® DFW FINE PROPERTIES
Plants that grow well in late Fall and Winter are Outside Pride Ornamental Kale (Brassica Olerace) and Pansies. Although beautiful to look at, ornamental kale is not edible. Pansy, also known as Viola wittrockiana makes a great bedding plant with tolerance to both heat and cold. Both will stand cold weather; however, they will not survive in prolonged freezes. Below are samples taken from my Flower Mound, garden today, December 11, 2017:
According to the current USDA map, the majority of the D/FW Metroplex was categorized into planting Zone 8a, with winter minimum temperatures typically between 10 degrees and 15 degrees F. Today's temperature in Flower Mound is 76 degrees. Zone maps are always subject to change. Currently, Flower Mound is specifically categorized in Zone 7b. For this reason, I recommend when purchasing plants within the D/FW Metroplex, and for best results for survival, check the Zone specific to your city and county. The first and the last freeze in urban areas may differ.
The type of plants that grow best are determined by the following:
- Geography
- Geology
- Water
- Environment
- Climate
The D/FW Metroplex is predominately a prairie land. Trees that grow best include the following:
- Shumard Red Oak
- Redbud
- Pecan
- Bois d'Arc
- Walnut
- Hackberry
- Juniper
- Cedar Elm
More than 80 million years ago Cretaceous seas covered North Texas and our soils originated from fossilized sediments. When the rivers cut through the sedimentary layers, soil conditions changed due to the depositing of sands and soil. Most soil today is clay. Limestone surfaces are common in the far eastern side of Dallas County and Eagle Ford shale is exposed in west Dallas county. In Dallas, topography is defined by the cliffs and terraces of the Trinity River and White Rock escarpment formed by an uplift and erosion of the chalk. Portions of Denton County in Flower Mound and Tarrant County in Grapevine have red sandstone. All in all, D/FW has interesting plants and comfortable climate conditions.
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