Year: 2007

By Rob Proctor, Gardening Expert
Thursday, July 27, 2007

This time of year, gardeners watch the weather forecasts diligently, dreading the first time temperatures drop below freezing.

On that fateful night, there are a number of tasks to get done before you go to bed. Prepare now for the first frost.

The good news is that a light frost won’t likely damage most perennials, grasses or shrubs such as roses. The vulnerable plants include tender annuals, vegetables and tropical plants. I usually rush out and harvest remaining tomatoes, peppers and eggplant. For tomatoes, get as much stem as you can, spread them on newspapers and they’ll ripen nicely indoors.

Often we have one isolated frost and then several weeks of warm weather. if you’re an optimist, cover your vegetables with sheets and they may continue to produce. I also use sheets and towels to protect container plants. To keep the weight of the fabric from breaking the plants, use bamboo stakes to support the sheets. Then secure them with chip clips and clothespins in case it’s windy. Use rocks or bricks to hold the sheets down on the ground. Of course, lightweight pots can be moved to the safety of the garage or porch.

Eventually you’ll want to decide which potted plants get saved for the winter. Here’s some help in deciding:

Bulbous plants such as cannas, dahlias, gladiolus, tuberous begonias, and pineapple lilies can be allowed to frost. Cut off the dead foliage, dig up the bulbs and store them in a dark, cool spot such as a corner of the basement.

Annual plants fare badly indoors. Petunias, marigolds, flowering tobacco, impatiens and zinnias should be allowed to freeze.

Most tropical plants are worth saving. You don’t need a greenhouse, just some window space. Consider rescuing potted foliage plants such as palms, ferns, dracaenas, dwarf bananas, New Zealand flax, philodendrons and spider plants as well as cactus and succulents. Blooming tropicals that can be housed inside include bougainvillea, angel trumpets, mandevilla, blue potato tree, gardenia, agapanthus, kangaroo paws, hibiscus, lantana and non-tuberous begonias such as ‘Red Dragon.’

And what about those pretty pots of coleus and geraniums? Save them if you have room. If not, take cuttings of your favorites and grow them on your windowsill. Make cuttings about 6 to 8 inches long. Remove all the bottom leaves as well as flowers or buds. You can root them in water or insert them into fresh, clean potting soil and firm the soil around the stem. Water them and place a clear plastic bag over the cutting, securing it with a rubber band around the rim of the pot. This makes a temporary miniature greenhouse that helps them to root. After a few weeks, tug at the stem gently. If it resists, the cutting has formed roots. Remove the plastic bag and enjoy your new plant, which can carry on next spring on your patio.

(Reprint of KUSA*TV article, All Rights Reserved)

By CAROL WHITAKER, At Home contributor
Friday, June 22, 2007

Using plants that can take the heat and survive on the natural rainfall of Southwest Florida is a trend that grows in area landscaping with each successive drought.

“Water is on everyone’s mind. Florida seems to be feast or famine,” said Ben Bolusky, executive vice president of the Florida Nursery Growers and Landscape Association (FNGLA), which held its annual convention on Marco Island last weekend.

The dry months this year spurred fires throughout the state, burning large portions of the Everglades and prompting local officials to mandate water restrictions. Industry insiders say the popularity of native plants is also on the rise because local governments continue to require their use in commercial and public landscapes — a result of the ever increasing need to conserve water.

The task of industry professionals is to accept the challenge of environmental sustainability without sacrificing the aesthetic of design and plant variety vital to a good landscape.

While plants may survive drought, ultimately all plants need water to thrive.
“No plant can live without water,” said FNGLA member Brady Vogt of Pelican Nursery, Naples. “While native plants are drought-tolerant – tolerant is the operative word.” There is a big difference in surviving and thriving, he says.

Despite water restrictions prompted by the most recent drought, and other challenges the industry faces — which run the gamut from labor and immigration questions to finding solutions for water contamination from fertilizer runoff — the industry is second only to tourism in annual sales, according to Bolusky: “In 2005 we chalked up 15.2 billion in sales in the industry.”

In the last year it has suffered, he adds.

“People who would normally be installing new landscapes are waiting,” said landscape designer Kara Alfaro of Elata Natives, a Fort Myers nursery.
Scott Smith of Bougainvillea Growers International (BGI) in St. James City, a grower of bougainvillea and native plants, says designers are still buying, but sales have dropped.

With upcoming summer rains, gardens and the industry will flourish, the nursery professionals believe. Already-healthy, established native landscapes will have struggled less, still be green, and for the most part recover readily from the drought conditions, say the nursery professionals.

“Native plants are used to these fluctuations – with heavy rains in summer and the dry season.”

Dale Norton, field manager for Christian, Busk and Associates looks to a change from the staple St. Augustine lawns most widely planted in local yards, to a zoysia hybrid from Brazil called Empire, which is more suited to the area’s climate.

“It requires not even a quarter of the water that St. Augustine needs,” said Norton. If it turns brown during drought conditions, it recovers when the rains return. Experts recommend a plethora of great choice plants well suited to the area. Here are some of the plants industry insiders look to for performance through the drought and the summer rains.

Alfaro says coontie (Zamia floridana, also known as Zamia pumilla) is popular. When shrubs are called for, she plants colorful fire bush (Hamelia patens), coco plum (Chrysobalanus icaco), and lantana (Lantana camara).

She also is planting more ornamental native grasses: Elliot’s lovegrass (Eragrostis elliottii), Fakahatchee (Tripsacum dactyloides) and muhly grass (muhlenbergia). She recommends native royal palms (Roystonea spp.) which look healthy and green even through the dry season.

Smith says bougainvillea will remain a staple in the southwest Florida Landscape. While salt-water intrusion will defoliate the plant during hurricanes, it is a great choice for a riot of color. A versatile plant which comes in a wide array of colors, bougainvillea varieties include a low-growing dwarf and large specimen varieties.

“They make a great hedge,” Smith declared. Bougainvillea can also be grown on a trellis or arbor and is a stunner as a substantial freestanding specimen.
Landscape designer Roberta Gerber of Bonita Shores works almost exclusively with natives. She believes education is key to motivating people in the right direction with their planting practices. Gerber notes how native cabbage palms (Sabal palmetto) — commonly used in commercial landscapes with their sturdy fibrous trunks and fan shaped fronds — were growing in the natural native Southwest Florida landscape long before there were any irrigation systems.

© 2007 Naples Daily News and NDN Productions. Published in Naples, Florida, USA by the E.W. Scripps Co.

For the first time in the agency’s history, the South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) declared an extreme District-wide water shortage, directly affecting more than five million South Florida residents and thousands of farms and businesses. At its monthly meeting, the District’s Governing Board adopted a groundbreaking water shortage order, instituting a one-day-a-week watering schedule for residential landscape irrigation to conserve regional water supplies.

Landscape irrigation accounts for up to half of all household water consumption in Florida and totals more than seven billion gallons per day nationwide. Learn about xeriscaping. Highlights of the Modified Phase III water shortage order, which will be enforced beginning Jan.15, 2008 are listed below.

Modified Phase III Restrictions

• Residents and businesses of Okeechobee, St. Lucie, Martin, Palm Beach, Broward, Miami-Dade, Monroe, Hendry, and Glades counties are limited to a one-day-per-week landscape irrigation schedule with two “watering windows.”
  • Odd street addresses may irrigate lawns and landscapes on Mondays between 4 a.m. and 8 a.m. or 4 p.m. and 8 p.m.
  • Even street addresses may irrigate lawns and landscapes on Thursdays between 4 a.m. and 8 a.m. or 4 p.m. and 8 p.m.
• Residents and businesses with more than 5 acres have expanded irrigation hours, between 12 a.m. and 8 a.m. or 4 p.m. and 11:59 p.m. on their designated irrigation day.
• Residents and businesses in Lee and Collier counties are limited to one-day-a-week watering during specific four-hour “watering windows” directly associated with their unique street addresses.
• Hand-watering with one hose fitted with an automatic shut-off nozzle is allowed for 10 minutes per day for landscape stress relief and to prevent plant die-off.
• Low-volume irrigation, including the use of drip and microjet systems that apply water directly to plant root zones, is not restricted but should be voluntarily reduced.
• Additional watering days and times will be allocated for the establishment of new lawns and landscapes.
• No restrictions apply to other outside water uses, such as for car and boat washing, pressure cleaning of paved surfaces, decorative fountains, and water-based recreation (e.g. swimming pools, water slides).Golf courses must reduce their allocated water use by 45%.

The new, mandatory restrictions apply to all water from traditional sources, including water from public utilities, private wells, canals, ponds, and lakes. Users of 100% reclaimed water are exempt from the restrictions but are encouraged to conserve water voluntarily.

Because jurisdiction in certain counties is shared with other water management districts, the SFWMD has coordinated with these agencies to simplify implementation and enforcement. Residents of Orange and Osceola counties should adhere to any water restrictions set by the St. Johns River Water Management District. Residents of Polk, Highlands, and Charlotte counties should adhere to the water restrictions set by the Southwest Florida Water Management District. However, golf courses, nurseries, and agricultural users District-wide should follow SFWMD water-use restrictions.

For additional information on the water shortage, irrigation restrictions, or water conservation, call the SFWMD’s toll-free Water Conservation Hotline at 800-662-8876, visit www.sfwmd.gov, or contact a regional SFWMD service center. Helpful water conservation tips are available at www.savewaterfl.com.