By Master Gardener Volunteer Lesley Arrandale
mail@floridanewsline.com
An odd title for a gardening column, but I find it’s a constant when it comes to our weather! The lack of rain and higher than average temperatures most of us have been experiencing seem to have disrupted the natural world order. January is only 11 days old as I write this and already I’m seeing new shoots on deciduous shrubs, still-flowering cardinals guard, pentas, shrimp plant, pink gaura, and Indian shot canna. Spring weeds are already well on the way to being a nuisance.
One of the pleasures of a change in seasons is the migration of some of our birds. Particularly significant is the appearance of American robins, in large noisy flocks, and the beautiful, less noticeable cedar waxwings. In our neighborhood we have quite a few Carolina cherry laurels (Prunus caroliniana), which are members of the rose family. The genus name prunus is shared by other flowering and fruiting trees, like plums and almonds, and like them the cherry laurel bears numerous small black fruits (drupes). In recent years those trees have fruited early; no longer do flocks of birds swoop in to pick the trees clean, because a lot of the fruits are on the ground before they arrive. I hope to see the robins again this year, but worry that some of the food they depend upon won’t be here.
My wildflowers set plenty of seed, and I’ve been raising some seedlings indoors to get ahead of the growing season. If you’re interested in wildflowers, the website of the Florida Wildflower Association has helpful information on wildflower gardening and also on where to see roadside communities of wildflowers which are managed by the FDOT: https://www.flawildflowers.org/explore/. To find out how to support efforts to expand the FDOT wildflower roadside planting scheme, click the FDOT tab on the same page.
It’s time to get going with summer vegetables, if you haven’t begun already. Refer to the ever-useful Florida Vegetable Gardening Guide for guidance: https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/VH021. I’m still eating from my cool season garden and enjoying how clean the produce is; no insects have found my greens. While the vegetables were small, snails were a problem, but looking for a solution I found a product suitable for organic gardening. The small pellets contain an iron compound which is harmless to humans and very good at deterring snails.
Something else unexpected: we have at least one local snail that is a garden friend, the rosy wolf snail, and it’s a predator which eats some of those nuisance snails (https://entnemdept.ufl.edu/creatures/misc/gastro/snail_eating_snails.htm). I’ve only ever found two in my yard, but it’s heartening to know they’re around. One was in an unused plant pot and the other in damp leaf litter at the base of a fence, so that’s another good reason to let fallen leaves lie.
So much of what we do in our yards disrupts the natural processes of life, death, and decay. The result is we can find ourselves living in a sanitized, somewhat sterile environment. That’s understandably desirable in some ways, if we want to enjoy our outdoor spaces without pestilential mosquitos, for example; however, if we can give some space in our yards to the small creatures upon which our lives depend — to allow them to create the kind of environment in which they flourish — our entire yards can become more balanced and healthier places. And if you use a fan to move the air while enjoying your yard, any mosquitos will certainly be discouraged.
Late winter, before deciduous trees leaf out, is a good time to assess their structure to determine whether or not they need some remedial pruning. This applies both to young trees, to ensure they develop a strong structure as they grow, and to mature trees, to correct any problems like storm-damaged or dead limbs. Always make sure to choose a company that employs licensed arborists, who are qualified to give accurate advice. Check out www.isa-arbor.com to find arborists in Duval County.
Don’t be tempted by advertisements for “weed and feed” products if you want the best for your grass and don’t like to waste money. Check out the correct way to fertilize and treat your lawn here: https://gardeningsolutions.ifas.ufl.edu/care/fertilizer/right-fertilizer-right-place.html.
So much of gardening is trial and error; what works one year won’t necessarily work again, at least in quite the same way. There are unexpected failures, and wonderful, unexpected successes. A garden, a yard, is a constantly changing and maturing environment — it is never finished!
