot of olives

and a lot of handling
and mashing of fruit

so it's not as user
friendly as many of our

fruit trees.

- But again they're beautiful
plants to have in the garden.

And they're pretty
well adapted to Texas.

- They do thrive in

lots of different soils,

they like warm climates.

Our challenge is, too
cold in the winter,

in northern fringes of this,

of Central Texas,

too hot as we go really
far south in the state.

So the key is finding the niche,

and the hill country is
a niche but we're not

completely free

of severe freezes.
- [Tom] Right.

- So you have to be cautious,

if you live in the hill country

choose a spot that's a little
more sheltered then, right?

- Yes, location
location location.

Protection from north winds,

a southern part of a garden

or near a structure
on the south side

of a building.

Protected courtyards,
fantastic places for an olive.

- Well this year we've
hardly had a winter

so I'm assuming they've
all pulled through.

What are some of the
other growing variables?

You say they are kind of
unforgiving about the kinds

of soils but they need
good drainage don't they?

- They need drainage
and they can...

they're very shallow rooted,
they don't need a lot

of depth, but they need that

first foot or two

to be well drained.

So if you've got clay soil

you need to plant on a burm

get them raised
up since you have

excellent drainage.

- Or add a ton of granite sand.

And we are speaking tons.

- Right.

- So again, raised
bed obviously,

sunny location I'm assuming.

And as you said, shelter.

So those are growing
conditions that a lot of people

can provide.

Let's talk a little
bit about varieties for

our region.

Because some are going
to be a little more

cold-hardy than others; right?

- Well there is, there's
differences in cold-hardiness

and there's a variety
called arbequina

that's from Spain and
it's believed to have

one of the better

levels of cold-hardiness.

Another one is picual,

picual and arbequina are
probably the top of the list

in terms of cold-hardiness
so you definitely

want to think about
that particular trait.

Those varieties are both

self pollinating
and so you need a...

If you want fruit,

and not everybody wants fruit,

if you want fruit you
need to understand

the flowering habits
and the need for

some of those varieties
to have a second variety

partnered with it
to give pollination.

- Right.

This is something that's true

of many different
fruit bearing trees

you need multiples.

But not all olives,
there are some

self fertile varieties.

- Arbequina is self pollinating

so if you have one tree
it should pollinate itself

and make a crop.

- [Tom] Okay, that's good.

- If you pull one of the French,

or one of the Italian varieties,

you need to look
at a list and see,

does it need a pollinator?

What varieties,
there are varieties

that are specific
pollinizers for

certain varieties.

- Right and I understand

that you're also
looking at North Africa,

for some plants that
might do well here.

- North Africa has...

produces a lot of olive oil

and so this is a hotter climate

than say Spain and Italy.

Italy and Spain, Mediterranean,

more moderate, a
lot like California.

- [Tom] Right.
- We need

- maybe varieties that
tolerate more heat

in the spring and in the summer.

So we're looking at a
variety called chemleli.

And there are others
from Tunisia that

may fit here a
little bit better.

Our challenge has been
consistent fruiting

for people who are
wanting to grow this

to press them to make oil.

And we're seeing some
erratic fruit production

in some years and we think
it's due to warm conditions

in late winter, early spring.

- Well this year's gonna be--

- This year we're worried
already that we may have been

too hot

for some of the
flower differentiation

that really requires some cool,

mild cool not cold,

but mild cool type temperatures.

- Right, well a
lot of these people

as we've discussed

are not really growing
them for fruit production.

They're growing them
because they're beautiful.

And they look like,
almost sculptures.

- Right.
- [Tom] In a sense.

- What are some of the variables

in terms of shaping the tree

and encouraging
those artful forms?

- Well they're a little
bit of a willowy tree.

As a young tree you'll find
that they're very flexible

and left on their own

they're gonna find
their way into

whatever shape
they want to take.

- [Tom] Okay.
- But they can be hedged

- and they can be directed

through training or some bending

and tying, if you're trying to

lean one a certain direction

or add some
additional character.

- Right, well that's all...

I think that's a
lot of fun to do

with plants so it's
cool to hear that.

So if you want that
wind sculpted look,

just prune for it.

- Or plan them out where

we know it'll get the Texas wind

and they'll get
windswept for sure.

- Okay.

Well,

I also know there
are dwarf forms.

There's one that I
see sold in nurseries

it's called little Ollie.

And it's really intended
for growing in containers.

Would the other
plants do well in

a large size container?

- Well overtime, an olive
tree, you need to understand,

can be a 20 plus foot tall tree.

With a 20 or 25 foot

limb spread on it.
- [Tom] Okay.

- Now they lend
themselves to pruning,

and in commercial
settings they're often

hedged or sheered
and kept very...

- [Tom] Tight.
- Very contained.

- So I think you could,
if you found yourself

with an arbequina or a
standard type variety,

in terms of growth habit,

you could prune that tree
and keep it in a container.

But one of the dwarf forms

may be an advantage.

- Yeah so just think of it

as a giant bonsai in effect.
- Right.

- What about fertilizing
these plants.

What is the best regiment there?

- Well there's some
myths about fertilizer.

Some people say

they grow in these rocky
conditions in the Middle East

and so don't fertilize them.

We see them get too poor
to actually set flowers

and bear fruit.

On the other end, if you
really overstimulate these

with lots of nitrogen
you may keep them

a little on the
more vegetative side

with less fruiting.
- [Tom] Okay.

- So mild, low
doses of fertilizer,

they do need some
nitrogen, but just...

I would not fertilize them
like I would a citrus tree

or something that's a
little heavier feeder.

- Yeah well

to me it sounds
like an ideal for

a beautiful courtyard garden,

something up close to the house

where you can shelter
it a little bit more

and for a plant that
will really just pop out

and provide character.

- Well it's that silvery grey,
- [Tom] Yes.

- color that really
catches peoples attention.

And we see them
planted with live oaks

there's a nice relationship
with some of our native plants

they look like they
belong in Texas,

unfortunately the climate
is just not exactly right.

- Okay well on that
not we're gonna have to

wrap it up.

I really appreciate
you coming along

to share the good news
about olives in Texas.

Thank you so much Monte.

- Thanks for having me.

- Alright and coming up next

is our friend Daphne.
(classical string music)

- Hi I'm Daphne Richards.

Our question this week
is on photosynthesis.

And how plants respond
to shade versus sun.

A topic that I am,

being a horticultural geek,

very excited to discuss.

As I'm sure you know, plants
perform photosynthesis

via chlorophyll.

And I'm sure you also
know that chlorophyll

is green, giving leaves their
characteristic green color.

But have you ever noticed
that plants that are happier

in shade are
usually darker green

than plants that thrive in sun?

That's because the more
chlorophyll a plant has

in its leaves the
darker green it will be.

Shade plants, often
native to tropical regions

where they grow as
under-story plants,

need quite a bit more
chlorophyll to produce

a sufficient amount of
sugars to feed themselves

and grow while plants
that grow in full sun

don't need much chlorophyll
at all by comparison,

since sun is plentiful.

So they tend to be
lighter green overall.

While this isn't a
hard and fast rule,

it is pretty common.

For example, compare
a corn plant,

with its yellow-green leaves

to a hosta or cast iron plant.

The difference in
green is striking.

Shade plants also
don't flower as much

as plants that prefer full sun

or their flowers are
less significant.

Since sufficient sunlight's
necessary to produce

showy flowers.

A sun plant when placed
in a shady spot will often

not flower and may be
lanky and unattractive

since it will try to stretch up

in search of sunlight.

Variegation is also
common in shade plants.

Those wide striped areas
in variegated leaves

lack chlorophyll.

And colors other than
green are also more common

in shade plants indicating
a different strategy

all together.

Where the plant may have
replaced much of the chlorophyll

with carotenoids
and anthocyanins

giving them orange or
purple characteristics.

Our plant this week
is sabal mexicana.

Known commonly as texas palmetto

among many other common names.

These palm trees are native
to their Rio Grande Valley

in extreme Southern Texas
near the Gulf of Mexico.

They're normally available
in quite small containers.

But don't let their size
in the nursery fool you.

These stout trunked palms
get up to 50 feet tall

in their native habitat.

The larger they
are when purchased,

the more expensive they'll
be since growth is very slow.

The larger the specimen
the older it is

and the more time and effort
the grower has invested in it

because of this most palms
are sold according to

caliper inch, rather
than container size.

Although palms aren't generally
planted for their flowers,

once mature texas
palmetto does produce

creamy white flowers in
spring on stalks that may jut

seven to eight feet above
the top of the plant.

This is noteworthy since
birds are attracted to them

and to the black, berry-like
fruit produced afterward.

As with other palms,

texas palmettos are
evergreen and very adaptable

to different soil types.

Their fairly xeric

but since these palms
are native to a warm,

humid, relatively rainy region,

they do need a bit of
water to stay healthy.

Listed as hearty
only to zone eight.

An unseasonably harsh winter

may lead to the
demise of this tree,

so be sure to plant on the
southwest side of your home

which is warmest,

and be prepared to
protect this tree during

an especially harsh cold snap.

Our viewer pic this
week comes via Facebook

from Diana Saunders,
she captured this video

with her iPhone of a zebra
long winged butterfly

laying eggs on a passion
vine in September.

Thanks Diana, we'd
love to hear from you

so head on over to klru.org/ctg

to send us your
questions, photos,

or video from your garden.

- Thanks Daphne, now
let's check in with Trisha

for Backyard Basics.

(light piano riff)

- Welcome to Backyard Basics
at Lake Austin Spa Resort.

Joining me this morning
is Paul Smith from

our activities department
and my assistant

Amanda Alvarez.

And Paul's going to
show us some stretches

that we can do to
protect our bodies

when we're gardening.

- Well first of all
we're gonna start

with some stretches
for the back.

Because if you're bending
over a lot then that

really can take a
toll on your back.

So we're gonna start with
a backward bending stretch.

So let's have feet about
with the hip joints,

hands behind the back to support

and just press your hips
forward a little bit,

lift the chest,
look up slightly.

So just relax a bit
into this backbend,

hold about 20 seconds.

And then we'll
stand up real tall.

Let's take your right
hand and your right hip

and reach your left arm up

and then we're gonna
reach up and over

to the side.

Just feel that nice stretch
this side of your torso.

And then we're gonna be
doing the same stretch

to the other side.

Reaching up and leaning across.

Feel that nice stretch,
ideally we want to hold

each of these about 20 seconds.

Now lift back up.

Now one more stretch for

the torso and for the back

we're gonna take the right
hand to left shoulder

and twist, look over
that left shoulder.

So feel a nice twisting effect

as you stretch around,
just hold to the extent

that feels comfortable for you.

Now we'll come
back to the front,

same thing to the other side.

So left hand to right shoulder

twist around look over
the right shoulder,

again holding about 20 seconds.

And back to the front.

So now we'll do some
stretches for the shoulders

and for the wrists that
you also work a lot

with your reaching and pulling

and pushing with gardening.

Let's reach behind the
back, we can interlace

the fingers and we'll
stretch back and up,

now we'll lift the chest,
we'll look up slightly,

so good stretch
for the shoulders,

this is good for
the posture also

because of all that
reaching forward

with gardening, stretch
the shoulders out

the other way.

Now let's release and
with your left hand

let's pull the right arm in

and look over the
right shoulder.

Now keep a little
gap between the chin

and the shoulder.

Good now we'll take
it to the other side

so pull the arm in
look over the shoulder.

Keep a little gap between

the chin and the shoulder.

And back to the front.

Now for the wrist.

So let's take one
hand and pull the back

of the wrists down.

Just to the extent
comfortable for you.

Remember all of
these we want to hold

ideally about 20 seconds,

just to the extent it's a
comfortable stretch for you.

Now we'll pull all
the fingers back,

stretching underneath the wrist.

And make sure you're always
breathing continuously

through out the stretches.

Now the other side pull down,

stretching the
back of the wrist.

And then we'll pull
the fingers back.

Now let's circle the
wrists around a few times.

Circle the other
way and shake out.

And next we're gonna
do a few stretches for

the lower body because
there may be a lot

of bending down,
a lot of squatting

as you get close to the ground.

So let's start with
the left leg back,

bend forward with
the right knee,

we're gonna stretch the
calf in the back leg

and then when you tuck
your tailbone forward

a little bit we can
feel some stretch

in front of the hip also.

So this can be done prior
to garden as a warm up

any time in the middle of
gardening you're feeling

a little stiff, or afterwards
you can do it also as a

cool down.

Now let's step that
back foot halfway up

bend your knees a little bit

leaning forward to
stretch down into

the lower ankle.

So the back of that
ankle of your back leg.

Now lets shift your
hands to your back thigh,

pull your front toes up,

now if possible, slide
your hand down that leg

or if possible
even hold the toe.

Now it doesn't matter
if you can't hold it,

but that's an option.

Think your pressing the
abdomen toward the thigh.

And we'll slide up.

Now other side,

take your leg back,

keep your heel down,

bend the front knee forward,

remember if we tuck
the tailbone forward

a little bit bringing some
stretch to the front of the hip

as well as the calf.

So these stretches may
help us not feel sore

after gardening.

Now step forward
just a little bit

bend forward with both
knees a little bit,

stretching down in
the back of the ankle

of your back leg.

Keep breathing as you're
relaxing that stretch.

Now shift weight
to your back leg.

Hands on your back thigh,

pull your front toes up

and we can slide down
possibly holding the toes.

So these are great to do before,

during, or after gardening,
may help to prevent

some chronic low back
pain that may develop

from gardening.

And help us feel good
throughout our body afterwards.

So this is something we
can do regularly, Trisha.

- Well thanks Paul
for Backyard Basics

it's a well stretched group of

employees here,
thanks for joining us.

- Find out more online

and sign up for our
weekly newsletter too.

Until next time, I'll
see you in the garden.

(fun xylophone music)

- [Voiceover] Central Texas
Gardener is sponsored by

the Austin Area Garden Center
in Zilker Botanical Garden.

Home of 31 local garden clubs
and the Zilker Garden Festival

zilkergarden.org.