The free three-day event will bring home and garden experts to the Hilliard Center, including a local farmer and chef sharing tips from the garden to the kitchen.
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — The Fall Home and Garden Show is returning to Corpus Christi with three days of home and yard inspiration, including tips on how Coastal Bend residents can grow food in their own backyards and bring it straight to the kitchen.
The 26th annual show will run Sept. 11-13 at the Hilliard Center, 1901 N. Shoreline Blvd. Admission is free. Hours are 2-6 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday.
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The event will bring together home and garden experts for live demonstrations and advice on everything from improving your house to keeping a garden alive in the South Texas heat.
Veteran farmer, radio host, and Four String Farm founder Justin Butts joined 3NEWS ahead of the event to offer a preview of his presentation.
Butts and his wife, chef Kayla Butts, will present together at the show, taking visitors through the process of growing food at home and then using those ingredients in the kitchen.
“If you have a kitchen garden with these plants close to the kitchen door, it will bring your kitchen to life,” Butts said.
Growing a garden in South Texas
Butts said the Coastal Bend can be one of the more challenging places to grow a garden because of the heat, humidity, salty air, and soil.
Still, he said, residents can grow successful gardens by starting with one of the most important parts: the soil.
“Soil health. It’s 90%,” Butts said.
Butts recommends using mulch, improving the soil and choosing plants that are right for the season.
He brought several plants from his garden to the 3NEWS studio, including basil, Thai basil, zinnias, Turk’s cap, marigolds, mint, and cockscomb. Butts said the plants and flowers he brought were edible.
He also recommends allowing some herbs to flower because they can attract bees to the garden.
Want to grow tomatoes?
Butts said tomatoes are one of the most popular vegetables to grow in the Coastal Bend, but they can also be among the most difficult.
“If you can grow tomatoes in the Coastal Bend, you can grow anything,” Butts said.
During the Home and Garden Show, Butts plans to share tips for growing tomatoes, including how to use a trellis to control their growth and which plants can be grown alongside them.
A different way to fight garden pests
Butts also plans to show visitors how he controls pests without using chemical pesticides.
One of his tools is a headlamp.
“If you have never seen your garden at night under a headlamp, you’ve never really seen it,” Butts said.
He said checking plants at night can help gardeners see what may be eating or damaging them.
Butts said he also relies on frogs, toads, lacewings, ladybugs and birds to help keep unwanted pests under control.