Why Can’t I Kill Weeds?
Why are the plants we are trying not to grow so hard to kill? Weeds can be quite frustrating to home gardeners as they struggle to get them under control. There are a few things you can do to help make your efforts more successful. [gallery...
Video: Saving Tomato Seeds
Many gardeners enjoy saving their own seeds for next year's garden. Learn the basic steps of saving seeds from your favorite tomato selections. View the handout version too. https://youtu.be/S7kelBTJ9d0
Sundews: Tiny, delightful meat-eaters
There are few words better than "pure delight" to describe the face of someone who sees and appreciates a sundew for the first time. Maybe it is their size—often no bigger around than a quarter—or the miniature pinwheel shape, but sundews could easily fit into a fable...
Protect Your Laurel Trees from Ambrosia Beetles with Verbenone.
While most bark beetles are important in forest ecology by recycling fallen dead trees and eliminating sick and damaged trees, some of them may impact healthy trees. A group of bark beetles that has become a major concern to forest managers, nurseries, and homeowners...
Video: Cantaloupe in the Home Garden
Learn a little about cantaloupe that is growing in the late spring garden. Beth Bolles with UF IFAS Extension in Escambia County shares experience from her backyard garden. https://youtu.be/1asdylW3b64
Pineapple Guava: An Outstanding Florida-Friendly Shrub
One of the most common questions I’ve gotten across the Panhandle over the last several years is “What can I plant to screen my house and property?” I surmise this has a lot to do with Hurricane Michael wiping properties clean and an explosion of new construction,...
Video Feature: Ground Pearls in a North Florida Lawn
The insect ground pearls can damage many types of turfgrass in North Florida. Learn to identify ground pearl damage and find the insects in your soil with Larry Williams, Horticulture Agent with UF IFAS Extension Okaloosa County....
Spittlebugs and Your Lawn
Problems with turfgrass come in all shapes and sizes. One that may affect your lawn is an insect that has two very distinct life stages. Named for the two distinct stripes on its back, the two-lined spittlebug looks like a plant or leafhopper during its adult life....
It’s the Little Things in Life, like Mini Vegetable Gardening
Whether it’s the warm or cool season of the year, vegetable gardening is as popular activity as any. In writing articles, I usually discuss best management practices on a backyard garden scale. But, what if you don’t have much of a backyard? Many Floridians live in...
Yellow is Not a Normal Sago Color
The first sign that something is going wrong in a plant is often a loss of the color green. When a sago is forming all new yellow leaves it is a matter of concern. Typically, this a common nutritional deficiency – manganese. Sandy soils of the Panhandle have a hard...