by Beth Bolles | Jul 20, 2015
Native plants can more readily be found in local nurseries to enhance landscape plantings. Not all natives are suited to every habit so it is still important to match the plant’s requirements with a suitable area in the landscape.
One low maintenance native that is more suited to a specific area is the landscape is the Gamma or Fakahatchee grass (Tripsacum dactyloides and T. floridana). This clumping perennial grass grows best in moist or even boggy soils. It has attractive green foliage and upright flower stems that appear in mid summer. Although the flowers are not very significant, they do have a red color when viewed up close.
The Eastern gamma grass can grow five feet in height so many gardeners prefer the dwarf version that reaches about 2-3 feet in height. Plant in areas of full sun or partial shade as a specimen plant or use in a mass of three or five.
In areas that receive colder temperatures, gamma grass can add fall interest to the garden. Leaves will change to a shade of red with first frost and plants can die back to the ground during freezing winters. New growth returns in the spring. Basic maintenance includes pruning back in the spring.
by Mary Salinas | Nov 18, 2014
Blue Mistflower – Image Credit Mary Derrick, UF / IFAS
Here’s a beautiful native perennial wildflower that is easy to grow and generally available in the independent nursery trade. In the wild, you can encounter them at the edges of woodlands and ponds as they prefer moist areas. Blue mistflower, Conoclinium coelestinum, performs well as a perennial in the home landscape but does spread easily by seed and will spread in the garden. It also spreads through underground rhizomes which allow it to form large clumps. This is an advantage for the informal garden, however, the gardener who prefers a more formal look will have a bit more maintenance in controlling that spread.
The abundant flowers look like bluish-purple puffballs on the top of the stems. The color is unusual and adds a striking touch in the garden. The bloom season is mid-summer to mid-fall. Butterflies are frequent visitors, making this an excellent addition to your butterfly garden.
Blue mistflower has a full rounded form and will grow to 3 feet under optimum conditions. Leaves are opposite and have a triangular shape. Growth and blooming is best in full sun to part sun conditions.
Give it a try!
by Sheila Dunning | Nov 4, 2014
Since 2005, multiple varieties of Diascia have added to the U.S. fall market of winter flowering plants. Its delicate flowers are far from ordinary though. In the early part of the last century most British gardening encyclopedias listed just one diascia – Diascia barberae – derived from seed collected by Col. J. H. Bowker and sent by Mrs. Barber to Kew Gardens, England, in 1870. Annual and perennial diascias had, of course, already been discovered and classified by several botanists visiting South Africa much earlier. The dainty, little annual, Diascia barberae, is not a very showy flower, but one which will appeal to the true flower lover. The flowers are rosy pink with yellow-green spots in the throat. The flowers are lipped, being related to the Snapdragons, but have two spurs on the lower lips, and are sometimes called twinspur. It was not until John Kelly was given a plant called Diascia cordata by Edrom Nurseries in 1971 that anything notable happened to diascias again. He took pollen from his Diascia cordata and applied it to one flower of Diascia barberae. Of the nine seeds he obtained, just one was worthy of attention. He named it Diascia ‘Ruby Field’ (not for the color of the flowers, but for a lady who devoted her live to the long-term care of deprived children). Despite the popularity of this new, hardy hybrid, little more happened with diascias for yet another decade. The boom in the diascia trade began only recently. Today’s diascia offers larger flowers, larger plants with a more open growth habit and colors ranging from scarlet through salmon and coral into pink. They bloom throughout the cooler weather and may behave as a perennial in warmer sites. But, the uniqueness of their flower structure and ecological role are as fascinating as the flower is beautiful. 
The common name of twinspur refers to the two downwardly pointing spurs found on the back of the flower. The spurs contain an oil which is collected in the South Africa wild by Rediviva bees. The female bees have unusually long, hairy forelegs that are used to collect the oil to feed her larvae. However, the Greek origin of the Diascia name doesn’t refer to the spurs, but rather the two sacs found in the upper part of the corolla. The flower petals help the bees to 
orient themselves to the oil glands of the spurs. While North Florida isn’t home to the Rediviva bee, we can grow Diascia and it is a wonderful opportunity to show the unique connection insects and plants can have. Look for other specialized flower structures and you will find other animals that fit them perfectly, even within the species found in the Panhandle.
by Carrie Stevenson | Nov 4, 2014
I recently met with a group of community volunteers who are interested in providing more butterfly habitat in our public areas. Monarchs migrating to Mexico this time of year use northwest Florida as a stopover and feeding site, but if host plants are unavailable they cannot sustain a healthy population. In addition, Gulf fritillaries, buckeyes, and swallowtails are spending time in local butterfly gardens, feeding on passion vine, butterfly bush, milkweed, and more.
The grassy area between this stormwater pond and woods is an ideal location for a butterfly garden. Willows growing along the edge attract butterflies already. Photo credit: Carrie Stevenson
The volunteers and several county staff visited three publicly-managed stormwater ponds, which are an ideal setting for what some proponents term “Butterflyscaping.” The open space, water source, and diversity of plants along the edge of the ponds lend themselves well to wildlife habitat.
The permanently wet detention pond lined with cypress trees and sawgrass also provides habitat for fish, birds, and reptiles. Photo credit: Carrie Stevenson
When considering adding vegetation to a neighborhood common area, there are several things to consider. First is maintenance. If there’s an annual contract with a landscaping company to mow or maintain an area, you’ll want to have a discussion about excluding the new planting area from mowing to establish new vegetation. You’ll also want to look at the soil and amount of sunlight to determine the best plant choices for the area.
A variety of groundcovers, flowering plants, shrubs and small trees will typically provide food for both caterpillars and adult butterflies. Once established, these new landscape additions will not only provide habitat and color, but may end up reducing maintenance costs as well.
For more information, the UF publication “Community Butterflyscaping” is an excellent resource for landscape design, plant choices, and practical steps toward getting started with a neighborhood or schoolyard project.
by Larry Williams | Sep 9, 2014
The Emerald Coast Home Show, Health Fair and Business Expo will include lawn and landscape seminars and an information booth hosted by the Okaloosa County Master Gardeners. This event will take place September 13 and 14 at the Emerald Coast Convention Center, 1250 Miracle Strip Parkway in Fort Walton Beach. The horticulture seminars will be provided by the UF/IFAS Extension Office in Okaloosa County.
A feature of the Emerald Coast Home Show Health Fair and Business Expo will be an information booth hosted by the Okaloosa County Master Gardeners. Master Gardeners will be on hand to answer your gardening questions and to distribute information pertinent to gardening and lawn care on the Gulf Coast.
In addition to an information booth hosted by Master Gardeners, free educational seminars will be provided. On Sunday, September 14, I will provide a one hour seminar at 1p.m. entitled “Preparing Your Lawn for Fall and Winter.” This presentation will answer questions concerning preparing your lawn for the dormant period of winter. What’s the truth about” winterizer” fertilizers? Do you need to “winterize” your lawn? How should you water your lawn through the fall and winter? Should you overseed your lawn with annual ryegrass? What should you do about winter weeds in your lawn? What lawn pests are active during fall and winter? Learn the answers to these questions and the truth about winter lawn care for North Florida by attending the Preparing Your Lawn for Fall and Winter seminar.
The complete schedule of free seminars includes the following.
Saturday, September 13
11a.m. Margaret Stewart – Herbs, growing, using and preserving
1p.m. Scott Berry – Orchid basics
3 p.m. Karen Kirk-Williams – Great plants for fall and winter color
Sunday, September 14
1 p.m. Larry Williams – Preparing Your Lawn for Fall and Winter
2 p.m. Marie Harrison – Help! Pollinators in peril
The Emerald Coast Home Show, Health Fair and Business Expo will be open September 13 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and September 14 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and offers free admission, door prizes and giveaway items along with 100 vendors and free health care evaluations.
Visit www.emeraldcoasthomeshow.com for more information.
