Results Realty Buzz: Texas: Spring

The pictures above were taken at the Augusta Pines firework display last year. My slideshow will be the only fireworks we will be seeing in Harris County this year as all firework displays in Harris and Montgomery County have been cancelled due to our severe drought. We had a nice thunderstorm the other night but being about 17 inches low the ground just immediately soaked it up.

We have lived here since December 1996 and it is so strange not seeing the fireworks stands open. Usually they are doing a booming business but this is also the driest that it has been since we have lived here. Typically the entire day of the 4th I hear firecrackers going off but today it has been blissfully quiet. As much as we love our fireworks we love our Texas land more and I’m proud to see everyone going along with the fireworks ban. (Mind you there is a $500 fine being imposed if you do shoot a firework and that means any kind of firework.) As dry as everything is I think we all understand the importance of no fireworks this year.

On the other hand our dog Dundy does not like fireworks and is THRILLED about the ban (lol).
I wish you all a happy 4th of July.

For all your Spring/Tomball/Magnolia TX Real Estate needs, contact me today!
Marchel Peterson
Results Realty
Cell: 832-721-8332

Auburn Lakes is a master planned community covering over 500 acres in unincorporated Northwest Harris County.  It is conveniently located just south of The Woodlands off of Gosling and Rayford Rd.   As you can see from my title Auburn Lakes call themselves the closer woods and the name is totally appropriate. 

As The Woodlands has grown their amenities are getting closer and closer to Auburn Lakes. If you are not sure that you want to live in The Woodlands but do like having access then Auburn Lakes could be the perfect solution for you.  An additional bonus is that it is closer in to Houston also.

When the community is finished there will be around 1200 homes.  Some of the amenities the community offers its residents are a community center with a banquet room and an open air pavilion; Olympic size swimming pool along with a play pool.  A very cool amenity is an indoor fitness center; as I was taking picture I could see residents working out in the fitness center.  If you like nature you will enjoy the nature parks and playgrounds.  Tennis courts are also available for the residents.

If you are in to playing golf portions of the subdivision are being developed along the Willow Creek Golf Course, a private 18-hole championship course.  You are also just a few miles away from Augusta Pines Golf Course; not to even mention all the golf courses in The Woodlands.

There are 4 different Auburn Lakes communities to choose from so there's something fro everyone:

Auburn Lake The Pines has homes starting from $190,000 to about $260,000.  The builders in The Pines are First Texas Homes, Infinity Classic Homes and Lennar Homes.  The lot sizes are approximately 60' by 120'.

Auburn Lakes The Retreat has homes starting from $340,000 to $490,000.  The builder in The Retreat is Village Builders.  The lot sizes are approximately 80' by 130'.

Auburn Lakes The Reserve has homes starting from $230,000 to about $300,000.  The builders in The Reserve are First Texas Homes and Lennar Homes.  The lot sizes are approximately 70' by 120'.

Auburn Lakes The Estates has homes starting from$650,000 to $1 million.  The custom builders are Cannon Custom Homes, Croix Custom Homes, Marshall & O’Connor and Meadowlark Homes.  The lot sizes are approximately 90'/100' by 150'.

The subdivision is located in the acclaimed Klein ISD. The grade school at the moment is Northampton Elementary, the intermediate is Hildebrandt and the high school is Klein Oak.  Ground is soon to be broken for a new elementary school on Rayford close to Gosling.

For all your Spring TX Real Estate needs, contact me today!
Marchel Peterson
Results Realty
Cell: 832-721-8332

Photos are for illustration purposes only and do not necessarily represent current or past listings.

It has been incredibly dry in Spring TX this spring so we have been making a concerted effort to keep our bird bath full as the birds are quite thirsty.  The other morning I noticed a beautiful blue bird land on the bird bath and ran for my camera.  It was the right place at the right time as before I knew it my beautiful blue bird had been joined by 4 friends.

I have found that my facebook friends cannot see the slide show.  If you would like to visit the show please visit bird bath time in Spring TX.  I am including one additional picture for those friends.

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If you are buying or relocating to Spring TX, Magnolia TX or Tomball TXand need help from a professional REALTOR®, Marchel can be reached at Marchel@AgentwithResults.com or by phone at 832-721-8332.

If you would like information about Spring-Tomball TX please visit my websites at www.AgentwithResults.com and at www.ResultsRealtytx.com.

Want to find out about new Spring-Magnolia-Tomball TX properties immediately as they come on the market, then click here to sign up for a free automatic notification of new listings.

Click the button to the left to search our local MLS.

One of the many things I love about living in Spring TX is the Azela blossoms in the spring!

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If you are buying or relocating to Spring TX, Magnolia TX or Tomball TXand need help from a professional REALTOR®, Marchel can be reached at Marchel@AgentwithResults.com or by phone at 832-721-8332.

If you would like information about Spring-Tomball TX please visit my websites at www.AgentwithResults.com and at www.ResultsRealtytx.com.

Want to find out about new Spring-Magnolia-Tomball TX properties immediately as they come on the market, then click here to sign up for a free automatic notification of new listings.

Click the button to the left to search our local MLS.

I have always attributed the signs of spring to foliage.  The foliage depends on what area of the country we are living in.  In Colorado I was just just glad to see green. In North Carolina it was all those pretty spring flowers. Growing up in Kansas it was seeing daffodils come peeking through the winter landscape.

I now have a new compass to go by and it is the Bradford Pear trees in the middle of our cul-de-sac. When they start getting those beautiful white blooms I know that Spring in Spring TX is right around the corner.

I must admit I do miss those daffodils but here in Spring TX our land is too warm and the only way you can have daffodils is to plant them every year. (Since that does not happen I rarely get to see daffodils except at the grocery store or in pictures.)

I love Spring TX and have learned to live without the daffodils. We have lived in Spring TX since 1997 and one of the things that I love most is the long growing season. This year I tried my hand at winter gardening and I have had a garden all year long.

We had a bit of rough winter so I had to cover my raised beds up a few times. We reaped the benefits with fresh greens, lettuce, kale, spinach, parsley, dill, oregano and cat nip. I had to put a small fence around the cat nip or otherwise it was squashed; especially by my grand-kitty Elle. There's really only a couple of months that are hard to garden in Spring TX and those happen to be in the heat of the summer. The only thing that I have found I can grow in the heat of the summer is okra and eggplant. Last year I think I burnt everyone out on eggplant as they continued clear up until Christmas.

I know there's some controversy about the change in daylight savings time that happened a few years ago. Personally I love it and have been counting the days until we have the longer evenings. The time change is almost here happening this Sunday morning March 13th. If you have not made plans to change your clocks back on Saturday night now is the time to make yourself a note. Otherwise you are going to find you are late to church.

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If you are buying or relocating to Spring TX, Magnolia TX or Tomball TXand need help from a professional REALTOR®, Marchel can be reached at Marchel@AgentwithResults.com or by phone at 832-721-8332.

If you would like information about Spring-Tomball TX please visit my websites at www.AgentwithResults.com and at www.ResultsRealtytx.com.

Want to find out about new Spring-Magnolia-Tomball TX properties immediately as they come on the market, then click here to sign up for a free automatic notification of new listings.

Click the button to the left to search our local MLS.

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Copyright © 2011 Marchel Peterson, All Rights Reserved. *Spring forward in Spring, TX that is!!!!*

Like the rest of the country we are experiencing freezing temperatures in Spring TX.  I was opening a home for a buyer to take some measurements this afternoon and drove by this fountain on the way to the home. This is Spring TX we are not supposed to be having freezing temperatures.  My client is moving here from Alaska and she was telling me how cold she thought it was.  That made me feel better as having moved here from Colorado I was thinking I had become a wimp. Our cold is a wet cold that gets you to the bone.

I have a new Sanyo dual camera and I thought I took lots of pictures and just one video.  For whatever reason the pictures did not turn out but the video did.  It is a short video and a bit choppy but it does give you the feel of the icicle fountain.

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If you are buying or relocating to Spring TX, Magnolia TX or Tomball TXand need help from a professional REALTOR®, Marchel can be reached at Marchel@AgentwithResults.com or by phone at 832-721-8332.

If you would like information about Spring-Tomball TX please visit my websites at www.AgentwithResults.com and at www.ResultsRealtytx.com.

Want to find out about new Spring-Magnolia-Tomball TX properties immediately as they come on the market, then click here to sign up for a free automatic notification of new listings.

Click the button to the left to search our local MLS.

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Copyright © 2011 Marchel Peterson, All Rights Reserved. *Icicle Fountain in Spring TX!!*

Crape Myrtle murder has started early in Spring-Tomball-Magnolia TX this year. I have been driving around watching the landscapers out pruning for the last few weeks. The sad thing is that there’s absolutely no reason to scalp murder a tree the way they do. I expect many of you have heard the story of Grandma’s roast. It seems Grandma cut the end of the roast off, so Mom cut the end of her roast off and so on. Finally someone got around to asking Grandma why she cut the roast off and her answer was so it could fit in the pan. To me that’s a good analogy of the crape myrtle murder that goes on in our area. From everything I have read and actual experience I cannot see that it does any good to the Crape Myrtle tree.

I made the small video above showing exactly what I’m talking about. We are having subnormal cold weather right now and I also hope these trees don’t go into shock.

There are a lot of different ideas on how to take care of the crape myrtles. You see varying degrees of pruning to not pruning at all. I did quite a bit of research and the general consensus was that they should be lightly pruned. Over pruning reduces the number of blooms. I also read where there is a mistaken belief that lopping off the tops of all the branches is necessary to promote flowering. This is what is called Crape murder.

Flowering on a crape myrtle occurs on the new branches that are produced in the spring; so light pruning in late winter encourages the production of flowering branches. One of the articles said that if the trees are tipped back lightly after the first flush of bloom, some trees are likely to bloom a second time. Cutting the trees back heavily can shock them and slow down the growth of flowering branches. If you don't prune at all this article said the flower clusters that emerge in the summer will be smaller but more prolific.

From everything I have read over pruning where people chop the crape myrtle back to the knuckle each and every year reduces the number of blooms that will be produced during the summer and the new branches that do grow will be far too long and will not be able to support the weight of heavy blossoms; especially when they get wet. Thus these long branches often break off during heavy rains and our area is known for those heavy rains.

As I was posting my video I found the video below and he gives some excellent advice on how to take care of your crape myrtles.

Not being originally from this area dealing with crape myrtles has been a new and learning experience for us. When we first moved here we lopped off those branches every year and then wondered if we had bought dwarf crape myrtle. The last few years we tried the method that I have described here and not even pruning at all. You can see from my picture below that we have had a wonderful success not pruning. The picture was taken at dusk as it just set the flowers off.

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If you are buying or relocating to Spring TX, Magnolia TX or Tomball TXand need help from a professional REALTOR®, Marchel can be reached at Marchel@AgentwithResults.com or by phone at 832-721-8332.

If you would like information about Spring-Tomball TX please visit my websites at www.AgentwithResults.com and at www.ResultsRealtytx.com.

Want to find out about new Spring-Magnolia-Tomball TX properties immediately as they come on the market, then click here to sign up for a free automatic notification of new listings.

Click the button to the left to search our local MLS.

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Copyright © 2011 Marchel Peterson, All Rights Reserved. *Crape Myrtle murder in Spring-Tomball-Magnolia TX!!*

Last year the Houston Chronicle had a great article about plant survival in freezing temperatures. Since it is almost February I was thinking I was going to get away without having to post about this but it is not to be; we are looking to have several days of frigid temperatures starting today (lows in the low to mid 20's).  Here in Houston we rarely have frigid temperatures and for sure not several days in a row.  I love all the tropical plants that I'm able to grow in Spring and by using what they said I saved my plants last year and plan to again this year.  This year I also have a winter garden going and I sure don't want to lose my lettuce.

After reading the article I realized that I've not been going at this correctly. What you want to do is mulch, water and cover. If it has not rained you need to water first which I had to do last year but this year we have had rain.  Water and mulch should be enough for certain plants.  Those plants would be abelia, azalea, boxwood, eleagnus, Hawthorne, holly, ligustrum, loropetalum, mahonia, nandina, roses, wax myrtle and yaupon.  After an extended freeze these shrubs will probably show foliage damage without cover but should put on new leaves in the spring.

We went the extra step covering plants with fiber row covers, sheets & blankets.  This will raise the temperature a few degrees depending on the cover.  For even extra protection we added a layer of heavy plastic over the cloth covers and secured it with bricks and stones.  The article said not to place plastic directly on the plants. (This is where I have been going astray).  My plants are again double wrapped and I feel that again I will have healthy plants after the cold snap.  Of course we have moved our potted plants inside.


Do not wash frost or ice off the plants the morning after the freeze.  If you wash the frost off it raises the temperature too fast and can damage the plant's cell tissue.  After the frigid temperatures are over  assess the damage but DO NOT prune. The freeze damaged wood will protect live wood farther down the branch (should we have more frigid temperatures).

In the spring prune to green at your normal pruning time.  I have always heard mid February for pruning.

I hope this is it for our frigid weather.  We have lived here 14 years and I don't ever remember covering plants this late in the season.  I remember a radio commentator years ago saying we have two seasons in Houston summer and January. It looks like winter is going in to February for us this year. Hopefully this will be the last time to cover the plants.

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If you are buying or relocating to Spring TX, Magnolia TX or Tomball TXand need help from a professional REALTOR®, Marchel can be reached at Marchel@AgentwithResults.com or by phone at 832-721-8332.

If you would like information about Spring-Tomball TX please visit my websites at www.AgentwithResults.com and at www.ResultsRealtytx.com.

Want to find out about new Spring-Magnolia-Tomball TX properties immediately as they come on the market, then click here to sign up for a free automatic notification of new listings.

Click the button to the left to search our local MLS.

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Copyright © 2011 Marchel Peterson, All Rights Reserved. *Cold Facts for Plant survival in Spring-Magnolia-Tomball TX!!!*

I attended the Spring Klein chamber luncheon today.  Our speaker was Carl Pittman a Criminal Investigator/Deputy Sheriff at Harris County Sheriff's Office.  He spoke to us about business safety.

He started out asking if there's was any CSI watcher's in the room.  Of course a bunch of hands went up.  He went on to say it is television; crimes are not solved in 38 minutes. As a criminal investigator he wants to make sure that he has solid evidence to make the most solid case possible so criminals are locked up for a long time.

DNA is the fastest growing science in law enforcement.  Many cases would have gone unsolved except for DNA.  He told us that if we got up from our chairs his investigators could come in and swab the chairs and decipher who was sitting where.  Fingerprints use to be the standard but not any longer; if the crook has enough money they can remove their fingerprints.

Here in Texas every time an offender goes to prison a biological sample is taken. This profile is then uploaded in to a state system.  It use to take 6 to 7 months to get a hit using DNA and now it can take as little as 30 to 50 days.   He stressed to us that if we are robbed either in our business or our home DON'T TOUCH ANYTHING.  It is our natural tendency to want to clean up but DON'T. Everything the crook has handled gives the chance of getting good DNA.  They can then take these unknown samples and compare them with profiles and they get matches. He is then able to get a probable cause warrant.  This puts a warrant in the system for the person's arrest.  Every state maintains a state database of these profiles which they share with a national database; that does take a little longer though.

The question was asked if a suspect came in for questioning could you give them a glass to hold to get the DNA.  He said it is perfectly okay to get DNA that way.  He also said that when people do come in of their own free will it is amazing what they will tell you; if you just know how to ask.

I am highlighting this next tip as I thought it was a GREAT suggestion.

He asked us how many people had their electronic signatures captured.  Not a soul raised their hand on that one.  He told us a good many of us had smart phones and we should go around our home and office and capture all those electronic QR codes for our items.  He suggested keeping that record right there on your cell phone.  Should you be robbed you immediately have a record to share.  By doing this you have a good chance of recovering your items. He said that typically the criminal will immediately take these items to pawn shops.  The pawn shop must wait 30 days before they put the items up for sale. If you have these signatures saved this lag time could get your item back to you.

The last thing he talked about was for those businesses who deposit quantities of cash.  It is good to have two different banks that you go to and it is also good to not have a routine.  A crook will look for routines.  You don't want to send someone to the bank at the same time every day.  Also don't put cash in obvious envelopes; you want to keep your deposits nondescript. 

He believes in our second amendment right to bear arms but he said if you are going to use that right you need to know how to use your weapon.  In closing he said to be a good witness but there is nothing in our home or office that is worth dying for.  If you have someone who is robbing you just give them what they want.   It is just stuff!

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If you are buying or relocating to Spring Texas or Tomball TXand need help from a professional REALTOR®, Marchel can be reached at Marchel@AgentwithResults.com or by phone at 832-721-8332.

If you would like information about Spring-Tomball TX please visit my websites at www.AgentwithResults.com and at www.ResultsRealtytx.com.

Want to find out about new Spring-Tomball TX properties immediately as they come on the market, then click here to sign up for a free automatic notification of new listings.

Click the button to the left to search our local MLS.

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Copyright © 2010 Marchel Peterson, All Rights Reserved. *Spring Klein Chamber of Commerce - Criminal Investigator Carl Pittman - Business safety!*

Danny's Trix and Kix is located in Spring TX at the corner of FM 2920 and Meadowhill. (between I-45 and Falvel)

Halloween is of course their busy time of the year as you can see by the full parking lot. I had to drive around the store twice to find a place to park.

They both rent and sale costumes and have all the accessories to go with your costume including wigs, beard's, masks, eyelashes, boas, scarves, makeup, hats etc. They have sizes from infants to plus sizes.

They also have a large gift selection. They have over the hill gifts, novelties and gag gifts.

With a large selection of theatrical supplies this is the place to go if you are in the theater.  They have a large selection of make up etc. for stage productions.

If you are interested in magic they have a large magic trick and prank selection.

As you can see they are more than just a Halloween store. A few years ago we were late to get some patriotic items just before a 4th of July party and thought of them as a last resort. They still had a large selection of items and we were able to get the patriotic decorations that we wanted.

 They have been continually in business since 1976. Isn't that incredible! That means that they went through the oil bust of the late 1980's here in Houston and stayed in business. We moved here in 1996 and I could tell they had been there for a while but I had no idea how long until I asked today. 

I had asked them if I could take pictures inside their store but some of their costumes have restrictions that don't allow picture taking. I can understand that as they have a unique selection of costumes. They have a large selection of costumes in their windows so I had to content myself with window shopping (lol).

You can visit their website at www.dannystrixkix.com.

 They are obviously doing something right!

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If you are buying or relocating to Spring Texas or Tomball TXand need help from a professional REALTOR®, Marchel can be reached at Marchel@AgentwithResults.com or by phone at 832-721-8332.

If you would like information about Spring-Tomball TX please visit my websites at www.AgentwithResults.com and at www.ResultsRealtytx.com.

Want to find out about new Spring-Tomball TX properties immediately as they come on the market, then click here to sign up for a free automatic notification of new listings.

Click the button to the left to search our local MLS.

Subcribe in a reader

Copyright © 2010 Marchel Peterson, All Rights Reserved. *Danny's Trix and Kix in Spring TX!!*