Karen Beaty
Karen works as forestry specialist for the city of Austin’s Wildland Conservation Division. She received an M.S. in Land Resources from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a B.S. in Biology from Davidson College. As a 5th-generation Texan she is fascinated with the native flora of the Southern Plains region and enjoys hiking and camping as a way to meet new plants. Her outside interests also include vegetable gardening, homesteading, and building things with scavenged materials.
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Southwest Regional ReportsUnusual Fall Perennials for the Southern Plains
In Andy Brand’s article Unusual Fall Perennials, he discusses some out-of-the-box plant picks for this spectacular time in the garden: “As we reluctantly accept the inevitable and begin preparing our gardens…
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Southwest Regional ReportsMarch Garden To-Do List for the Southern Plains
March is a golden month of opportunities in the Southern Plains garden. While the early summer months may be filled with more actual growth, March is the month when anything…
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Southwest Regional ReportsSouthern Plains: February Garden To-Do List
Transplant spring- and summer-blooming perennials such as ‘Henry Duelberg’ mealy blue sage (Salvia farinacea ‘Henry Duelberg’, Zones 8–10), spring obedient plant (Physostegia intermedia, Zones 6–9), and square-bud primrose (Calylophus berlandieri,…
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Southwest Regional ReportsSouthern Plains: January Garden To-Do List
Transplant early spring bloomers like bluebonnets (Lupinus texensis, Zones 3–9), baby blue eyes (Nemophila phaceloides, annual), and spiderwort (Tradescantia spp. and cvs., Zones 4–12). While October and November are a…
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Southwest Regional ReportsSouthern Plains November Garden To-Do List
November is a great month for gardening in the Southern Plains. Unlike our neighboring states to the north, much of the Southern Plains still hasn’t had freezing temperatures in the…
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How-ToA Garden Cart You Can Count On
I have used both the midsize and large garden carts from Carts Vermont for years and have been extremely impressed by their durability and usefulness. You can pile these carts…
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Southwest Regional ReportsSouthern Plains September Garden To-Do List
The heat will break this month, and so begins our second growing season of the year! September is a busy time in the Southern Plains as we kick off our…
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Southwest Regional ReportsChoosing Where to Build Your Vegetable Garden in the Southern Plains
Every climate type presents certain challenges to vegetable gardeners. Here are a few region-specific tips to keep in mind when siting a new vegetable garden in your Southern Plains garden.…
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ArticleGreat Garden Tools for the Season
Gro Mor MWS-1 Mini Wand Seeder If you’ve ever struggled with sowing the nearly invisibly small seeds of poppy (Papaver spp. and cvs., Zones 2–10), impatiens (Impatiens spp. and cvs.,…
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Southwest Regional Reports4 Must-Have Plants for the Southern Plains
As garden centers start to open their doors for the season (and we get ready to run into them with open arms), we decided to ask some regional experts what…
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