Growing Red Potatoes in Texas: Tips for a Successful Harvest

One of the greatest rewards of gardening is digging beneath the soil and discovering what has been quietly growing out of sight. There's something almost magical about harvesting potatoes. You never know exactly what you'll find until you gently pull back the earth.

Our reward this time? Fresh red potatoes from the garden!

Homegrown potatoes have a flavor that's difficult to match from the grocery store. They make a wonderful side dish with roasted chicken, grilled meats, or simply tossed with a little butter, salt, and fresh herbs.

Growing Potatoes in Texas

Potatoes grow surprisingly well in many parts of Texas when planted during the cooler months.

A few tips I've learned include:

• Plant seed potatoes in late January through February in Central Texas before the summer heat arrives.
• Choose a location with 6–8 hours of sunlight each day.
• Plant in loose, well-drained soil enriched with compost.
• Keep the soil evenly moist but not waterlogged.
• As the plants grow, mound soil around the stems to prevent developing potatoes from being exposed to sunlight, which can turn them green.

Most potato varieties are ready to harvest in about 90–120 days, depending on the variety and growing conditions.

Why I Love Growing Potatoes

Potatoes are one of those vegetables that seem to surprise me every year. A handful of seed potatoes can multiply into a generous harvest with very little effort. They're also an excellent crop for beginner gardeners because they're forgiving and don't require constant attention.

Best of all, harvesting potatoes feels a little like a treasure hunt. Every time you dig beneath the soil, another beautiful potato seems to appear.

Fresh from the garden, these red potatoes made the perfect companion to our home-cooked chicken dinner. Meals somehow taste even better when part of them came straight from your own backyard.

"There's nothing quite like bringing supper in from the garden."

Look what I found in my garden... Red potatoes!

San Antonio: Exploring the Alamo, Zoo, and Riverwalk

If you had read my last blog post, you'll remember that I had planned to "explain myself" about King Tut. The picture above is of the Luxor Hotel in Las Vegas, where my family had visited 2 years ago. My son and I were in the Luxor visiting the King Tut museum. Although it wasn't the "actual" Tut exhibit, it was a very very good reproduction. We paid our money and marveled at the details and "small" furniture of the boy king.

Well, today was the day we were SUPPOSED to have visited King Tut in Dallas. The "real" exhibit is about to wrap up in a few weeks and this was my chance (lifelong dream) to see the Tut artifacts up close. As I was online about to purchase my tickets, I had noticed the bad reviews (for the most part)... Information that the museum was a rip-off, the advertising was misleading (no golden coffin/sarcophagus) the "Disney" feel to the atmosphere and how they get everyone pumped up, and just when they think they are going to see actual Tut stuff, they are dumped into the gift shop and the tour is over....

Hmmm... I went ahead and clicked on the date and time I wanted to arrive, pay the close to $30 pop for tickets per person, the $7 for audio per person, the $3.50 for convenience charge -- PER PERSON, and then another $3-$4 for another type of "convenience charge" and on top of that, the knowledge that parking was going to cost between $15-$20 ... I realized before I entered my credit card info -- WHAT? AM I CRAZY? Ka-ching! Ka-ching!

Sooo, to make a long story short, I broke the news to my son (whom I had invited) that HEY, let's go to SAN ANTONIO instead!

Yeah, I missed probably a golden opportunity, but I didn't feel like being fleeced.

I'm still checking airline prices for our trip to the middle east. Maybe we'll catch Tut in his hometown...

So here's our substitute day in San Antonio. We only spent a 3rd of what we would have spent in Dallas and we only used a quarter of a tank of gas! Our first stop was the train at the San Antonio zoo... It was actually quite fun and took us around the park and part of town (not inside the zoo like I had originally thought!)

Inside the zoo...

The hippos were underwater and would break for air every 6 min.

Nice to see a Bald Eagle up close...

A nice lady offered to take our picture without me asking...

At the Riverwalk...

We decided to eat at the Republic of Texas cafe, and noticed the birds were dining as well on the table...

They were so hungry, they were oblivious to me being up close. I even managed to pet some...

Lunch menu wasn't bad!!$$$$

Food was good, and so was the atmosphere...

Anyone want on my gift list? ;-)

Howdie!

At the Alamo...

We couldn't have asked for a more beautiful day. The weather was a modest 80-something degrees, a slight breeze, and occasional cloud to ease the heat.

Indoors, we had to take off our hats, no cameras, and with solemn respect, we examined the inside of the Alamo. What an awesome piece of Texas history! It was interesting to see Davey Crockett's personal guns and some of his signed books.

I spotted a lady with streaked blue hair like Josh. I bugged Josh to get into step behind her (without her knowing) so I could take his picture. (He did the temp dye thing for an event) I teased that people would think they were together, since their hair matched. Josh was bashful to catch up with her and accused me of being the Paparazzi!

I wish we had time to stop indoors for a refreshment, but home was beckoning!

We had a great time. San Antonio is always a lot of fun... I spied the Japanese Tea Garden while going to the zoo and hope to return soon... While passing the garden, Pamela and I did a double take! The guy looked just like Nate! We wondered if perhaps Nate was playing hooky from work? Nah!

Field Trip: Gault Archaeological Site in Texas

Visiting the Gault Archaeological Site

One of the greatest benefits of homeschooling was being able to take learning beyond the classroom. Instead of simply reading about archaeology in books, we had the opportunity to visit one of the most important archaeological sites in North America.

The Gault Archaeological Site, located near Florence, Texas, has yielded evidence of human occupation dating back more than 16,000 years. Archaeologists have uncovered thousands of stone tools, Clovis points, and artifacts that continue to reshape our understanding of the earliest people who lived in the Americas.

Seeing an active excavation in person gave us an entirely new appreciation for the patience, skill, and scientific methods involved in archaeology.

Why the Gault Site Is Important

The Gault Archaeological Site is recognized as one of the most significant prehistoric sites in North America. For decades, archaeologists have carefully excavated the area, uncovering evidence of ancient campsites, stone tool workshops, and artifacts left behind by some of the continent's earliest inhabitants.

Unlike treasure hunting, modern archaeology is about carefully documenting where every artifact is found. Even the smallest stone flakes help researchers understand how people lived, traveled, hunted, and made tools thousands of years ago.

We took a field trip today to the Gaunt site, where excavations are ongoing. This area has a long history of pay-for-digging, where the former land owners would allow people to pay up to $20 a spot to dig all day-- and keeping what they find. Fortunately, these "miners" didn't dig too deep and the real TREASURES were found under their mess, along with a ton of empty beer cans. Not to mention many valuable artifacts found in their piles of discarded rubble. Drinking and digging in hot Texas can only endure for so long.

Fortunately for archeology, the property changed hands and the new owners recognized the scientific importance of the site. For the last 10 years, a major excavation has been undertaken under the supervision of archaeologist, Clark -- who happened to be our tour guide today. He was awesome.

What a wealth of information!

For anyone living in the area and interested, this site has garnered national attention for some of its finds. Not only is this excavation unearthing Clovis artifacts, but also human, animal, and some unusual stones.

Volunteers are welcome and trained. Clark gave me his business card and I'm keeping this in mind.

We had a long discussion about his career choice and I mentioned that I used to dream (as a young girl) of going to Harvard and being an archaeologist. He chuckled and said Harvard archaeologists who visited their site were some of the worst.

I had to stop and think for a moment. WHY did I want to go to Harvard? As a young girl, I dreamed of becoming an archaeologist after reading about Howard Carter's discovery of King Tutankhamun's tomb. That fascination with ancient history has never completely left me.

Speaking of King Tut...

Well, that's another story.

I'll explain it in the next blog post...

Black walnut in abundance... Oh how I missed these trees in Missouri! And Hickory nuts!

Everything gets carried to the screens, washed and water blasted.

I don't know what's worse... falling on a cactus, or this menacing thorned flower...

The screening area.

One of the excavation sites.

Thundercloud

This old shack used to be part of a train...

Archaeologists visiting from England. Notice anything different about them? Upon arriving in Texas, they all bought cowboy hats!

The domed tents cover excavation sites...

Who can resist stopping at an old mom and pop's grocery store for an ice cold soda pop?

This is what it's all about!

Walking through an active excavation was far different than visiting a museum. Instead of seeing artifacts behind glass, we watched history being uncovered one careful layer at a time. It gave me an entirely new respect for the work archaeologists do to preserve our shared past.