Cool Season Annual Herbs to Plant in December
Cool Season Annual Herbs to Plant in December Winter might seem like the quiet season in the garden, but for cool-season herbs, it’s the time they settle in and really show off. While tomatoes and peppers and other warm-season crops may have succumbed to our...
Mulch is a Must in Your Landscape
My previous article outlined the benefits of planting trees during the winter dormant season. Once planted, it’s then time to implement one of the best practices that helps ensure successful establishment of recently installed trees and shrubs – mulching. Mulching,...
Land, Water, and Lawns: Why Everyday Choices Matter
Agriculture is not the first thing that comes to mind when you’re in Bay County, especially when you’re enjoying a day at the beach! In the 2022 Census of Agriculture, 139 farms were reported, covering more than 70,324 acres. Much of what’s counted as farmland in Bay...
Tis the Season – Why Winter is the Best Time to Plant Trees and Shrubs
With cold temperatures having arrived in the Panhandle last week, we’re finally getting close to prime landscape planting season. But why is winter the best time to install landscape trees and shrubs? Shouldn’t we plant when things are leafed out and growing? While...
Yucca–A Tough and Versatile Native Plant
When you think of self-defense in the natural world, it’s normal to lean towards the animal kingdom. Between their intimidating teeth, claws, horns, and venom, animals can hold their own in a physical battle for dominance or survival. But plants are no slouch in this...
Quercus Geminata, the Sand Live Oak
Talking about a live oak might bring to mind pictures of grand, old, stately trees, limbs dripping with Spanish moss. The Southern live oak is a staple of the coastal south, but it prefers to live inland from our beaches. It leaves the salt-sprayed beach sand to its...
Deck the Halls: Repurposing Yard-Waste for Holiday Decor
With the holiday season fast approaching, many folks are reaching for store-bought decorations. But what if your yard could supply some of the festiveness this season? You can turn your landscape trimmings into creative DIY ideas, turning what some might consider...
A Tale of Two Hoses
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. It was a nice day in the garden, but when you go to disconnect the hose, it is somehow stuck to the spigot, connector, or other hose. You go and get the pliers, but the hose just doesn’t budge. If this has happened...
Feeling Blue (Ginger) This Fall
Fall is in the air. Halloween decorations, candy corn, mums… houses and landscapes are decked out in shades of yellow, orange, and red. However, one of the Panhandle’s absolute easiest perennials bucks the trend of autumnal hues, sports flowers of deep, brilliant...
Blazing Star
Walking through a northwest Florida wildflower prairie in autumn, the star of the show is Liatris. Known as dense gayfeather or blazing star, this tall (up to 7’!) stunner of a plant is covered up with clusters of small purple flowers. The flowers are are composed of...