Gardening in Texas blossoms

By MINDY POEHL | Central Texas Edition

Chris Corby, editor and publisher of Texas Gardener magazine, prunes the bushes at his office. -Staff photo by

August 26, 2004 - Gardening in Texas can be quite difficult since temperatures are hot enough to make a snowman sweat in the summer and cold enough to frost in the winter. Texas also has two different growing seasons, making gardening in Texas unique. That is why Chris Corby came up with the promising idea of creating a magazine for Texas gardeners, by Texas gardeners.

Corby has been the editor/publisher of Texas Gardener magazine since he formed it in 1981. Printing articles from planting and harvesting colorful vegetables to growing beautifully smelling flowers, the magazine is published out of a small office in Waco.

When asked how he came up with the idea for his magazine, Corby explained, "In 1981 I was working for another publishing company here in town. I was also a hobby gardener and I found that there was no magazine specifically written for gardening in Texas. All of the magazines that were around were written for other places like California or Connecticut- someplace where the weather's a lot different than it is here."

So Corby decided to create the magazine.

"It was all about finding a certain niche or an audience that needs to be served," he said. "We did some test mailings and got a really good response. We said that if we got a 6 percent response to our mailings that we'd go ahead and start the magazine. We got about a 12 percent response. I quit my job and we've been going strong ever since."

Texas Gardener is a bimonthly, full color magazine with 95 percent of its circulation in Texas. With a circulation around 25,000, the magazine is also sent to surrounding areas like New Mexico, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Mexico.

"All of our circulation is paid for by subscriptions and we sell some advertising," Corby said. "Our readers are very dedicated and loyal."

Most of the writers for the magazine do not work out of the Waco office.

"We have about 15 people who write for us and take photos. I do some of both," Corby said. "We have an editorial board that is made up of experts in different areas, like vegetables, fruits or ornamental. We also use freelance writers and the Extension offices."

Corby graduated with a degree in journalism and he also took some horticulture classes in college, "and I've always been a hobby gardener," he said. He was the sports editor for his college newspaper and he did some freelance photography, too.

"Back then people who worked for newspapers weren't making much money. I decided to go into the magazine end, rather than newspaper end," Corby said. " I didn't want to get stuck writing obituaries."

In 1981, after being in the magazine business for seven years and helping other people start magazines, a brilliant idea dawned on Corby.

"You know how sometimes you're going to bed and a great idea pops into your head, but when you wake up the next morning it's terrible?" he asked. "Well, my idea continued to be a good idea."

Corby started something he felt like there was a need for.

"Texas Gardener is written specifically for people who garden in Texas. It targets hobby gardeners and it teaches you how to be a good gardener," he said. "It's unique because it covers all aspects of gardening."