Name: Daniel J. Leonard
Date registered: February 16, 2016
Horticulture Agent, Walton County
Each time I travel to central and south Florida and observe the wonderfully flamboyant tropical flora, I am reminded of the unique and frustrating climatic characteristics of Northwest Florida. Our weather is tropical enough through the summer to sustain virtually everything our friends to the south grow, but winters north of the Big Bend are …
Permanent link to this article: http://nwdistrict.ifas.ufl.edu/hort/2018/07/03/heating-up-with-hardy-hibiscus/
It’s that time of year. School is out, hurricane season is in, and the mercury is up! Gardens wilt by midday and gardeners retreat into the air conditioning long before then. Unless you have your toes in the water on one of Northwest Florida’s beautiful beaches, it can be a miserable time to be a …
Permanent link to this article: http://nwdistrict.ifas.ufl.edu/hort/2018/06/21/annuals-to-beat-the-summer-heat/
Generally, when folks find out what I do for a living, among the first questions asked is “What is your favorite plant?” Being somewhat of a plant nerd, that can be a tough question to answer! However, I usually circle back to the same answer, “Hydrangea”. There are many reasons my fellow gardeners and I …
Permanent link to this article: http://nwdistrict.ifas.ufl.edu/hort/2018/05/04/how-to-succeed-with-hydrangeas/
It is a common misconception that winter is a time of rest in the landscape, for both plants and people. In the Panhandle, the winter months tend to be rainy and miserable, with wild weather fluctuations in between. These conditions cause folks to think their chores are done until the weather warms up and plants …
Permanent link to this article: http://nwdistrict.ifas.ufl.edu/hort/2018/02/02/green-side-up-plant-properly-to-avoid-these-common-mistakes/
Are you guilty of “Crape Murder”, the dreaded horticultural sin that involves lopping off your beautiful Crape Myrtles fence post high and creating gnarly looking knuckles? No need to raise hands, you know who you are! Despite the cruelness of this act, all is not lost; there is still time to repent and change your …
Permanent link to this article: http://nwdistrict.ifas.ufl.edu/hort/2018/01/10/correcting-crape-murder/
I had to do a hard thing last week. My battle-worn okra, eggplant and pepper plants that had produced so reliably since June and endured all the summertime challenges (heat, insects, disease, and a hurricane to name a few) were finally pulled out of my raised bed garden and discarded. A combination of lowered yields, …
Permanent link to this article: http://nwdistrict.ifas.ufl.edu/hort/2017/10/10/readying-your-raised-beds-for-northwest-floridas-best-gardening-season/
Northwest Floridians are lucky. We get to bask in the warm sunshine at least eight months of the year, consider it cold weather when we have to break out the fleece pullover and none of us live more than a few hours’ drive to the whitest sand you ever saw. However, those conditions have consequences. …
Permanent link to this article: http://nwdistrict.ifas.ufl.edu/hort/2017/08/25/struggling-to-grow-fruit-trees-try-these-lesser-known-florida-friendly-edible-options/
Growing in containers can be one of the most versatile ways to add color, texture and mobility to the landscape. However, gardeners generally reach for finicky annuals to fill their pots with pizzazz. The problem with this strategy is that most annuals and perennials need to be watered constantly, fertilized regularly, and changed out with …
Permanent link to this article: http://nwdistrict.ifas.ufl.edu/hort/2017/08/11/surefire-shrubs-for-containers/
Let’s be honest with each other and have a moment of transparency, one gardener to another. Even though we are plant people, most of us get a lot less enthusiastic once the mercury explodes over 90 degrees each June. All the things that were fun in the spring (watering our favorite fickle plants, deadheading spent …
Permanent link to this article: http://nwdistrict.ifas.ufl.edu/hort/2017/07/05/four-must-have-native-perennials-for-summer/
If you’re like me, growing turfgrass is often more of a hassle than anything else. Regardless of the species you plant, none tolerates shade well and it can seem like there is a never-ending list of chores and expenses that accompany lawn grass: mowing (at least one a week during the summer), fertilizing, and constantly …
Permanent link to this article: http://nwdistrict.ifas.ufl.edu/hort/2017/05/18/tired-of-turf-try-groundcover-alternatives-instead/
