Violas. Photo Credit: University of Florida/IFAS Extension
It is freezing cold this week and hard to believe that we are already talking about “What to Plant” and “What to Do” to get started early. In North Florida there are cool-season annuals that can be planted now. The list includes pansies, violas, petunias, and snapdragons. As we are coming to the end of January it is time to plant crinum, agapanthus and gloriosa lily bulbs. Make sure to mulch these areas after planting to protect them from the cold temperatures. This is also the month to plant camellias, which these come in many colors and forms that your local nurseries will carry this time of year. If you haven’t planted all your cool season crops there is still time to do that now such as broccoli, kale, carrots, and lettuce. Irish potatoes can be planted now as well.
Now you might be asking “What can I do?”. January is a great time to prune non-spring flowering shrubs and trees to improve their form. This is a good time to plant deciduous fruit trees, this will give their roots time to develop before the warmer spring temperatures. Since existing trees are dormant, it is a good time to prune and fertilize them. When the temperatures are near freezing many of the tender plants will need to be covered to minimize damage. It’s a good time to plant a tree. Hurricane-resistant trees include live oaks, bald cypress, cabbage palms, and southern magnolias. It’s time to remove those dead spent seed pods on your crape myrtles and removing any crossing branches and twiggy growth will improve the appearance and the form of the plant.
Potatoes planted in mid-February were ready to harvest in mid-May in Bay County. Photo: Vicki Evans, UF/IFAS Master Gardener of the plant.
As we go into February it will soon be time to apply a preemergence weed killer to your lawns to prevent warm-season weeds. Temperatures must rise to 65°F for 4 to 5 consecutive days before you do a preemergence application and make sure you are not using a weed and feed fertilizer. Citrus and other fruit trees can be fertilized at this time. The amount and frequency will depend on the age and type of fruit tree you are growing. Avoid pruning Citrus until spring to avoid any injury since cold temperatures are still possible. It is time to prune those roses this month to remove damaged canes and improve the overall form. After the pruning is complete you can fertilize and apply a fresh layer of mulch. They should begin blooming within 8 to 9 weeks after being pruned.
Dianthus, pansies, violas, and dusty millers are annuals that can take a chill and should be planted in February. You can continue to plant crinum and agapanthus this month and add on amaryllis and rain lily bulbs as well. If it has been dry make sure to provide plenty of water for the bulbs to establish and continue to protect them from the cold by adding mulch. Trees and shrubs will begin to bloom this month including red maples and star magnolias. Continue planting potatoes throughout the month and towards the end of February warm-season crops like tomatoes and pepper can be planted but be prepared to protect them from any late frosts.
There are multiple ways to creatively construct avenues for foot traffic to areas in your landscape, community and public access areas. Over the years I have observed and enjoy many walks that curve and snake around well landscaped corners either created or provided by nature. Paths and trails can provide educational opportunities, recreation, observation points, food collection and water management. 
Designing a path, trail and walkway can happen with the eye and adventurous mind, paper and pencil, by a professional landscaper or landscape architect. Just remember these walkways can be changed and redirected if the environment in which they are set changes. Trails and paths should be determined and installed by the interests and needs at hand. Always remember to plan for who may visit these wonderous settings. Will this be a place for adults, high energy youth, or individuals with disabilities? Access to these areas may be challenging with transitions from walks to bridges, elevation changes, wet areas and others. Clearly determining the purpose of these areas is important and needed. Include others in the conversation and planning for a broader look and understanding to determine the scope of the project.
Photo courtesy: Stephen Greer, Santa Rosa Couty
With past history of marking bike, walk and running trails this is the time of year to walk the area that will become these adventures followed by planning, construction and completion before the hot weather of summer. Identifying and locating features to be included on a plat for these pathways must occur early in the process. Flag plants and strategic areas to save and highlight as a part of roughing out the path. Use signage to direct or educate. Will the walk be on a loop back to the same location or lead to other areas? All of this is a way to lead visitors and yourself to the next best point to enjoy. Jot down notes and pencil a drawing of the area with all of these observed and planned spots. Seasonal changes in the landscape along these paths are important to keep in mind and could include early emergence of flowers, spring leaves on many trees, shrubs and perennials.
Keep in mind some root removal may be needed to properly prepare the pathway subsurface, so be careful where you select a path location to reduce the impact on existing tree roots. Enjoy your gardening adventure of hardscaping!
Photo courtesy: Stephen Greer, Santa Rosa County
The strenuous part of paths and trails is the construction involving plant removal, pruning and establishing a subsurface material before placing the final layer material to walk, run or bike on. Check for clearing heights that will not create high obstructions for the head by walkers or bikers. Some of this work may require the use of a tractor and rotary implement to till the walk area before placing the base material. Be careful in selecting the appropriate final path material that reduces the chance of slipping on or tripping visitors. Enjoy the journey, as a coworker and friend would always close with.
The UF/IFAS Extension Northwest District Horticulture Team is excited to announce our third season of Gardening in the Panhandle LIVE! free webinars! Please plan to join us this Spring and Fall for all new episodes where we will tackle gardening issues relevant to the Florida Panhandle!
There are two ways to join the Gardening in the Panhandle LIVE! webinars:
Facebook Live – Follow us on Facebook and follow individual webinar Events.
Zoom Webinar – Pre-registration is required for Zoom. Users must have an authenticated account (free at Zoom Link). Be sure you have security settings up to date to prevent connection delays. Links to Zoom registration will be added to the topic one-two weeks before the webinar and a closed captioned recorded link to YouTube will be available approximately one week after the program. (Underlined words have active links!)
Although we do accept questions from the audience during the broadcast, we may not have time to read them on-air. If you have a great question you think other viewers need to hear, please pre-register through Zoom and submit early!
All webinars are on a Thursday at Noon CDT/ 1:00 p.m. EDT
One of the major recent movements in production agriculture has been the widespread adoption of cover crops. This practice gives farmers a host of benefits, from erosion prevention to nutrient retention and recycling. However, using cover crops isn’t just for large scale farming operations. Hobby vegetable gardeners can absolutely employ similar systems on a smaller scale to reap the same benefits. For the past two years, I’ve used Buckwheat to provide a soil building cover during the heat of summer between spring and fall gardens. This winter, after my fall greens garden succumbed to frost, I decided to employ the same tactic with a mix of Red Clover (Trifolium pratense), White Clover (Trifolium Repens), and Crimson Clover (Trifolium incarnatum) to enhance my soil during the coldest months until spring tomato planting arrives!
Clover mix used as a cool season cover crop in raised beds. Photo courtesy Daniel Leonard.
While there are many different species of plants (rye, oats, wheat, various brassicas, etc.) that can be planted in November or December as cool season covers to deliver benefits like winter weed suppression, enhance soil organic matter, retain and harvest leftover nutrients, and provide habitat for beneficial insects, I chose Clover for an additional reason. In addition to the above benefits, Clover is a legume and also fixes atmospheric nitrogen, making it available for subsequent plantings! Not only is Clover an excellent soil cover, but it also provides some nitrogen fertilizer to the following vegetable garden!
Growing Clover, while not quite as simple as Buckwheat or small grain covers like oats and rye, is relatively easy for most gardeners. The first step is selecting which clover species and/or variety to grow. I chose a mix of Crimson, White, and Red Clover simply because I had several pounds of each left over from a previous field planting. However, any one of the three may be used by themselves or in various combinations. All are excellent choices for garden cover crops and have similar growing requirements. Crimson Clover is the most readily available, but all three species can be found at most farm and garden supply stores.
The next step is to prep your garden beds for clover seeding. I thoroughly remove weeds from my raised beds, lightly till the top couple of inches of soil, and rake to provide a level surface. Since clover seed is tiny, a smooth, clean seedbed is a must for excellent germination. Once this is done, your next should determine how much seed to plant. Recommended clover seeding rates are usually given on a per acre basis and range from 3-4 lbs/acre (White Clover) to 20-25 lbs/acre (Crimson Clover). Given these seeding rates, planting in a 4’x8’ (32 ft2) raised bed is only going to require a miniscule amount of seed.
Clover mix used as a cool season cover crop in raised beds. Photo courtesy of Daniel Leonard.
To ensure a good stand while minimizing risk of overplanting, I mix equal parts clover seed and either sand, vermiculite, or other media similar in size to clover seed and hand scatter over the surface of my beds, making sure to uniformly cover the entire bed. If you think the stand is too thick, you can always hand-thin after emergence.
As a group, clovers prefer moist soil that is not allowed to dry out completely. This isn’t usually a problem given the Panhandle’s frequent rainy cold fronts in winter, but if rainfall is inconsistent, some irrigation will be required. Supplemental fertilizer isn’t normally necessary when planting a clover cover in vegetable gardens because nutrients remaining from the previous veggie crops are usually sufficient for growth and development (N especially is not needed as legumes produce their own through N fixation). 2-3 weeks before you’re ready to plant your spring veggies, chop the clover cover into the top few inches of your bed to terminate it and release its nutrients back into the garden. It’s that easy!
Planting a winter legume cover crop like clover is a great way to harness the benefits of cover crops for your spring veggies and enhance the aesthetics of your otherwise barren and drab garden beds! For more information about growing winter cover crops or any other horticultural topic, contact your local UF/IFAS County Extension office. Happy Gardening!
Florida’s state observance of Arbor Day falls on January 21st in 2022. On this day, people are encouraged to plant trees and recognize their importance. Trees provide us with shade and shelter, filter air and water, and increase biodiversity as well as acting as a source of materials for building and industry. Half of Florida’s land area is forested and North Florida has a large timber industry. Given the importance of trees to our wellbeing and the erratic and sometimes extreme weather in our region, the question occasionally arises, “What trees are best to plant here?”.
The answer to that question depends heavily on the needs of the person asking it. A landowner looking for long-term profit from forestry may choose to plant longleaf pines, despite the risks that hurricanes pose. A homeowner desiring a shade tree, however, might want a different answer.
There are plenty of varieties of trees that grow well in the panhandle of Florida, and the further one lives from coastal areas, the greater the options. Particularly along the shores, however, choices are limited by soil types, exposure to high winds, and even salt spray. So which are the toughest and hardiest trees for our area?
A sabal palmetto.
Florida’s state tree is the sabal palmetto. Also called the cabbage palm, this palm is particularly cold tolerant, withstanding temperatures down to 15º F. Once established, they are drought tolerant and fairly resistant to pests and diseases, as well as being particularly sturdy in high winds. Though they may be thought of as “common”, this is a testament to their survivability in our climate and they should not be dismissed as an option for landscapes.
A large, old Southern live oak.
Both the Southern live oak and especially the sand live oak are exceptionally survivable trees. Sand live oak is found closer to the coast, where it tends to grow in beautiful multi-trunked forms slightly inland, or in lower thickets along the dunes. It tends not to reach the same heights as Southern live oak, but does well in the harshest of
Sand live oaks growing near the beach dunes.
conditions, lasting through almost anything nature can throw at it. Even if defoliated by heavy storm winds, these trees survive. Hurricanes claim only the occasional live oak that catch enough wind to uproot and topple the entire tree, which is not a common occurrence.
The bloom of a Southern magnolia.
Southern magnolia comes in many sizes, from huge old specimens to more compact cultivars such as ‘Little Gem’, which can be trained to grow as hedges. Tolerating a wide range of soil moisture, these trees are rarely harmed by disease, though scale insects often take up residence on their leaves (which rarely seems to bother the trees, even if infestations are heavy). With gorgeous and fragrant blooms in the springtime, Southern magnolia stands up in high winds and makes an excellent addition to a landscape.
For more information on trees that do well in storms, see our EDIS publication on the topic. Also note that native species, trees that are properly pruned, those that are well established as opposed to newly planted, and trees free of disease or damage tend to survive better in any case. Ensuring that plants of any sort are placed in the right spot can serve the landscaper well in the long run as well – see the Florida Native Plant Society’s website for help in choosing the right plants. As always, your local Extension office is available to assist with questions as well.
