Gardening

What is that weed that reminds us northerners of snow on our lawns? If I have had one person ask me, I have had a dozen. Full story »

It is nice to see that flower beds full of annuals like impatiens, begonias and petunias are beginning to appear in yards around the island. Full story »

Stinging caterpillars sting via spines which are connected to poison glands. They feed on the foliage of many different plants. They do not usually cause serious injury to the plants they feed on. Full story »

The winter months are upon us. In December there is likely to be a frost or even the occasional freeze. Full story »

Blossom and fruit drop and fruit splitting are fairly common problems for fruit trees. While losing blossoms and small fruit from your fruit trees can be disturbing it is most likely a natural process.
Trees which bloom profusely like the mango and avocado could not possibly hold all of the fruit which forms on each limb and so it sheds the excess. You can also remove some small fruits yourself which will increase the size of those allowed to mature. Full story »

It’s time for winter annual beds to be planted. It has been nice cool fall weather so far. This will allow your annuals to establish and begin to grow without the stress of hot weather.
I wrote earlier about preparing the gardens for planting by tilling or turning the soil six inches deep and then incorporating two to three inches of organic matter, such as cow manure and peat, into the planting beds. This will increase the nutrient and water holding capacity of our sandy soil. Full story »

The insects you see on your plants are not all necessarily harmful. Less than half of 1 percent of all insects are pests on plants. Many beneficial insects feed upon harmful ones. It is important to learn to identify these beneficial insects and to recognize when they are holding pests in check.
Many insects are merely resting or taking a break on the plant and are neither pests nor beneficial. Full story »

If your pittosporum are looking a little under the weather right now it is probably due to Angular Leaf Spot. Full story »

The cooler weather means that it will be safe to have your lawn treated with a herbicide to try and bring weeds under control. Full story »

Fall is here and the month of October will bring cooler and dryer weather to our gardens. Full story »

Before I begin this column, I need to correct last week’s. I made changes to the fertilizer column I have used in the past but for some reason my computer did not save these changes. There is a difference in fertilizer this year as mandated by the State of Florida. Full story »

It is time to think about fertilizing your shrubs, trees and lawns. Full story »

There is a growing interest in using more native plants in our landscapes. Native plants arrived here centuries ago, before the Spanish, via wind or birds and managed to survive and thrive together. Exotics were introduced later and continue to be introduced today by people. Full story »

The ten most common ways to kill a tree. Full story »

September is here with another month of heat and heavy rain. This month is the height of hurricane-season, so tropical rains and wind are likely. It looks like Hanna will stay east but Ike and Josephine may come this way. Remember all of the hurricane preparation and clean up tips to help you through this period. Full story »