How to Protect Your Palms Before and After a Frost

Every year countless palms and other tropical plant species are harmed or killed by sudden frosts. Don’t just assume your palms are dead, however. Take immediate action to prevent further injury but give it a few months before assuming a death verdict. It is possible that your trees may ultimately rebound into health.

What to do immediately: Apply a fungicide containing copper to the frost-damaged fronds as well as to the bud of the palms. Reapply the solution in two weeks. Do not apply again following this treatment, or you may actually further damage the palms.

After the weather gets warm: When the weather is consistently warm again, trim off all brown palm fronds. You will know if the palms are dead or severely damaged if the new growth is brown, easily breaks, or if the crown of the palms collapse. If the palm trees are dead, they should be removed from your yard.

Future Protection from Damage: Palms should be regularly fertilized. Cold temperatures can weaken the health of palm trees, making them more susceptible to pests and disease. Apply a granular palm fertilizer three or four times a year to promote the health of your palms. Ultimately, healthy, well-established palms withstand frost better than unhealthy and/or young palms.

Other tips: Always select palms that are appropriate for the climate where you live - resist the temptation to go too tropical. If you have advance warning of a frost, cover the trunks of your tall palms with blankets or burlap to protect from damage. Short palms can be completely covered with weighted blankets.

Resources:

My Palm Trees Are Dead After a Florida Frost

University of Florida IFAS Extension: Treating Cold-Damaged Palms

 

Is Organic Soil Really Better?

First of all, technically all soil is composed of organic matter.  The term “organic” primarily refers to the process and the chemicals used to maintain soil for use.  Organic gardening and farming uses strictly natural fertilizers, chemicals, pesticides and soil amendments to facilitate growth and discourage harmful pests and disease.  This results in organic soil and organic food or flowers.  This is a departure from “conventional” farming and gardening, which relies on synthetic fertilizers and pesticides.
There is strong evidence that, in addition to being more eco-friendly, organic practices may produce higher quality soil and better tasting food.  Organic foods have significantly less pesticide residue.  Fruits tend to be smaller but have a longer shelf life.  In many studies, food is judged to have better flavor overall.  The presence of organic matter in soil enhances the fertility and water holding capacity of soil.  It also has more micronutrients and higher stress tolerance. 

Organic gardening does not have to be an all or nothing endeavor nor does it need to be really expensive.  Compiling household garbage to make a compost pile is good for the environment and your soil.  Start small and gradually work your way towards increasingly organic practices in the garden.  In no time, you’ll start noticing the results! 

References: 
Organic Vs. Non-Organic Soil
Plos One: Fruit and Soil Quality of Organic and Conventional Strawberry Agroecosystems
International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements: Environmental Benefits of Organic Agriculture

The World’s Fastest Growing Palm Tree

Palms, when compared to many other types of trees, tend to be slow growers.  One of the most comprehensive studies examining palm growth was undertaken in 2001 by Fairchild Tropical Garden and recorded by the "Journal of the International Palm Society." The lifetime growth rate was studied in approximately 140 different palm species.  The study found that the roundleaf fan palm (Livistona robinsoniana) is the fastest growing palm tree.  This native of the Philippines grows about 22 inches a year.

Never heard of it?  It’s totally possible that is not available or appropriate for where you live.  Don’t worry, there are many readily available types of palms that will grow and establish at a reasonable rate in your yard.  Bear in mind, that many fast growing palms may not be appropriate for residential landscapes, given their eventual scale compared to your house.  Regardless of the species, to encourage palm growth, plant it according to species-specific guidelines and fertilize it regularly. Look for a nitrogen-rich fertilizer specifically formulated for palms.

References:
Fastest Growing Palm Tree
The International Palm Society: Growth Rates of Palms in Fairchild Tropical Garden
"Florida, My Eden;" Frederic B. Stresau; 1986

North Florida Fruit Trees

When people think of Florida fruit, they typically think of citrus and strawberries. Without a doubt, these particular crops are a very important part of the central and southern Florida agricultural economy. The state of Florida falls between zones 8 and 11 of the USDA hardiness map. Only north Florida, which can get as cold as 10 degrees, is in zone 8. This has a significant impact on the type of fruit that will grow. While subtropical oranges and grapefruit trees are not recommended, there is still an abundance of fruit trees from which to choose. The following is a list of recommended fruit types, including most successful varieties for North Florida landscapes.

• Apple Trees: 'Anna', 'Dorsett Golden' and 'TropicSweet'
• Blueberries - ‘Rabbiteye’
• Blackberries - 'Oklawaha,' 'Flordagrand,' and 'Brazos'
• Bunch grapes - ‘Lake Emerald’, ‘Blue Lake’, ‘Stover’, ‘Conquistador’, ‘Daytona’, ‘Suwannee’
• Chinese dates
• Figs - ‘Caprifigs’, ‘Smyrna’ and ‘San Pedro’
• Pears - 'Aristocrat', 'Bradford', 'Redspire'
• Muscadine grapes
• Persimmons - ‘Japanese’,'Common’, and ‘Texas’
• Peach Trees - ‘Floridadawn’, ‘Floridaking;, ‘Gulfking’, ‘Floridacrest’, ‘Gulfprince’, ‘Gulfcrimson’, ‘Gulfcrest’
• Plums - ‘Gulfruby’, ‘Gulfbeauty’, ‘Gulfblaze’, ‘Gulfrose’
• Nectarines - ‘Sundollar’, ‘Suncoast’
• Pomegrantes

References:

Deciduous Fruits for the Home Gardner in North Florida and North Central Florida

Are Palms Really Trees?

Silly question, right? Not really. Trees are perennial woody plants. They must have a dominant main trunk and secondary branches. While palms possess a dominant trunk, they are monocotyledonous plants, meaning they are not able to make wood. In place of concentric rings of wood, as you would find in a true tree, is a constellation of vascular bundles in palms. In addition, palms do not secondary branches, rather they have fronds that radiate from a centrally located palm crown. Consequently, palms are not trees in a technical sense.


References:

Are Coconut Palms True Trees?
"Integrative Plant Anatomy;" William C. Dickison; 2000

How much topsoil do I need before I put down new grass?

Okay, you removed your old, dead lawn - preferably without the use of herbicides. Now you need some topsoil.  You can easily calculate how much topsoil you need from the comfort of your own home.  Here is what you need to know to do it.

• Three things you must know or be able to determine: total gardening square footage, desired topsoil depth, type of planting materials.

Total Gardening Square Footage
To calculate gardening square footage, or area, first break your yard down visually into simple geometric shapes. Then use the following formulas to calculate square footage of each shape:

• Rectangular area: Length x width
• Triangular area: 1/2 Length of one side (base) x length of another side (height). The base and height of the triangle should form an L.
• Circular area: Measure the length of the circle at its widest point (diameter). Divide this number by 2 to calculate the radius of the circle. The area of a circle is calculated by using the formula Πr x 2. Π (pi) = 3.14 and ‘r' = radius of the circle.　

Planting Materials and Topsoil Depth
The type of vegetation being planted greatly impacts how much topsoil is needed. Topsoil depth for a new lawn should be between 3 and 6 inches. Topsoil is sold in cubic feet or cubic yard increments. To calculate cubic foot multiplier, first divide the desired depth of the topsoil by 12. This equals a depth range of 0.25 to 0.5 cubic feet.

　

Cubic Calculations

Multiply your surface square footage by your depth to get the total number of cubic feet of soil needed.

Bulk topsoil is sold in cubic yard increments. To calculate this, divide the total amount of cubic feet by 27, which is the number of cubic feet in a cubic yard.

　

References:

Landscaping in America:Re-establishing a New Lawn

How Much Topsoil for a 12-by-32 Garden?

Florida's Most Shade Tolerant Grass

All plants, including grass, require sunlight to grow. However, just because you have or want a shaded lawn does not preclude the use of grass in Florida. In fact, nearly all yards have some amount of shade. The presence of shade will limit your grass choices and it will present an increased degree of gardening challenges. Shaded grass is more suseptible to disease and pests. It is also more likely to show signs of stress from wear, drought, and extreme temperature fluctuations.  That being said, you can at least minimize the degree of gardening difficulty by selecting a shade tolerant type of grass. The most shade tolerant type of grass in Florida is St. Augustine grass. There is a reason this type of grass is so prevalent state-wide. This dark green type of grass performs well in Florida’s hot and humid climate. Pay attention to the variety of St. Augustine grass. The most readily-available form is Floritam, which is an excellent variety that offers valuable chinch bug reisistance, but it is not very well suited for shade. Bitterblue, Jade and Delmar are the top varieties of St. Augustine shade grass.

Sunlight Requirements - Most grass requires, at a minimum, 4 to 5 hours of sun daily. Even shade tolerant St. Augustine grass should receive 3 hours of full sun.
Other Recommendations -

• Consider alternative groundcover vegetation in extremely shady areas of your lawn.  Lilyturf and mondo grass are shade loving, low-growing plants with a grass like features. 
• Allow your shaded grass to grow a little higher. More surface area equals increased light processing abillity.
• Selectively prune tree branches in lawns where tree canopy restricts too much sunlight.
• Limit traffic by using pavers and walkways. Shaded lawns are more easily damaged by wear, providing delineated walk zones can help restrict traffic.

References:
Florida Shade Grass
Soil Nutrient Analysis Laboratory
Landscape Plants for Subtropical Climates;" Bijan Dehgan; 1998.

Do Hydrangeas like a lot of water?

Hydrangeas are a popular flowering plant that can be grown in USDA climate zones 5 through 9. In general, hydrangeas like a lot of water.

Water Requirements: Although hydrangeas require a lot of water, they will not flourish in soggy conditions. Consequently, make sure your soil is well-drained. Planting in clay soils is not recommended.

Sun and Shade Requirements: Hydrangeas will thrive in full sun to partial shade conditions. In particular, they are prized as one of the few plants that will produce showy blooms in shady conditions.

Soil Type Requirements: Hydrangeas require fertile, organic soil. Amending with compost is recommended. The plant will tolerate soil pH between 5.0 and 6.5. The color of flower blooms will vary with soil pH. Alkaline soil produces blue flowers while acidic soil produces pink flowers.

References:
"Landscape Plants for Subtropical Climates;" Bijan Dehgan; 1998.