For a Unique Landscape Native, Give Needle Palm a Try!
There aren’t a lot of quality landscape plant options that fit the description nearly every homeowner desires: native, low-maintenance, slow-growing, pest free, drought tolerant while tolerating wet soils, loving both sun or shade, and green year-round. Needle Palm...
Now is the Time to Address Aquatic Weeds
Even though the calendar says we are only a few weeks into spring, recent weather has been more like summer. The early arrival of sustained warm weather has water temperatures in local ponds high enough that aquatic vegetation growth has really taken off. This early...
2020 Year of the Turtle – box turtles
These are some of the more familiar Florida turtles we have. Working with youth, I often hear them called “snapping turtles” because (a) these are the most common turtles they encounter, and (b) snapping turtles are the only name they know 😊 I myself had a...
Embrace the Gulf 2020 – the sponges
We began this series on the Gulf talking about the Gulf itself. We then moved to the big, more familiar – maybe more interesting animals, the vertebrates – birds, fish, etc. In this edition we shift to the invertebrates – the “spineless” animals of the Gulf of...
Getting Rid of Chinese Tallow Trees
Chinese Tallow, also known as the Popcorn Tree, was introduced in the US over 200 years ago. Ben Franklin sent seeds over in 1772. Although Franklin was blamed for the invasion in the U.S. Gulf Coast, scientists performed genetic testing and have concluded that the...
Wildlife Food Plots: Chufa for Wild Turkeys
Wildlife management continues to be an area of growing interest on our local farms and ranches and has the potential to generate significant additional income to the farm enterprise. It is also an opportunity to practice good stewardship of the natural resources that...
Warm Weather Brings People Out, and Mosquitoes Too
Article By: Whitney Cherry 4-H Agent Calhoun County I know COVID-19 has been driving public and private discussion as of late. But, we have to stay vigilant in working against all public health threats. One of those threats we typically start talking about this...
2020 Year of the Turtle – the musk turtles
As with mud turtles, full grown musk turtles are no bigger than your hand. They differ from mud turtles in that they have a single hinge on their plastron and the scutes just above that hinge are rectangular instead of triangular. Like mud turtles, they are very...
Green Infrastructure can Reduce Flooding and Improve Water Quality in the Florida Panhandle
Flooding and poor water quality are common issues of concern in the Florida Panhandle. Our frequent heavy rains cause water to quickly run off rooftop, parking lot, and driveway surfaces; this runoff water carries with it the chemicals deposited on land surfaces...
Embrace the Gulf 2020 – marine mammals
When it comes to charismatic wildlife, there are few that are more than marine mammals. Everyone loves whales and dolphins. Even today, as many years as I have been working on the water, my colleagues and myself still get excited when we see dolphins. Seeing a...