Florida-Friendly Fall Plants

To get great Fall color consider adding the following Florida-Friendly Plants.

Gazania - annual

Coleus - comes in many varieties

Beauty Berry

Herbs - Purple Basil adds Fall color

Celosia - annual

Save the Date - Nov. 5th for the Walkabout

Plant a Pollinator Garden.

September is National Pollinator Month so help out our hard working friends by establishing a pollinator garden. Pollinators need your help! There is increasing evidence that many pollinators are in decline.  However, there are some simple things you can do at home to encourage pollinator diversity and abundance.

Plant a Pollinator Garden. The most obvious need for pollinating species is a diversity of nectar and pollen sources.  Consider the following when choosing plants for your garden:

• Choose plants that flower at different times of the year to provide nectar and pollen sources throughout the growing season
• Plant in clumps, rather than single plants, to better attract pollinators
• Provide a variety of flower colors and shapes to attract different pollinators.  
• Whenever possible, choose native plants.  Native plants will attract more native pollinators and can serve as larval host plants for some species of pollinators. 

To create a design that will invite your favorite pollinators to your garden look at this chart.


Avoid or Limit Pesticide Use. Pesticides can kill more than the target pest. Some pesticide residues can kill pollinators for several days after the pesticide is applied. Pesticides can also kill natural predators, which can lead to even worse pest problems. Consider the following when managing pests in your garden:

• Try removing individual pests by hand if possible (wearing garden gloves)
• Encourage native predators with a diverse garden habitat
• Expect and accept a little bit of pest activity
• If you must use a pesticide, choose one that is the least toxic to non-pest species, does not persist on vegetation, and apply it in the evening when most pollinators are not as active. Read and follow label directions carefully.

Florida-Friendly Fence Plants

Click here and go to page 22

Looking for Florida-Friendly fence plants to create a screen?  Above is an excerpt from our Florida-Friendly Landscaping™ Pattern Book.  The link shows a sample plan that offers variety creating a great screen and diversity in your yard.  The back of this book lists plant material that will thrive in Manatee County.  Attention needs to be paid to the light conditions, soil types and watering needs of each plant to match it to your site conditions.

Avoid the monoculture.  Planting a screen that consists of only one variety can cost you in the end.   Using one plant variety to create a hedge has been popular because it can provide even growth and a straight line
to guide pruning.  A monoculture hedge does have a few problems. What if an insect or disease strikes your hedge? All of your shrubs could be lost or you could end up with random large dead holes


A better alternative is to plant a hedge using a variety of large and small shrubs and trees. Generally, something that requires screening will need it the year round, so evergreens naturally predominate in any list of screening plants. But don’t be afraid to add a deciduous plant. A few deciduous plants can provide wonderful color. When choosing plants for screening, check the available space carefully and know the mature height and width of the plant. Be sure that the plants you choose will fit in the allotted space without an undue amount of maintenance. If you have to frequently prune your plants to keep them in check, it’s more than likely you used the wrong plant for that location. Also, when mixing several different types of plants, be sure to choose ones with similar growth and water requirements.

Put some fireworks in your yard

Put some fireworks in your yard this 4th of July.  Red, white and blues gardens can be achieved with a number of plants here in Florida.

Scarlet Salvia, Saphire Salvia, Dusty Miller

Blue Iris

White Penta

Red Penta

Blue Plumbago

White Plumbago

Powder Puff

These plants can give you a POP of color to enjoy while you are celebrating this 4th of July.

Install Now, Harvest Later

Now is a great time to install a rain barrel.  I know, it's dry and we need rain.  However, it is a great time to clean out those gutters and install so that when the rains finally get here you are prepared.  Rain barrels are available for $16.75 and you can attend a workshop on how to install and maintain one for free.  Register at http://combo71611-eorg.eventbrite.com/ for the July 16th workshop.

Composting Toilet

In planning a trip to a Florida spring I found advertised "composting toilets". I teach both worm and landscape composting but am unfamiliar with human waste composting so I decided to do a little research.  Maybe we need to add a new class!

Composting toilets are toilet systems which treat human waste by composting and dehydration to produce a useable end-product that is a valuable soil additive. They come in a variety of models and brand names as well as different shapes and designs to enhance the natural composting process. They use little or no water, are not connected to expensive sewage systems, cause no environmental damage and produce a valuable resource for gardening.  Sounding good so far.

Some disadvantages are:
• Maintenance of composting toilet systems requires more responsibility and commitment by users and owners than conventional wastewater systems.
• Removing the finished end-product is an unpleasant job if the composting toilet system is not properly installed or maintained.
• Composting toilet systems must be used in conjunction with a graywater system in most circumstances.
• Smaller units may have limited capacity for accepting peak loads.  Wait, what?  Okay, size matters!


I now find myself looking forward to visiting a toilet.  My August blog will definitely include a report from the John.

I am not sure the residents of Manatee County are ready for a full class on this type of composting although it does have some great environmental advantages, maybe we'll mention it in our other composting classes.