Watering Pots [Texas Gardening]

Last year was my first year to plant a fruit and vegetable garden. We built a raised bed (learning from this tutorial from the Pioneer Woman) It makes me feel old to say it, but I enjoyed it. A lot. That is until  my dog trampled half of my plants and then the blazing Texas heat came and scorched all that was left. (It was really hot, y'all.) So July was pretty much the end of my garden.

I'm excited for a new year, though. I feel like I probably learned a few things that I can do differently this go-round. (I have the feeling that I still have a whole lot to learn, yet.) One thing I'm going to try is watering pots.

As I was perusing a gardening book handed down to me by my mother (1,112 Down-to-Earth Garden Secrets), someone suggested burying terra cotta pots near the plants in your garden. Then, when its watering time, you just fill the pots with water, allowing the water to slowly seep into the soil and go directly to the roots. Last year, I had to stand over the garden for-ev-er to water it and even then, the water would pool up in certain places and not disperse evenly. Hopefully these "watering pots" are the perfect solution to my problem (primarily the problem of having to stand in 110 degree heat for longer than two minutes).

Also, we'll be building a little greenhouse over our raised bed... but more on that later.

Do you enjoy gardening? Got any tips to share with a newbie like me?