Double-ended (DE) bulbs and fixtures are the next-generation evolution of HPS (high-pressure sodium) lamps. If you are gardening under lights intensively in your home, especially if you're using grow tents, DE HPS lamps can be a good plant lighting choice. DE HPS lamps were originally designed to be compatible with traditional DE MH fixtures. A DE HPS lamp connects to a fixture on both ends, similar to fluorescent tubes.

Double-ended (DE) HPS lamps can also have a longer life span than single-ended (SE) lamps. Manufacturers claim that DE lamps produce 10 percent more PAR than SE HPS lamps, and that they also provide more UV and IR light.

Gardening Under Lights Book

Struggling to keep your indoor houseplants alive? Sansevieria, also known as snake plant or mother in law's tongue, are great for low light conditions.

If you plan to grow your succulent collection tucked away in an office, a grow closet, or another out-of-the-way space, you might choose an LED with a more limited spectrum (pink-colored light).

New BOOK! Gardening Under Lights: The Complete Guide for Indoor Growers

Have you heard? I have a new book coming out! If you're a Goodreads user, you're in luck because I'm running a book giveaway where 5 winners will receive a signed first edition of "Gardening Under Lights: The Complete Guide for Indoor Growers" from me! The giveaway will run today through the book's release date of June 6th, 2018, and you can click the link below to enter!

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Gardening Under Lights

by Leslie F. Halleck

Giveaway ends June 06, 2018.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter Giveaway

If you want to learn how to grow just about anything indoors, any time of the year, I've written this book just for you. I hope you enjoy learning to take your indoor gardening skills to a new level!

Hey everyone, check out a sneek peek of my upcoming book "Gardening Under Lights: The Complete Guide for Indoor Growers", releasing June 6th, 2018!

It’s no secret that roses are some of my favorite landscape plants—especially those in apricot shades. So, imagine my delight when two of the new David Austin introductions for 2018 are peachy-apricot goodness!

Now, I know that rose rosette disease is a big concern in certain areas - especially here in Texas. The best thing you can do is keep an eye out for infected plants and remove them from the landscape immediately. That means bag them and trash them. No compost. The best way to stop the spread of the disease right now is to be proactive. That said, I’m still planting roses in areas that are not affected.

Along with 116 other David Austin varieties, we will now see ‘Roald Dahl’, ‘Imogen’ and “Bathsheba’ on the market for online and mail order bare-root shipping January through mid-May of 2018.

‘Roald Dahl’ is a spectacular peach shade that is suited to a wide range of growing conditions, including hot and humid or dry locations. It is known for its heavy blooming all spring and fall, with a brief break in the summer. The flower has a wonderful scent so commonly found in the garden rose varieties. According to technical director of David Austin Roses, Michael Marriott, “’Roald Dahl’ blooms its heart out from late spring till well into autumn, with just the slightest pause to catch its breath in mid-summer during peak heat.” The flowers are 3” across and filled with the signature full head of petals. The rose is named in honor of the author of James and the Giant Peach, on the 100th anniversary of his birth.

If you prefer a soft, lemon yellow flower, another new introduction ‘Imogen’ may be the one for you. ‘Imogen’ also exhibits the desirable button-eye. The very floriferous shrub starts blooming in late spring and continues with repeat blooms until frost. It is mildly scented, and the shrub will grow 3-4 foot in locations with cold winters; possibly larger in locations with warm winters.

This rose takes its name from a character in Shakespeare’s Cymbeline.

Another new introduction that I will have to have is ‘Bathsheba’. This beautiful, myrrh scented, apricot flower is not only large (with 170 petals), but also a vigorous climber. It reaches 10’ in height and blooms from early summer to frost. ‘Bathsheba’ is the first new apricot-colored climber to be introduced in 20 years.

This selection is named for a Thomas Hardy heroine in Far from the Madding Crowd. What a beauty.

For further information on all English Rose varieties available to North American gardeners, see www.davidaustinroses.com.

January weather is chilly...and not always so inviting when it comes to putting around in the outdoor garden. January IS the perfect time to get started on your spring garden from the warm comfort of the indoors.

Here are a few plants you can (and should!) start from seed indoors right now:

• Warm season crops such as tomato, eggplant, and peppers. Then they will be ready to transplant outside as soon as threat of cold weather passes.

• Cole crops such as broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, kale, and chard. You can squeeze another round of these crops in before the heat of the summer hits. Transplant outdoors in February.

• Lettuce and mustard greens. Quick germination and growth will provide you a salad in no time!

• Herbs such as basil, sage and chives. Herb plants will be ready to transplant outside once the weather warms.

• Edible flowers such as nasturtium. We all need a little color—so add a pretty edible flower to the mix.

How to be successful

You don’t need to be born with a green thumb (because who is?) to be successful with seed-starting. It just takes some practice and experimentation.

Seed Starting Tips

• Moisture: Growing media should always be damp to the touch, similar to a wrung-out sponge. Never let it dry out but don’t let it stay soggy either.

• Light: There is usually not enough natural light indoors, even windowsills, for young seedlings. Seedlings need bright light and long days to thrive. Use grow lamps for successful seedlings.

• Grow Lamps: To produce happy seedlings, you can hang some HO T5 fluorescent lamps, CFLs, or LEDs a few inches away from the growing media. Raise up the lamps as seedlings grow.

• Temperature: Many seeds germinate well in the 68°F to 78°F (20–26°C) range for both soil and air temperature. If temperatures are too cold in your space, be sure to use a heat mat to speed up germination.

• Media: When buying or mixing your own growing media you must create a balance between water retention and good drainage. Small seedlings can dry out quickly and die; they need growing media that can hold adequate moisture, but not too much so they don’t rot.

• If you want to mix your own growing media for seeds, try this recipe;

4 parts fine-screened organic compost

2 parts coir, moistened

1 part perlite

1 part vermiculite

Sowing new plants from seed is pretty exciting and fun. Starting some seedlings inside can give you a jump on the growing season and add some much needed green to the dreary winter season.

My upcoming book, Gardening Under Lights: The Complete Guide for Indoor Growers comes complete with a section on propagating seeds and cuttings indoors. Pre-order now on Amazon!

Texas Sage Mystery

Horticultural Temper Tantrum

I have to have a bit of a horticultural temper tantrum this morning, which has to do with plant labeling...or rather incorrect plant labeling. Plant imposters, if you will. When you're planting blooming shrubs, it can take a years for plants to establish and begin to fill in to a more mature growth habit and size. So it's pretty frustrating after all that time only to end up with the wrong plant species. Such is the saga of my Texas sage.

While there are many beautiful varieties of Texas sage, my particular favorite happens to be Leucophyllum langmaniae 'Rio Bravo'. Varieties of this species differ in growth and blooming habits from the more common Leucophyllum frutescens varieties. The former having a wider base, sprawling growth habit and heavier blooming, versus the later having a wider growth habit at the top of the plant - often developing naked knees syndrome.

About 4-5 years ago I purchased and planted 3 more specimens of what was supposed to be 'Rio Bravo' Texas sage. I have plantings of a few types of Texas sage in my front yard and the 'Rio Bravo' is always the most stunning bloomer and the pollinators adore it. Adding a few more to my hellstrip would help fill out the space and provide more color and food for insects.

Early on, I suspected something wasn't right, as the small plants began to differentiate and the foliage didn't look similar on all three. As the three plants continued to grow and become larger, it became apparent that one plants was definitely 'Rio Bravo'...but the other two? Not sure...because they never bloomed. And I mean, never bloomed. It was bizarre. After doing some research, the best I could figure was that perhaps these two non-conformers were some sort of parent species of 'Rio Bravo'...or maybe 'Lynn's Legacy'...but again, without any flowers, I couldn't be sure. I thought, ok, whatever this variety is, maybe it has a juvenility period and it needs to mature longer before it will bloom? .

It really peeves me when nurseries and garden centers get their plant labeling wrong...it has long-term and expensive consequences for the home gardener.

By now of course, the three large shrubs have grown in somewhat different forms and don't "match"...which is highly irritating. The one real 'Rio Bravo' in the bed blooms it's head off like it's supposed to...while the other two grow in a different shape and don't bloom. Which throws the entire planting off whack. And again, I was really confused as to why these two Texas sage just refused to bloom. I've spent the last three years grappling with the idea of ripping them out and starting over. Finally last year, I got the first few blooms showing up on the two non-conformers - just a hand full in late fall. While the adjacent 'Rio Bravo' was buzzing with pollinators, not a single insect would touch the flowers on the mystery plants. So..gee...is this variety photoperiodic...a short-day plant maybe...which is why it's only putting on a few flowers in fall? I've been grasping at straws here. About a week ago I committed to just ripping the now large established shrubs out this winter and starting over.

And then THIS happened two days ago, just ahead of some rainstorms that passed through (Texas sage develop flowers in response to increased humidity, changes in barometric pressure, and rainfall):

It's OCTOBER. It's like it heard me tell it I was going to rip it out...so it got to blooming in fast order! Only took 5 years. So both of these mystery plants are now in full bloom and pollinators were visiting the flowers - for the first time in my observation. Again, best I can figure these are 'Lynn's Legacy'. And interestingly, this variety is not as influenced by humidity or rainfall to bloom (which is clearly what I'm seeing), but rather needs the hot temperatures...which may be why it only blooms after August for me (but I'm also wondering about a photoperiod response).

The flower are a bit too pink for my taste (I prefer the deeper violet on the 'Rio Bravo')...but now that plants are actually blooming, I have to decide if they'll stay or go.

I've noticed a few sites online that are listing this plant as 'Rio Bravo'...so beware. Alright...plant rant over, I need to go have more coffee!

Fall and winter are seasons that compel me to make more plants...be it by seeds or vegetative cuttings. Succulents are some of the easiest plants to propagate; all you need is one leaf and you can generate new plantlets.

I was gifted this lovely pile of echeveria "muffin tops" that were left over from some wedding floral arrangements. There's no need for them to go to waste, they can be rooted as brand new plants!

If you turn over the succulent tops, you'll see a stub leftover from the original stem. This section of stem can generate new roots. You want to let the cuttings dry, or cure, for a bit before you set the tops in new soil. Once they've begun to seal over, you can simply take the tops and set them on top of some potting soil in a tray or a new pot, making sure that the base/stem section is in contact with the soil (it doesn't need to be buried much). You can add a little moisture to the soil, but do not keep it wet or your succulents will rot before they root. Within a week or two, new roots will begin to develop from the base of the stem.

As I mentioned before, you can also grow new succulents from a leaf. When leaves fall naturally from a succulent, they can develop new roots from the base of the leaf tissue, and generate a new plantlet, as you can see in the photo above. So cute! All you need to do is set the leaf on top of soil, you don't need to bury it.

If you remove a leaf from a succulent to root it, make sure the entire original base of the leaf structure is intact, not broken or cracked. Again, it's best to let the leaves sit out to dry/cure a bit so the exposed leaf base isn't wet when you set it on top of the soil.

Making more plants? Always a good idea!