The Heat-Proof Texas Herb That Keeps Mosquitoes Off Your Patio All Summer Long
Rosemary shows up on a lot of Texas patios, and it earns its spot. It handles brutal summer heat, smells great, and goes straight from…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 21, 2026
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Ella Brown T
1,446 Articles
Texas Gardening
The One Texas Ground Cover That Smothers Weeds So Thoroughly You Stop Reaching for the Sprayer
Pulling weeds from a Texas flower bed in July is nobody’s idea of a good time, and most…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 21
Texas Gardening
The Native Texas Shrub That Keeps Flowering Through the Hottest Part of Summer
When a Texas summer turns brutal and most of the yard looks scorched and spent, finding a plant…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 21
Texas Gardening
The Fall Tomato Varieties Texans Set Out Right Now for a Harvest Before the First Freeze
August in Central Texas is brutal, but it is also the month that decides whether you get a…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 21
Texas Gardening
Spearmint on Your Texas Porch: What It Can and Cannot Do About Wasps This Summer
Every summer, Texas porches become prime real estate for wasps looking to build their next nest, and plenty…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 21
Texas Gardening
Hot, Dry Texas Summers and the Scorpion Sightings That Catch Homeowners Off Guard
Every summer, Texas homeowners start spotting scorpions in places they really did not expect – inside a shoe,…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 20
Texas Gardening
The Native Texas Vine That Blankets a Pergola in Cool Shade Without Dropping Leaf Litter All Over Your Patio
Texans who spend time on a covered patio know the frustration of sweeping up a constant mess of…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 20
Texas Gardening
Why Star Jasmine Along Your Central Texas Fence Turns Bare Chain-Link Into a Fragrant Wall of Bloom
A bare chain-link fence is one of the least inspiring sights in a Texas yard, but star jasmine…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 20
Texas Gardening
Why More Texans Are Growing Rosemary Along Their Texas Porch Right Through the August Heat
Rosemary is a Mediterranean herb that many Texas gardeners are discovering works surprisingly well in bright, sunny spots…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 20
Texas Gardening
The Underrated Texas Native That Keeps Blooming Right Through the Water Restrictions While Everything Else Browns Out
When a Texas summer turns brutal and watering restrictions kick in, most yards start looking rough fast. Orange…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 20
Texas Gardening
Gray Foxes Crossing Your Central Texas Yard at Dusk May Hunt Rodents, But Exclusion and Sanitation Are Your Real Rat Defense
Spotting a gray fox slipping through your yard at dusk is one of those Central Texas moments that…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 20
Texas Gardening
The Native Texas Corner That Brings Fireflies Back To Your Backyard On Warm Summer Nights
Watching fireflies blink across a dark Texas yard on a warm June evening is one of those simple…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 19
Texas Gardening
The Shade Tree Texans Are Planting Now To Cool Their Yards 20 Degrees Below the Open Lawn
Summer heat in Texas is no joke, and a shady yard can feel like a completely different world…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 19
Texas Gardening
What It Really Means When a Mediterranean Gecko Shows Up on Your Texas Porch Every Night
Plenty of Texas homeowners have stepped outside after dark and spotted a small, pale lizard frozen near the…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 19
Texas Gardening
The Native Texas Plant Along Your Fence That Can Help Bring Hummingbirds to Your Central Texas Yard Every Summer
If you have a sunny fence line in Central Texas and want to draw hummingbirds into your yard,…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 19
Texas Gardening
Switchgrass at Your Central Texas Pond Edge: What It Can and Cannot Do for Dragonflies and Mosquitoes
Adding a native grass to the edge of your Central Texas pond sounds like a simple fix for…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 19
Texas Gardening
The Texas Yard Bird That May Help Hunt Cicadas and Grasshoppers This Summer
Every summer in Texas, a striking bird with an impossibly long tail shows up on fence lines and…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 19
Texas Gardening
Why Texans Grow Passionflower Vine Along a Fence for Nonstop Blooms and Gulf Fritillary Butterflies
A plain wood or chain-link fence in eastern Texas can become something genuinely worth stopping to look at…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 18
Texas Gardening
More Geckos On Your Central Texas Fence Line Means Fewer Roaches, and Here’s How To Draw Them In
Spot a small, pale lizard clinging to your fence or skittering across the porch wall after dark, and…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 18
Texas Gardening
How To Bring Fireflies Back To Your Central Texas Yard By Keeping One Damp Native Corner
Fireflies have a way of making a summer evening feel like something worth stepping outside for, and many…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 18
Texas Gardening
How To Improve Your Odds Of Seeing Painted Buntings In Your Central Texas Yard Each Summer
Painted buntings are among the most striking birds in North America, and Central Texas homeowners have real reason…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 18
Texas Gardening
That Purple Weed You Keep Pulling From Your Central Texas Lawn Is Actually a Native Pollinator Gem
Every spring, Central Texas homeowners yank a small purple-flowering plant out of their lawns without a second thought,…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 18
Texas Gardening
Texas Sage Is a Drought-Tough Native for Your Central Texas Foundation – Not a Proven Scorpion Barrier
Central Texas summers push plants hard, and most foundation shrubs struggle to keep up. Texas sage, also called…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 18
Texas Gardening
Geckos on Your Central Texas Porch May Hunt Roaches – Here Is How to Support That Without Expecting Too Much
If you live in Central Texas and have spotted a small, pale lizard clinging to your porch wall…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 17
Texas Gardening
That Native Passionflower Vine On Your Central Texas Fence Can Feed Gulf Fritillary Caterpillars All Warm Season Long
A single vine can turn a plain fence into a butterfly nursery, and in Central Texas, one native…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 17
Texas Gardening
Rosemary on the Porch: A Practical Texas Container Plant and What Actually Keeps Roaches and Rats Away
Plenty of gardening tips promise that one plant will solve your pest problems, but the real story is…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 17
Texas Gardening
Why More Texas Cardinals Are Showing Up in Your Yard Right Now, and What They’re Telling You
Cardinals have a way of stopping you mid-step, especially when you suddenly notice three or four of them…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 17
Texas Gardening
The Purple Weed You Keep Pulling From Your Central Texas Lawn Is Actually a Native Pollinator Gem
Every spring, Central Texas homeowners yank out a slender, purple-flowered plant without a second thought, assuming it is…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 17
Texas Gardening
More Bats Over Your Central Texas Yard Means Fewer Mosquitoes, and Here’s How To Draw Them In at Dusk
Walk outside on a Central Texas evening and you might catch the quick, zigzagging silhouette of a bat…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 17
Texas Gardening
More Barn Swallows Nesting on Your Central Texas Porch Means Fewer Mosquitoes and Gnats, and Here’s How To Welcome Them
Barn Swallows are among the most recognizable summer birds in Central Texas, swooping low over lawns and nesting…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 16
Texas Gardening
The Underrated Texas Porch Plant That Makes Roaches and Rats Less Welcome Around Your Door
Rosemary is one of those plants that earns its spot on a Texas porch without much fuss. It…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 16
Texas Gardening
That Purple Weed Taking Over Your Central Texas Lawn Is Actually a Native Pollinator Gem
Every spring, Central Texas lawns light up with clusters of tiny purple flowers, and most homeowners reach for…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 16
Texas Gardening
The Native Texas Vine That Draws Dragonflies In and Sends Mosquitoes Looking Elsewhere
A Texas-native passionflower vine climbing a backyard fence is a genuinely beautiful thing, and the idea that it…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 16
Texas Gardening
More Green Anoles On Your Central Texas Fence Means Fewer Mosquitoes and Roaches, and Here’s How To Bring Them In
Spot a flash of bright green darting across a wooden fence in the Texas Hill Country, and you…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 16
Texas Gardening
More Roadrunners Near Your Central Texas Yard Means Fewer Scorpions, and Here’s How To Bring Them In
Greater Roadrunners are one of Texas’s most recognizable birds, and yes, they do eat scorpions. But the idea…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 16
Texas Gardening
Native Switchgrass: A Texas Habitat Plant That May Support Fireflies In Your Central Texas Yard
Fireflies flickering across a warm Texas evening feel like something out of a childhood memory, and many Central…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 15
Texas Gardening
The Native Texas Plant That Brings Roadrunners To Your Yard And Sends Scorpions Packing
Few backyard sightings stop a Texan in their tracks quite like a Greater Roadrunner trotting across the yard,…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 15
Texas Gardening
The Underrated Texas Porch Plant That Makes Rats and Roaches Think Twice Before Coming Inside
Plenty of Texas gardeners have heard that certain plants can help keep pests from sneaking inside, and spearmint…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 15
Texas Gardening
The Native Texas Vine That Sends Ticks Looking For Somewhere Else To Live
A headline claiming that a Texas native vine sends ticks packing sounds like exactly the backyard solution every…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 15
Texas Gardening
Prickly Pear and Roadrunners: How One Texas Native Can Help Build a Yard That Wildlife Actually Uses
Somewhere in a Texas yard, a Greater Roadrunner is jogging across open ground, head low, eyes sharp, looking…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 15
Texas Gardening
The Native Texas Plant That Brings Bats to Your Yard and Cuts the Mosquito Swarms All Summer
A fragrant native shrub called Texas kidneywood grows wild across parts of South, Central, and West Texas, and…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 15
Texas Gardening
Prickly Pear Cactus as Texas Roadrunner Habitat – And What Actually Keeps Scorpions Out
Texas homeowners sometimes spot a Greater Roadrunner sprinting across the yard and wonder what it would take to…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 14
Texas Gardening
The Native Texas Plant That Draws Geckos To Your Porch And Keeps Roaches Moving On
Step onto a Texas porch on a warm summer night and you might catch a small gecko frozen…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 14
Texas Gardening
The Native Texas Wildflowers That Draw Dragonflies In And Send Mosquitoes Looking Elsewhere
Planting a patch of native Texas wildflowers will not make mosquitoes pack up and leave your yard, but…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 14
Texas Gardening
The Native Texas Plant That Makes Your Porch Far Less Welcoming To Roaches
A plant called catnip has been making the rounds online as a natural roach deterrent, and the science…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 14
Texas Gardening
The Native Texas Plant That May Help Geckos Feel at Home and Support Natural Roach Patrol on Your Porch
Yaupon holly is a tough, native evergreen shrub that grows across Texas and Florida, and it can do…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 14
Texas Gardening
The Native Texas Plant That Makes Ticks Less Willing To Cross Your Backyard
American beautyberry has been getting a lot of attention lately as a possible natural defense against ticks in…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 14
Texas Gardening
Living With a Porch Gecko in Texas: What It Actually Does for Roaches Around Your Home
Spotting a small lizard clinging to your porch wall on a warm Texas evening is one of those…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 13
Texas Gardening
How To Attract Roadrunners To Your Central Texas Yard For Natural Scorpion Control
Spotting a Greater Roadrunner darting across a Central Texas yard is one of those moments that makes you…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 13
Texas Gardening
Coral Honeysuckle: A Texas Native Vine That Supports Wildlife and Belongs in Your Habitat Garden
A native Texas vine called coral honeysuckle has been making the rounds online with some bold claims about…
By Ella Brown T · Aug 13