Air Layering is an asexual plant propagation technique often used for plants larger or more difficult to propagate by regular cuttings. Plant propagation by this technique has several advantages. Like most asexual plant propagation techniques, air layering results in a new plant that is genetically identical to the parent plant. Many plants are difficult to…Read more
Tag: Home Landscaping and Gardening
Is Your Landscape Safe
It may sound like an unnecessary question, but it’s not. When one stops to think about it, a rather long list of things to consider when planning a landscape could be made. In nature, many plants have defense mechanisms to ensure survival. These mechanisms may include ways to physically deter a predator, like thorns or…Read more
Native Species: A Cost Effective Path to a Better Garden
Florida has a great wealth of native plant material ranging from tropical to temperate species, but many gardens tend to be comprised largely of exotic, non-native species. It might pay to learn more about native plant options for the success and ease of maintenance they will impart in the landscape. Native plants have become adapted…Read more
A Few Tips for a Happy Garden Before the Height of Summer
There are a wide variety of bulbous plants which will thrive and produce beautiful flowers year after year with proper care. The time to plant many bulbs in the home landscape is getting late in May. Some, like caladiums crinum lilies, can be planted all year round, but run the risk of damage if they…Read more
Setting the Perfect Trap for Garden Pests
Nature has a way of making life as easy as possible, but it will not happen fast, so planning is critical to success. One means is by putting some plants (trap crops) which attract beneficial and/or destructive insects. Insects are one of the main challenges in growing a vegetable garden. Warm weather and high humidity…Read more
April Showers Bring Out More Than Flowers
The recent showers have been a welcome relief after a few weeks without the critical liquid from above. Irrigation and sprinklers can produce a bountiful vegetable garden, healthy shrubs and a lovely green lawn, but generous rains do it so much better and at a lower cost. April is an ideal time to plant many…Read more
A Healthy Staple Through the Ages
The seasonal temperatures have moved panhandle Florida’s vegetable gardens from winter to the spring phase. Still, the unusually cool March has made it possible for a few winter holdouts to remain for early April 2023. While many of winter’s leafy vegetables are responding to the longer days by bolting, sending up flower spikes, a few…Read more
The Importance of Tree Liability Awareness
On June 1st, Atlantic hurricane season officially begins and lasts until November 30th. This six-month period places coastal zone residents, as well as many entire states, at an increased risk of tree liability potential. When a healthy tree fails structurally in a storm, insurance will pay for damage caused by it, less any deductible. Generally,…Read more
Cold Hardy Citrus in North Florida
Citrus has long been associated with Florida. A popular advertising slogan of the 1970s from the Florida Citrus Commission invited people to “come to the Florida sunshine tree…” because “breakfast without orange juice is like a day without sunshine.” The Florida citrus industry began in the northeastern region of the state along the St. Johns…Read more
Tips for Keeping Shrubs Happy and Healthy Through Winter
Panhandle Florida residents are able to enjoy a lifestyle with vast tracts of forested land having ample greenery, even in winter. Combined with the temperate climate (most of the year), the wildlands sustain an environment which is the envy of many Americans in more urban locales. Those acres stay lush during years with normal to…Read more