The University of Florida is a great resource for ideal plants for Florida, as is the program called Florida Select. Both entities make recommendations each year for gardening success. Best Florida Garden Plants: What to Grow in a Florida Garden Ideal plants can include low maintenance as well as native plants. With year-round gardening chores, it’s nice to grow plants that aren’t too demanding. Here are low maintenance plants recommended for Florida gardening, including natives and must-have Florida plants....

Read on for more information about the causes and cures for blackened magnolia leaves. Black Leaves on Magnolia Some magnolia trees and shrubs are evergreen, though many are deciduous. Deciduous trees flower before leafing (creating an extra impressive show), but both types of magnolia plants are known for their attractive green leaves. When you see those magnolia leaves turning black, you know that your plant is experiencing some problem. While any of a number of issues can cause black leaves, the most likely cause is a soft-bodied insect called magnolia scale....

Preparing Blanket Flowers for Winter The daisy-like heads, with their zing of color and prolific growth habit, are an excellent addition to any perennial garden or container. The majority are grown in sunset hues with some sporting brilliant oranges, reds, and yellows. The foliage is grayish green and slightly hairy, usually about knee high. Blanket flower starts readily from seed and will produce larger and larger patches of the flower over the seasons just from seed....

Info and Facts About Bloodroot Bloodroot plants are early spring bloomers and may be found growing wild in dappled sun in wooded areas, producing beautiful, solitary flowers. These white bloodroot flowers have 8 to 12 petals growing on leafless stems that rise above the foliage of this charming plant. Bloodroot plants, Sanguinaria canadensis, get their name from the dark red sap found in the stems and roots, which resembles blood. The colored juice from the stems of bloodroot plants can also be used to make red, pink, and orange dyes....

About Blueberries for Zone 4 Blueberry bushes need a sunny location and well-drained acidic soil (pH 4.5-5.5). With proper care they can live for 30 to 50 years. There are a few different types: low-bush, mid-height, and high bush blueberries. Low-bush blueberries are low growing bushes with plentiful small fruit and are the hardiest while mid-height varieties are taller and a little less hardy. High bush is the least hardy of the three, although as mentioned, there are recent introductions of this type suitable for cold hardy blueberry plants....

Benefitting from Backyard Gardening Books Some people have a natural ability to design spaces and grow plants. For the rest of us, there are books to serve as guides. Even if you have a natural talent, you can always learn more from the experts. Choose books that expand your basic knowledge of gardening and landscape design and also those that are specific to your interests, area, and type of garden. For instance, if you live in the Midwest, a book about tropical gardens may be interesting but not much help....

Anyone who has tried to remove one of these brackets will tell you that they are rock hard; so hard, in fact, that they can be carved into works of art and beautiful jewelry. Bracket Fungus Info Tree bracket fungus is often referred to as shelf fungus because of the way it sticks out from the infected tree. They are called polypores. Instead of having spore producing gills, they have many pores lined with spore producing cells called basidia....

Common Pests of Mesquite Even the toughest of plants have a few pest insects that will crop up from time to time. The mesquite tree is no exception. When your mesquite gets a bit buggy, you’ll need mesquite pest solutions! If you already know what type of infestation you have and how to handle it, it’ll make your battle much easier. Be on the lookout for: Sap-sucking insects. Sap-sucking insects are more of a nuisance than a serious problem of mesquite, but it’s important to know their call signs....

How to Grow Peanuts Indoors Indoor peanut growing isn’t at all that difficult. Simply start by filling a pot with lightweight potting mix. One 5 to 6 inch (13-15 cm.) container is large enough for starting five or six seeds. Be sure the container has a drainage hole in the bottom; otherwise, your peanut plant is likely to suffocate and die. Remove a small handful of raw peanuts from the shells....

What are Patented Plants? A patent is a legal document that gives you the right to stop other people from making, using, or selling your invention without your consent. Everyone knows that computer designers and automobile manufacturers get patents on their inventions. Plant breeders can get these patents too. What are patented plants? They are unique plants developed by breeders. The plant breeders applied for and were given patent protection. In this country, plant patents last for 20 years....

Phytoremediation – Clean Up Soil with Plants Plants absorb and use nutrients from soil. This extends to the uptake of toxins in the soil, providing us with a useful, natural way to clean contaminated land. Pollution from toxic metals to mine runoff and petrochemicals makes soil harmful and even unusable. One way to deal with the problem is by brute force – simply remove the soil and put it somewhere else....

Can Pumpkins Grow on Trellises? Oh yes, my fellow gardener, planting a pumpkin on a trellis is not an inane proposal. In fact, vertical gardening is a burgeoning gardening technique. With urban sprawl comes less space in general with more and more compact housing, meaning tiny gardening spaces. For less than ample garden plots, vertical gardening is the answer. Growing pumpkins vertically (as well as other crops) also improves air circulation which impedes disease and allows for easy access to fruit....

Can You Eat Garlic Mustard? Garlic mustard may have tasty potential, but it is a noxious weed. The plant secretes toxins that kill beneficial soil fungi, which most plants need to thrive. Garlic mustard is also extremely hardy and tolerant of a range of soils, making its spread easy. In some areas, it is such a nuisance that entire parties go out into the wild and pull the plants, bagging them for the landfill....

All of my other herbs are grown in pots, but can you grow lovage in pots too? Let’s learn more about how to grow lovage in a pot. Potted Lovage Plants Lovage is not easily found at your grocery store in the fresh herb section or the spice rack, which makes it a worthwhile venture in the garden. The stalk of this aromatic herb can even be used as a straw in your favorite cocktail – I’ve heard that a pairing with Bloody Mary is pretty awesome....

How to Grow Patio Vegetables Start by choosing a sunny location for your patio vegetable garden. Most garden plants require at least six hours of direct sunlight per day. Ideally, your location for growing vegetables on your porch will be near a faucet to facilitate watering, and the overall layout will be aesthetically pleasing. Next, determine how much room you have for growing vegetables on your porch. How many planters or pots will the space comfortably hold?...

What is a Candelilla? Succulent lovers should definitely have a wax euphorbia succulent in their collection. According to wax euphorbia info, there are no serious pests or diseases associated with this plant and it has an ease of care which appeals to forgetful gardeners. Try growing a candelilla euphorbia (Euphorbia antisyphilitica) as a houseplant or outdoors in warmer regions. Candelilla means ‘little candle’ in Spanish and refers to the slender stems and waxy coating....

Named after the French Guiana city of Cayenne, cayenne pepper plants are related to bell peppers, jalapenos, and other peppers with just a touch more heat than the latter. On the Scoville scale, cayenne pepper is rated at 30,000-50,000 units — spicy, but not so much it will knock your socks off. This Capsicum genus is in the nightshade family of Solanaceae. How to Grow Cayenne Pepper Plants Growing cayenne pepper plants requires some heat....

About Purple Fountain Grass While purple fountain grass is known as a perennial, it is actually considered a tender perennial. This ornamental grass cannot survive cold winters and is hardy only in USDA Plant Hardiness Zones 9 and warmer (though in Zones 7-8 it can sometimes reappear given adequate winter protection). Therefore, it is important that this be a consideration prior to planting purple fountain grass, as the likelihood of its return each year in zones 6 or lower is slim to none....

Barren Strawberry Facts Barren strawberry plants (Waldsteinia ternata) are thus named due to their imitable resemblance to edible strawberry plants. However, barren strawberries are inedible. An evergreen, barren strawberry is a ground cover with a spread of 48 inches (1.2 m.) or more but a low height of 6 inches (15 cm.). The foliage of barren strawberry plants is akin to that of edible strawberries with a wedge shape that turns to bronze in autumn....

Growing Crown of Thorns Plant Outdoors Lots of people grow a crown of thorns plant (Euphorbia milii) as a unique houseplant, and unique it is. Also called crown of thorns euphorbia, it’s one of the few succulents with real leaves – thick, fleshy, and tear-shaped. The leaves appear on stems that are armed with sharp, inch-long (2.5 cm.) spines. The plant gets its common name from the legend that the thorny crown worn by Jesus at his crucifixion was made from sections of this plant....