An invasive species, as defined in an Executive Order signed by President Clinton in 1999, is an “alien species whose introduction does, or is likely to, cause economic or environmental harm, or harm to human health” Some kinds of plants, due to being transplanted away from their natural home, consequently become invasive in their new home. […]
Getting your best crop, whether vegetable, fruit, ornamental or lawn, often requires adding lime or fertilizer to your soil. But you need to know how much. If you are starting a new garden, it’s a good idea to have the soil tested. If your plants don’t seem to be doing as well as you think […]
With its glossy dark green leaves, fragrant pink-tinged blossoms, and bright orange-yellow lemons, the Meyer lemon deserves a place in your life! Long an obscure specialty of fruit collectors and farmers’ markets in the citrus belt, the Meyer lemon has recently gone mainstream thanks to Martha Stewart and her Meyer lemon recipes. Today, Meyer lemons […]
The age-old question, “Is the tomato a vegetable or a fruit?” is pointless to the horticulturalist or the botanist. In everyday language, a vegetable is any plant that is eaten, with certain exclusions based on cultural and culinary customs. Fruits, on the other hand, is a specific part of a plant: A fertilized and ripened […]
Botanically, a berry is “a fleshy fruit that develops from a single ovary within a single flower, lacking a central stone”. Technically, tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers and bananas are berries — but raspberries & strawberries are not because they did not develop from single ovaries. (Of course, only a botanist would know that!) For the rest of us, a […]
Spring brings those beautiful flowers we all love so much. However, ever wonder just how it all happens? What happens behind the scenes of certain plants or trees for them to flower or fruit? Sexual reproduction is an essential part of nature – even for trees and plants Many plants are capable of reproducing from stolons, rhizomes, offsets, […]
What makes a good indoor plant? Mainly, one that can tolerate dry air and low light levels. Many of our most popular houseplants are selected from wild plants that grow naturally in humid, shady tropical forests. They live in more humid environments with less light than other plants. They are never exposed to frost or […]
The state of Florida is well known for preserving its population of native trees, plants and animals. This southern state is made up of four different climatic zones; tropical rainforest, tropical monsoon, tropical savanna, and humid subtropical. Because of these zones the wildlife population in Florida is incredibly diverse, the temperature and growing conditions drastically effects plant-life […]
On a hot summer day, what could be more pleasant than sitting under a big leafy shade tree enjoying an iced tea or lemonade? Why shade trees? Shade trees keep your environment cool in the summer — according to experts, shade on the roof and windows can reduce summertime air conditioning costs by 30%. Shade […]
Among the things we like best about late winter and early spring are the blooming, flowering trees and shrubs that proudly announce that summer is just around the corner. We’re not talking about the crape myrtles, southern magnolias, and fringe trees that bloom later in mid-spring and early summer. Dogwoods, redbuds, Japanese magnolias, flowering plums, […]
A row of evergreen privacy trees or shrubs can become a living fence that blocks noise, reduces air pollution, slows the wind, and, most noteworthy, hides an unwanted view. It isn’t hard to grow a privacy screen and it doesn’t take as long as you might think. First of all, decide how tall your privacy screen needs […]
(When the flowers of summer have faded to memory, and the autumn leaves have fallen to compost, it’s nice to have evergreen trees and shrubs to brighten the wintertime landscape. Whether your yard is snowy bright or dreary bleak, seems like evergreens can make a dramatic improvement. Evergreen trees usually are the dominant structural elements […]