Author Archives: jeff.floyd

Protecting Plants From Frost

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Surviving a hard windy freeze can be a dicey proposition for some plants.  You may have heard that you should water plants prior to a freeze to help protect them from frost injury.  In fact, there are several strategies you can use to protect plants from frost damage this winter. Plants require less supplemental water in the winter months than they do during the growing season.  Once they have gotten into the middle of winter, plants are much less active and have usually adapted to the cold but… Read More →

Soil pH

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Soil pH is a measure of the current concentration of hydrogen ions in soil.  Hydrogen is universally used to denote an element or particle with a net positive charge.  Soil pH is measured on a scale from 1 to 14 where each whole number on the scale is 10 units larger than its preceding number.  For example, while 7 is considered neutral, it is 10 times more alkaline than 6 which is considered slightly acidic but ten times more alkaline than 5.  Therefore, increasing acidity is indicated as the numbers move below a pH of… Read More →

Test That Soil

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To grow plants well in West Texas, you must first understand your soil.  A soil analysis performed by Texas A&M Agrilife soil testing laboratory is the place to start.  A soil test can give you an idea of the amount of organic matter contained in your soil but the more important thing that the test can help determine initially is soil salinity and fertility.  There is little that you can do to immediately change the texture of your soil so asking for an analysis of its texture has limited usefulness. Most West Texas… Read More →