by Keri Byrum | Jan 27, 2016 | Plant Spotlight |
Browsing through the photos on my iphone, there seems to be a recurring theme: plants, pugs and Mike. And probably in that order. I couldn’t help but notice that lately I have quite a few photos of clerodendrum in the mix, both in flower and in seed and it seemed I need to pull all of my favorites into one place. You guessed it, this piece. There are so many great clerodendrum for Florida that I will probably miss a few here but I will include a few favorites Clerodendrum paniculatum, Pagoda Flower With large 12″ flowers in bright orange colors, this clerodendrum always noticed when in flower. Pagoda flower can get very tall after several years of warm winters and has reached upward of 8′ tall in central Florida.… Read Full Post
by Keri Byrum | Jan 21, 2016 | Plant Spotlight |
Bromeliads are one of the plants that I find to be perfectly Florida. I love the variety of colors and textures, sizes and heights, and different growth habits for every nook and cranny in the garden. Whether full sun or deep shade, there is a bromeliad for that part of the landscape. Why Plant Bromeliad Pups? One thing about bromeliads is they can be fairly pricey to purchase. But, if you can find someone with an old garden then there are often more bromeliads to share than they may have friends. But until you find that treasured neighbor with a plethora of plants to share, buying bromeliads can be expensive. One way to cut down on that cost is to purchase bare root plants or “pups.” … Read Full Post
by Keri Byrum | Jan 18, 2016 | Around Our Yard |
It doesn’t happen often, but once or twice a year we hear on the news to “cover your plants” because of the possibility of cold weather. How do you know if this is time and money well spent on frost protection for your plants? Or, if on the other hand, you can stay nice and warm inside and leave things alone to tough it out? Let’s look at a few things to consider when freezing temperatures are predicted and frost protection is a possibility. The weather preceding a night with cold temperatures is very important. If the weather has been getting gradually cooler over several weeks then, just like us, the plants in your yard are better acclimated to the cold snap.… Read Full Post
by Keri Byrum | Jan 10, 2016 | Around Our Yard, DIY Garden Projects, Small Spaces |
Learning how to garden in the narrow strip between your sidewalk and the street can be a challenge. For my project, the most important step was installing narrow strip irrigation in this area (you can see the rest of the process here). I am happy to say this was one of the easiest parts! Narrow strip irrigation is most efficient with micro-irrigation and it worked perfectly in this scenario. Read on to learn how this project was done: Why Micro Irrigation? Very narrow strips are hard to water with spray heads. They tend to overspray, wasting water on the sidewalk and street rather than the soil. Even the most fine-tuned system is going to have a hard time on our 22″ wide strip, almost 35′ in length. … Read Full Post
