From Randy’s Book – New Decade Gardening: A Gulf Coast Guide

10. My Fertilization Schedule Works. If your soil stinks, no schedule is going to work, period, Randy warns. Click for Randy’s Fertilization Schedule

9. Deep Root Feeding/Watering of Trees. You’re revitalizing the root system so it will recycle correctly and provide nutrients and minerals the tree needs.

8. We are Planting More Fruit Trees, especially citrus. A typical backyard can handle a dozen. Most can and should be pruned each year. Randy’s typical listener has 4-6 different fruit trees. Fruit trees are sold year-round now. 20 years ago, they were available only in spring.

7. More Texas Native Plants Are Used in Residential Landscaping. Besides the deer-resistant benefit, people are learning about the low maintenance and drought-tolerant benefits as well.

6. We are Getting Better at Attracting Pollinators. Some credit goes to publicity about bee colony collapse and declines in butterfly populations.

5. Organic Insect & Disease Controls Have Improved. We have a whole new world of Organic/Natural Insect Controls. And there will be new ones introduced on a faster clip than any new synthetic insecticide in future years.

4. The Internet. No more requests for SASEs. And now you can follow Randy on Facebook and www.randylemmon.com

3. Organic Fertilizers Have Gotten Better. Not just smelly-chicken-poop-clouds-of-nastiness anymore! They are more advanced in this age of environmental awareness.

2. All Kinds of Soils. Thirty years ago, if you wanted rose soil, “getting started” soil, etc., you had to make it yourself. Now all kinds of quality soils by bulk or bag are so readily available, there’s no need to make your own.

Drum roll please…..

1. Biggest and Best Change: Compost/Compost/Compost. Higher quality now. More available. For me, it’s probably the most significant change, for the better, in the past 20-plus years as your host of GardenLine.