Daniel J. Leonard
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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 …
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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 …
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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, …
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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. …
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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 …
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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 …
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Permanent link to this article: http://nwdistrict.ifas.ufl.edu/hort/2017/07/05/four-must-have-native-perennials-for-summer/
Categories:
Fertilizer, General Gardening, Groundcover, Installation, Irrigation, Lawns, Mowing, Native plants, Perennials, Turf, Watering, Weeds, Wildlife
May 18, 2017
by Daniel J. Leonard
May 18, 2017
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 …
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Permanent link to this article: http://nwdistrict.ifas.ufl.edu/hort/2017/05/18/tired-of-turf-try-groundcover-alternatives-instead/
Almost every landscape has a problem area where the sun just doesn’t shine and many plants won’t make it, maybe it’s the north side of your house, under a small tree, or tucked away in an oddly-shaped alcove. We all know the same old boring green choices that work well here (Holly Fern, Cast Iron …
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Permanent link to this article: http://nwdistrict.ifas.ufl.edu/hort/2017/04/24/a-shrub-that-likes-it-shady/
Everyone, or at least everyone fortunate enough to grow up in the South, has a fond memory tucked away of a sight or smell of a plant that reminds them of the good old days. Maybe it’s the ancient camellia at your grandmother’s house that just feels like home when you see it. Maybe it’s …
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Permanent link to this article: http://nwdistrict.ifas.ufl.edu/hort/2017/03/29/are-your-dogwoods-in-decline/
Have you noticed strange rings of pencil-sized holes on the trunks of certain trees in your landscape recently? If so, take heart that these holes are not emanating from an infestation of destructive insects but rather from a perfectly native, rather attractive migratory woodpecker, the Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker (Syphrapicus varius)! The Sapsucker is a smallish bird …
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Permanent link to this article: http://nwdistrict.ifas.ufl.edu/hort/2017/02/03/why-are-there-holes-in-my-tree/
