By Master Volunteer Lesley Arrandale
mail@floridanewsline.com
Writing in early August, it already feels like a very long hot summer. We’ve missed the worst of Hurricane Debby, so hopefully the heavy rains will not have had too bad an impact. Here the soil is prone to drying out quickly, so without regular rain I could soon be watering some plants, despite the more than five inches we had during the storm. And pots dry out rapidly too, now we’re back in the 90 plus degree range.
Looking forward, it’s not too soon to be planning the fall vegetable garden. As always, the Florida Vegetable Gardening Guide is the go-to for advice on what to plant when, and how: https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/VH021. I particularly like the section “No-pesticide Approaches,” which describes cultural ways to avoid pests doing too much damage to your tender veggie plants. And this statement: “Do not panic and start spraying at the first sign of insect damage. Most plants that produce fruits, pods, or ears can stand a 10 percent to 20 percent loss of leaves without loss of potential yields” explains why.
A healthy ecosystem that supports a wide variety of insect species, more than 90 percent of which are beneficial, is what we ideally need to achieve. If you’re growing in raised beds, grow some flowers nearby to attract useful insects. Alternatively, add some vegetable plants to your flower beds, if you can ensure they will get the nutrients and water they need for success. For myself, raised beds have worked best, as my yard is geared towards plants that don’t need much input like fertilizers and water. Large pots nestled in the border can work well for adding color, and they could include attractive vegetables.
The Florida Master Gardener Volunteer newsletter is another useful resource. The August edition can be found here: https://tinyurl.com/2jx5nu57 and includes a piece about raised bed gardening. If you would like to receive the newsletter online every month you can sign up. Your email address won’t be shared.
If you enjoy participating in group classes, over the next few months there are several to look forward to, hosted by the Extension service in Jacksonville. They are available for sign-up here: https://tinyurl.com/bdb4vdbs. Call the Extension office at (904) 255-7450 if you need further information.
Browsing the UF/IFAS website, I came across a fun and informative series of articles on “Garden Myths.” This is a link to volume 1: https://tinyurl.com/3x4y5zyp and there are links to volumes 2 and 3. Ever wondered if Spanish moss is killing your tree? Wonder no more — it’s not. How about those moles? Pests surely? But actually not, as they eat the sort of critters that feed on your plants’ roots. And all the myth-busting information is 100 percent fact-based.
Looking around a local garden store, I hoped to find some salvias, which are good pollinator plants. There was only one that appealed, Mexican bush sage (Salvia leucantha). This is an attractive larger salvia that tends to flower later in the summer and fall. It usually has purple and white flowers, and its foliage is an attractive slightly fuzzy mid green. This year I have one in my garden for the first time and look forward to its blooms. A native salvia, admittedly more modest in appearance, tropical sage (Salvia coccinea) blooms non-stop and is only set back by extended dry periods. Texas sage (Salvia greggii) is a small, slightly woody subshrub. It is hardy in our area and can be evergreen. Like many salvias, it attracts hummingbirds to its small trumpet-shaped flowers. It blooms in summer through fall, often with cherry red flowers, although some varieties may have pink or other shades of red flowers.
Fall blooming flowers are important for both insects and birds, many of which rely on these food sources, which includes their seeds, to build themselves up to get through the winter. Migrant birds will be passing through, expecting to fatten themselves for their onward journeys so it’s important to allow seeds to develop and remain on our plants. I am really looking forward to watching more than our regular backyard birds, delightful as they are!
[Editor’s Note: Our Gardening column is penned each month by Master Gardener Volunteer Lesley Arrandale. Due to a layout error last month, she was not correctly credited with writing her article. We regret the error and apologize for any inconvenience.]
