Earth Day Count Down - Day 16

#16 Choose Florida-Friendly!
Landscaping the Florida-Friendly way means using low maintenance plants and environmentally sustainable practices. Learn how you can have a beautiful landscape that could save you time, energy and money while protecting our future. Environmental protection begins in your yard. Visit http://manatee.ifas.ufl.edu/lawn_and_garden/fyn/index.shtml for more information.

Lakewood Ranch Lake Bank Planting

Come out and join us for a lake bank planting at Lakewood Ranch's Town Hall, 8175 Lakewood Ranch Blvd, Lakewood Ranch.  We will be there Saturday, March 27th from 9 am until 12:00pm.  Bring your gloves and a shovel to help install a vegetative buffer zone along the shoreline of Lake Uihlein. 

This is a grant funded project made possible by the South West Florida Water Management District.  Establishing a “maintenance-free zone” of at least 10- feet between your landscaped areas and the waterfront filters pollutants and protects the water from runoff.  Lake Uihlei'sn maintenance-free zone will not be mowed, fertilized, or have pesticides applied. 

Upcoming Classes

Magnificent Maintenance

Free

October 22nd

6:00pm -8:00pm

Kendrick Auditorium

1303 17th Street West

Palmetto, FL 34219

Information on pruning, fertilizers and pesticides, mulch and more. Maintaining your landscape Florida-friendly style is an asset to the environment. Your home's landscape is part of a larger natural system. Learn how you can help protect natural resources and help preserve Florida's unique beauty. Limited space available. Register online.
For more information, please call Linda at (941) 722-4524.

Welcome to the Salad Table & Cooking with Herbs
November 7, 2009
This FREE class teaches and demonstrates how to build a "salad" (gardening) table or a raised garden that requires limited bending and is wheelchair accessible. Wheels can be added to make the table mobile. Instructions will be given in class. After building the garden table, Samantha Kennedy, Family & Consumer Sciences Agent, will cook a tasty dish using herbs that can be grown on the "salad" table. For more information, please contact the Master Gardeners on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, or Friday at (941) 722-4524.
The class will be held from 9:00am-12:00pm @ the Manatee County Extension office.
Call the Master Gardener office to register or register online.

Perico Bay Club Bldg C is Florida Friendly

Congratulations to Perico Bay Building C! Thanks to Heather, Jackie and Vivian for their hard work and perseverance in acheiving a Florida Friendly Landscape.

This landscape was orginially dominated by turf. The three ladies mentioned above felt this landscape could be more water efficient and require less maintenance so they went to work designing a Florida Friendly Landscape. They have since noticed the maintenance crew visits them 1/3 as often as the neighboring buildings. Great Job Ladies!!

Nestled next to Palma Sola Bay this landscape demonstates lots of salt tolerant species. Geiger trees, Sea Lavendar, Silver Sea Oxeye Daisies and Tropical Salvia give lots of color while the Cocoplum Horizontal provides a deep green ground cover. Sea Grapes, Beauty Berries, Gumbo Limbo and Sugarberries provide food and shelter for wildlife. The Bromilads hold water for visiting amphibians.

Should you wish to convert your landscape into a Florida Friendly Landscape please contact MichelleAtkinson@ufl.edu for more information or check out http://manatee.ifas.ufl.edu/lawn_and_garden/fyn/index.shtml

Have You Heard of Chinch Bugs?

If you live in Florida, chances are you've heard of chinch bugs--small insects that can cause serious problems in St. Augustinegrass lawns in the spring and summer months. New University of Florida research shows that using excess amounts of fertilizer on your lawn can trigger a chinch bug population explosion. UF/IFAS can help you to keep the chinch bug damage in check by providing you tips for identification, preventive maintenance, and removal techniques. Read more about chinch bugs and fertilizers. For identification and removal help with chinch bugs, read Southern Chinch Bug Management on St. Augustinegrass. For other lawn problems, check out Your Florida Lawn.

Avoid planting grass in areas that are too shady, too dry or wet, or too steep to be mowed safely. Use a ground cover and other plants better suited to these areas. If you are looking to reduce your landscape maintenance and/or conserve water in your landscape you might want to replace some of your turf areas with ground covers or landscape beds.

Want to learn more? Attend:

Smart Landscape - Planning and Care on Sept. 16th from 6:00pm-8:30pm. or

Magnificent Maintenance on Oct. 22nd from 6:00pm - 8:00pm.

Both courses will be offered athe the Manatee County Extension Office located at 1303 17th St W Palmtto. Register at http://manatee.ifas.ufl.edu or call 941-742-5986.

For more information please contact Michelle Atkinson, Florida Yards & Neighborhoods Coordinator at michelleatkinson@ufl.edu.

Fabulous Florida Friendly Flowers

As I walked into the Manatee County Extension office today this fabulous Florida Friendly Flower was stretching out away from the others as if to to say, "Hey look at me!".

Dietes iridoides is her name but she goes by Africian Iris. She is a fabulous addition to any Florida Friendly landscape as she requires little maintenance. She lives best in USDA zones 8b-11 and can tolerate almost any soil type.

This little gem is found in most garden centers. If your neighbor has one you can propagate this plant by seed or division of the matted clumps.

The Africian Iris can tolerate areas that tend to be wet. You can even find it along lake banks. We have it in several locations at the Extension Office most areas are dry and it is doing very well and in bloom now.

You are always welcome to visit us to get ideas from our demonstration garden and chat with out Master Gardeners.

To inquire or register for this series contact the Manatee County UF/IFAS Extension office at 941-722-4524 or email michelleatkinson@ufl.edu.

Create Your Fabulous Florida Friendly Landscape

Create Your Fabulous Florida Friendly Landscape Series to start August 27th.

With the signing of S.B 2080 by Governor Crist many homeowners are looking for direction on Florida Friendly Landscaping™ practices.

Senate Bill 2080 states that a deed restriction or covenant may not prohibit or be enforce to prohibit any property owner from implementing FFL on his or her land; a local government ordinance may not prohibit or be enforced so as to prohibit any property owner from implementing FFL on his or her land; local governments shall use the standards and guidelines when developing landscape irrigation and Florida-Friendly Landscaping™ ordinances.

To help you develop your Florida Friendly Landscape we are offering a 5 step series. As a participant you will learn how to save water, time & money all while creating your Fabulous Florida Friendly Landscape.

Step 1 - Dazzling Designs on August 27th from 6:00pm to 8:00pm

Step 2 - Wise Watering on September 24th from 6:00pm yo 8:00pm

Step 3 - Magnificent Maintenance on Oct. 22nd from 6:00pm to 8:00pm

Step 4 - Recycle the Rain on Nov. 19th from 6:00pm to 8:00pm

Step 5 - Compost Happens on Dec. 10th from 6:00pm to 8:00pm

To inquire or register for this series contact the Manatee County UF/IFAS Extension office at 941-722-4524 or email michelleatkinson@ufl.edu.

Get in the Know

Learn the Dirt on Summer Turf

July 8th 6:00pm - 8:00pm

Manatee County Extension Office

Workshop topics include summer lawn pests, diseases, and maintenance. Register online for this free workshop at http://manatee.ifas.ufl.edu or call the Manatee Office at 722‐4524.

Smart Landscape - Planning & Care

July 15th 6:00pm - 9:00pm

Manatee County Extension Office

The key to smart landscaping is to develop the Florida‐Friendly Landscaping™ plan to save water, time, & money. We’ll think through and solve intended uses of your landscapes plus the care required to maintain healthy plants. Register online for this free workshop at http://manatee.ifas.ufl.edu or call 722‐4524. This class will satisfy the educational requirements for the Landscape Retrofit portion of the Manatee County Water Conservation Rebate Program.

Consult the Manatee County UF/IFAS Extension office with questions at 941-722-4524 or email michelleatkinson@ufl.edu.

Right Plant, Right Place

Achieving a healthy, low-maintenance home landscape starts with putting the right plant in the right place. Select plants that match a site’s soil, light, water, and climatic conditions. Buy quality plants that welcome wildlife, consider plant size when you make your purchase, and aim for a diversity of trees, shrubs, groundcovers, and flowers. Once these plants are established, they’ll require little—if any—supplemental water, fertilizer, or pesticides, saving you time and money.

Have you ever bought a plant that looked great at the nursery or garden center, only to have it die once you planted it? One way to avoid this heartbreaking scenario is by putting the right plant in the right place — matching the plant to the site conditions. This encompasses far more than simply putting sunworshiping plants in your yard’s sunny spots. You also need to consider things like maintenance and water needs.

Know Your Zone!
The USDA and American Horticultural Society (AHS) describe plants in terms of the lowest and highest temperatures where they can be grown. To use this information, you need to know:
■ Your zones for heat tolerance and cold hardiness. Discover that information at these links:
For cold: http://www.usna.usda.gov/Hardzone/hzm-se1.html
For heat: http://www.ahs.org/publications/heat_zone_finder.htm
■ The zones for plants you want to grow. Unearth that information on plant tags, in reference books or on the EDIS website at edis.ifas.ufl.edu or the FYN website at fyn.ifas.ufl.edu. Match the plants you want to grow with your growing zones and you will improve your odds of gardening success.