Mission Accomplished, or Why We Haven't Posted in Awhile

You may have noticed it's been quite some time since a new post on My Florida Backyard. This is not because we've fallen into a sudden sinkhole or been swept away by one of those crazy waterspouts that keep cropping up in Tampa Bay this year. No, My Florida Backyard is right where it always is and even much less weed-filled than last summer. Butterflies are visiting, birds are singing, and flowers are blooming, and every trip around the yard gives us something new to discover, just like always.

See? We're right where we've always been, and not even buried under the usual summer weeds!

So where have we been? Well, right here, but very very busy. And in many ways, I have this blog to thank for it.

You see, when I started this blog four and a half years ago, I had three major goals in mind:

1) Keep my mom and other up-north relatives posted on the cool stuff happening in my garden
2) Keep my writing skills sharp after losing my job in communications during The Great Recession
3) Create a portfolio of nature-based writing I could use as I started a job search with new goals in mind

After many years working for a bank, first doing training delivery, then instructional design, and finally internal communications, I had decided it was time for a change. Like many folks, I decided to turn my job loss into an "opportunity" and pursue work that really interested me. I knew I wanted to write, and I knew I was done with corporate 9-5 jobs (especially in finance) that involved cubicles and phrases like "Interest-may-be-tax-deductible-consult-your-tax-advisor".

Isn't this much nicer than a cubicle, or even an office with a window?
Who needs windows when you can sit on the back porch and write about what you see?

So, with the full support of a wonderful spouse, I took some time to just explore what interested me. I started My Florida Backyard, and within a few months had an opportunity to blog for a larger site geared toward Tampa Bay (which no longer exists). Through this, I met the Coordinator of MOSI Outside and began volunteering, spending time at the butterfly garden and gaining a lot of specialized knowledge.  Eventually, my volunteer work turned into a paid part-time job. Now, you'll find me at MOSI at least three days a week, and online at the MOSI Outside blog.

The BioWorks Flight Encounter at MOSI, where I spend much time with sweat in my eyes and hands full of caterpillars.

After endless prodding from friends, I decided to join Facebook a few years ago, and it turns out that it was one of the greatest things I ever did. (And I don't even play Farmville!) One of the magazines I was following, Birds & Blooms, put out a request for "regional reporters" to turn in bi-monthly updates to be featured in the magazine. Eventually, this expanded into the opportunity to blog for them several times a week, and I recently had my first by-line in the magazine. (Look for "Diary of a Monarch" by Jill Staake, in the September issue of Birds & Blooms Extra! Coming soon to a news stand near you!) I've taken on some other responsibilities for them too, especially in social media, and now spend a good chunk of my time writing about birds, blooms, and butterflies - for pay!

Hey, that's my name! Check out the blog by clicking here.

I'm extremely proud of the career I've managed to create for myself over the last few years. The pay isn't the best, but the work is something I feel passionate about. I'm allowed to be creative, to dig in the dirt, to photograph butterflies and birds, and to share my knowledge with others. I've had the chance to travel for Birds & Blooms, and to make interesting contacts around the Tampa area and beyond.

Of course, this is all keeping me very busy. And when too much is happening at once, something's gotta give. In my case, it was My Florida Backyard. It's been harder and harder to find time to write posts for it, when other writing jobs (the kind with paychecks attached) are awaiting my attention. So days slipped into weeks, which slipped into months, which brings us to now.

I thought about calling it quits on this blog, and just leaving it up as a resource for others. After all, I send my mom pictures from my phone all the time, and my Birds & Blooms blog posts are frequently about things going on in my yard. Why not just let this particular blog's activity come to an end?

But I find I'm not quite ready to do that. I think that occasionally, I'll find topics that are very specific to Florida backyards, ones that I really want to write about but that only a very few people might care to read about. I love writing for B&B, but their audience isn't always the right fit for more technical posts, or for those about very specific regional species. And in those cases, for the right special people, I want My Florida Backyard to remain active.

How else can I justify posting yet more photos of white peacocks?

So you may not see a lot of new posts from this site going forward. But I hope you'll join me in several other places around the web, to see what's going on here and what I'm up to in general. And I hope you'll continue to subscribe, or leave me in your RSS feed, or just check back every once in awhile, because plenty of amazing things still happen in My Florida Backyard, and from time to time, I'll be sure to let you in on some of them.

Find Me on the Web (look for the posts by Jill):

• MOSI Outside Blog
• Birds & Blooms Blog

Down to Earth

A few years ago, the National Wildlife Federation published a great article called “How Green is Your Garden?“, encouraging gardeners to consider the carbon footprint of their gardens. (Did you know a garden could even have a negative effect on the environment?) She offered six tips for reducing your garden’s carbon footprint, and I was inspired to spend some time examining those tips and deciding if they were too difficult for an average gardener to implement.

Below, you’ll find the six tips along with a brief summary of my thoughts on implementing these tips in an average garden. For a detailed look at each tip, click the links to read my original posts from 2009. Happy Earth Day!

********************************************************************************


Tip #1:
Reduce the size of your lawn. Better yet, consider eliminating it entirely.

There's definitely an initial investment of time in changing your water-hungry lawn to a greener garden. However, down the line, your payoff is very rewarding indeed! Our lawn maintenance is almost zero during the winter months, and during the summer months, it takes only 10 - 15 minutes a week. Take the time to do some up-front work, and reap the benefits in the long run.

Tip #2:
Use hand tools instead of power equipment.

Although tools like a classic reel mower may take a little more exercise and cause some Beaver Cleaver remarks from neighbors, today’s models are easy to maintain and operate. If you’ve reduced the size of your lawn as suggested in tip #1, then this tip becomes pretty easy to implement. Plus, hand tools like rakes are a heckuva lot cheaper than leaf blowers.

Tip #3:
Choose materials with low-embodied energy.

The most difficult part of this tip is probably the research involved. Just remember to consider the total amount of energy involved in manufacturing the materials and transporting them to your yard. Choose materials like wood or crushed shell over concrete bricks or solid cement. Ask questions to find out where and how materials are made, and choose locally when possible.

Tips #4 and 5:
Emphasize woody plants that capture more carbon than fleshy herbaceous species. Plant trees and shrubs where they will block winter winds and provide shade in summer.

The key here is to remember that “woody plants” doesn’t have to mean trees. In a small lot, you may not want to plant many more tall trees than you already have. However, you can choose shrubs or woody plants that provide the same benefits. Plan your plantings to help your house conserve energy, sit back, and enjoy! (Don't forget - you can get 10 free trees with an Arbor Day Foundation membership!)

Tip #6:
Minimize, or better yet eliminate, the use of fertilizers and pesticides on your property.

Most Florida-Friendly plants will need minimal fertilization to thrive in our sandy soil, but when fertilizers are necessary, choose natural over synthetic. Depending on where you live, these may not be available locally, involving a little more work combing the internet. As for pesticides – many of the bugs in your garden are beneficial. Fire Ants? Don’t get me started on Fire Ants. Try a natural killer and spot treat only when you find them rather than putting down a broadcast killer on a regular basis.

Blast From the Past

My Florida Backyard will be on its own for the next few days while its owners head north to visit family. In the meantime, you might enjoy this article I co-wrote with Kristen Gilpin, who runs the BioWorks Butterfly Garden at MOSI. It's an interesting look at how different gardening in Florida was 50 years ago, when DDT was still A-OK and the term "exotic invasives" just didn't exist...

Where it All Went Terribly Wrong: Post-WWII Landscaping in Florida

by Kristen Gilpin and Jill M. Staake

Most Florida gardeners today are familiar with the concept of “Florida-Friendly Gardening”. It involves simple steps like eliminating water-hungry turfgrass, minimizing use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides to protect our waterways, focusing on native plants, and avoiding exotic invasives. But the ideas behind Florida-Friendly Gardening didn’t evolve overnight - instead, like many things, they were developed in response to serious mistakes Florida residents made in the past. A Florida gardening book from 1962 shows the astonishing turnaround Florida gardeners have made in the last 50 years.

The Way We Were: In the last one hundred years, Florida’s population has boomed to over 18 million residents. But in 1900, Florida had a population of 528,542 people and was a largely agrarian state. That all changed with the land boom of the early 1920’s and near doubling of the state population just after World War II. Low property costs, a gorgeous climate, and an inexpensive cost of living saw rapid Florida development. Urban areas sprouted vast tracts of suburban housing developments and millions of new residents streamed into Florida. These new homeowners were from all parts of the nation and looking for some ways to make their new properties look lush and tropical.

Gardening in Florida is like gardening no where else in the country. High temperatures, seasonal rains, and extended dry seasons test even the most experienced of gardeners. New Florida residents were looking for gardening tips and wanted fast-growing plants that would make their property look more established. Without  the Internet or TV gardening programs to consult, many residents of Pinellas and Hillsborough county tuned their radio dials to listen to Uncle Pasco Roberts’ Radio Garden Club.

“The Radio Garden Club is a 15-minute program over Radio Station WSUN (St. Petersburg, Fla.) five days a week (Monday through Friday) at 1:45 to 2pm. It is devoted to What Grows in Florida... How to Grow It... and Where to Get It.” (Florida State Horticultural Society, 1950)

Uncle Pasco’s show was so popular it led to the publication of The Book of Florida Gardening in 1962. It featured a month-by-month gardening guide and even a section on the newest gardening craze, hydroponics. It’s clear that Uncle Pasco wanted to provide his readers with garden tips that would help them combine traditional northern gardening with the exotic feel of the tropics. The first chapters of the book focus on establishing a turfgrass lawn (“No matter whether you have a modest or palatial home, estate of building, it usually takes a beautiful lawn to give it the proper setting,” he notes on page 15), along with planting roses, azaleas, and lilies - plants Northerners would be familiar with, even if they were a little challenging to grow in Florida’s climate. He also provided lengthy chapters on hibiscus, camellias, and gardenias, appealing to the desire to create a tropical oasis. Judging by the stock most nurseries carry, it’s fair to say these same desires exist among gardeners today. Although Uncle Pasco rarely recommended a native plant to these new Florida gardeners, many of his recommendations are still popular and acceptable in modern Florida gardens.

So What’s the Problem?  It’s when Uncle Pasco begins to focus on trees that we begin to see how these new residents quickly created an ecological nightmare for Florida’s native plants. Of the 24 trees he recommends in his chapter “Fast Growing Trees”, 18 (75%!) of them can now be found on the FLEPPC Category I and II invasive species list, which includes plants that are or may become “invasive exotics that are altering native plant communities by displacing native species, changing community structures or ecological functions, or hybridizing with natives.”

Let’s take a look at some of the recommendations from Uncle Pasco:

• Golden Rain Tree: (Koelreuteria elegans) native to eastern Asia, in China and Korea is a fast growing and colorful tree that does incredibly well in Florida. It is now listed as a category 2 invasive species in Florida.
• Melaleuca : (Melaleuca quinquenervia) is an aggressively spreading member of the myrtle family with blooms that attract butterflies and bees. Planted in numbers to help drain swampy portions of the Everglades, these trees quickly escaped plantings. Mellaleuca is highly flammable, which helped to worsen wildfires in the area and increase their intensity. It is now listed as a category 1 invasive in Florida.
• Tree of Gold (Tabebuia argentea) is native to South America where it was an important nesting tree for the highly endangered Spix’s Macaw (Cyanopsitta spixii). Each year it blooms with brilliant yellow trumpet shaped flowers.
• Golden Shower Tree (Cassia fistula) is native to southern Asia and blooms with lovely yellow flowers each spring. It develops large seed pods and has seeds that are toxic.
• Earleaf Acacia: (Acacia auriculiformis) It is native to Australia, Indonesia, and Papua New Guinea. It is now listed as a category 1 invasive in Florida.
• Australian Pine is native to Australia. Uncle Pasco Roberts notes that the shallow root system has been recently identified as a problem with the note “during the worst of hurricanes in the Everglades, they blew across the roadways and became a hazard.”. He further notes that the planting of this tree has become prohibited but continues to recommend it as windbreak protection perfect for wide open spaces and sandy beaches! It is now listed as a category 1 invasive and is prohibited from further planting in Florida.
• Chinese Tallow (Sapium sebiferum) is native to Eastern Asia and is now listed as a noxious weed on the Florida Invasive Species List. This tree had rapid growth and quickly outperforms native tree species. It is now listed as a category 1 invasive species in Florida.
• Mother’s Tongue Tree (Albizzia lebbek) is native to tropical southern Asia and drops huge seed pods over the course of two months in the spring. It is now listed as a category 1 invasive in Florida.
• Monkey Pod Tree (Pithecolobium) native to Mexico, Central America, and northern South America. Uncle Pasco Roberts writes: “The tree is good for shade, ornament and for food for monkeys”. Well, at least our Mystery Monkey of Tampa Bay can find some good forage out there!

Perhaps the most interesting recommendation is the Java Plum (Syzgium cumini), which is native to Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Indonesia. Uncle Pasco particularly praises this tree for for its fruit, and includes a recipe from his wife for Java Plum jelly. He proudly credits himself with the spread of this Category I invasive in the Tampa Bay area, noting on page 61:

The author came across several [Java Plum] trees in Laurel, Fla. about 1949 and from seeds and small trees obtained... I have helped popularize this tree in Pinellas and Hillsborough Counties to the extent that there are many hundreds now growing and some have reached 60 to 70 feet in height. The first seeds I planted produced a growth of 20 feet within three years...

 Uncle Pasco does not recommend a single native tree from Florida or even from the Southeast United States. This sort of gardening advice is precisely what landed Florida in the spot it is in today. Costly remediation efforts are being conducted every year to remove trees like these that have escaped cultivation and are outperforming our native trees. Non-native species are often unaffected by local diseases and pest populations and can spread unchecked by the normal balances of nature. To learn more about the problems caused by invasive plants in Florida, visit the Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council website.

A 1962 view of “pesky worms”: Uncle Pasco’s 50-year-old advice contains other recommendations that modern gardeners would do well to ignore. Among these are his recommendations on fertilizer (everything needs it!) and pesticides.

Butterfly gardening has really only been popularized in recent years, so reading 50-year-old commentary on caterpillar destruction can be a touch unsettling.The beautiful Cloudless Sulhpur and Orange Barred Sulhpur butterfies host on many species of cassia, including Christmas Cassia (Cassia bicapsularis). Butterfly gardeners today welcome these creatures, but Uncle Pasco disagreed. In the planting guide for April on page 89, he says, “This is the month that most of the insects, pests, etc begin to show up in numbers... For instance those pesky worms appear on... cassia (Cassia bicapsularis)... and look like part of the foliage or flowers. Spray with arsenate of lead.”

Uncle Pasco seems to dislike caterpillars on general principal. The quick and darting Canna Skipper butterfly hosts in the leaves of native and ornamental cannas where it rolls the leaf around itself for protection from predators.  In the February planting guide (p. 86), he tells us, “One of the old time garden favorites that is staging a comeback is the canna... they are very easy to grow but are bothered however with leaf-rollers that cut good sized holes in the leaves. This may be controlled with a Chlordane dust.”

Not surprisingly, every pesticide Uncle Pasco recommends is now banned or not used in the United States. Chlordane was a carcinogenic insecticide that has not been sold in the United States since 1983; arsenate of lead was banned in 1988. He also recommends Nemagon (banned in 1975), Toxaphene (banned in 1986), and explains the proper application of DDT for flea control.

Lessons Learned: It’s important to remember that we can’t blame Uncle Pasco Roberts for his advice. A number of the species he suggests were also found listed in an article by the Florida State Horticultural Society from 1951 entitled Ornamental Trees, Shrubs, and Vines for South Florida Homes by Frank J Rimoldi. Clearly, this was the sort of information that was available to new Florida residents in the 1950’s and 1960’s, and they didn’t know then what we know now. The gardeners of 50 years ago had no idea how out of control their plantings could become. No one meant to destroy native habitats, or apply pesticides that would cause cancer, but lack of knowledge caused widespread and far-reaching damage.

What should we as modern gardeners learn from Uncle Pasco? Perhaps the most important thing to understand is that we all must become more considerate and thoughtful gardeners. We should learn more about the plants we choose to put in our yards, and think about what will happen when we’re no longer there to take care of them. Mexican Petunia is tempting at the nursery with its fast-growth habit and numerous pretty purple flowers, but this Category I invasive is displacing native wild petunia (Ruellia humilis) used by Buckeye caterpillars as a host plant, and it’s nearly impossible to remove once established in a yard due to its deep root system and aggressive seed distribution. Florida-Friendly Gardeners are learning to consider native plants when possible and carefully investigate non-native species before introducing them into the ecosystem.

It’s really about a return to common sense. If we can avoid chemicals in the garden, we should, whether the EPA tells us they’re safe or not. Today’s “safe pesticide” is tomorrow’s DDT. When chemicals like pesticides and fertilizers are necessary, we can use them sparingly, rather than applying them widely and regularly regardless of need. Rather than looking for fast results, which Uncle Pasco and the new Florida residents of 50 years ago desired, we can plan for the future and work toward a yard worth having and enjoying - safely.

Uncle Pasco teaches us to learn from the past. As Dr. Dale E. Turner said, “Some of the best lessons we ever learn are learned from past mistakes. The error of the past is the wisdom and success of the future.” We don’t need to cast blame on Uncle Pasco and his contemporaries, but we can certainly see where they went wrong and try to avoid similar mistakes in the future.

There'll Be Some Changes Made

My Florida Backyard is taking advantage of some Blogger features and making a few changes to the page. So what's new?

• The page layout has changed a bit, with the main posts on the left and sidebar items moved to the right.
• The background is a little fancier, and photos now have a white border to help them stand out.
• Some of the links and information formerly found in the sidebar can now be found in the tabs across the top under the header, such as "Sites to Learn More" and "Where to Get What You Need". We'll be adding more tabs to make navigation easier, such as a list of local nurseries that My Florida Backyard likes.

Our goal is always to keep the page easy for users to read and enjoy. If you have comments about the new look, please let us know. We'll keep tinkering with it until we're happy... just like we do with the gardens in My Florida Backyard!

Lo, How a Rose is Growing

Back in March, My Florida Backyard planted its first rose, a pink double Knock Out. We'd been hesitant to plant roses, especially in Florida, because they generally require a great deal of care, and one of our basic rules is to avoid plants that might require excessive pesticides, fungicides, or fertilizer. We were assured, though, that Knockout roses are easy to grow, and it turns out that was certainly true.

Here's the rose when planted in early March:

And here it is now:

By comparing it to the bricks on the wall behind it, you can easily see how much it's grown. By our measurements, it's now about 2.5 feet tall; it was about a foot tall when we planted it. And the growing season is just getting started! Other than some rose fertilizer spikes and the occasional dead-heading, we've done nothing to it, and it looks great. We can certainly add Knock Out roses to our list of Florida-Friendly plants!

The bush to the right of the rose is a Silver Buttonwood (Conocarpus erectus), a really wonderful Florida native with beautiful silver foliage. Our two buttonwoods are planted on the west side of the house where they get a minimum of 6-8 hours of direct sunlight daily. This native is salt-tolerant, so you often see it along beaches and in coastline landscaping.

Buttonwood, unfortunately, doesn't like frost. It's generally considered hardy to Zone 9b. Being close to the house, ours have never shown any damage before, but we all know this past winter was very harsh. One of our buttonwoods took very serious damage and is only just now recovering. Several branches had to be cut off to the ground, but new growth is beginning to show and we expect the bush to rebound. The other took damage to the leaves, but the wood itself seemed to be spared. It has now put out new and beautiful foliage and is doing well.

So, like most everything in a Florida summer, our rose and buttonwoods are growing like crazy. We love to watch life thrive in the summertime in My Florida Backyard!

Buzz Buzz Buzz

As if the warm temps weren't indication enough that spring has finally arrived, today My Florida Backyard is enjoying the sweet scent of citrus blossoms with every breeze that blows through. We don't have any citrus in our gardens but many of the neighbors do, so every deep breath we take outside is full of the intoxicating scent.

Our front garden is contributing to the party, though, because the holly bush is in flower. Holly saves its showiness for the red berries and shiny leaves, and the tiny little blooms give off only a light fragrance that you have to be very close to notice.

It was when I was poking my nose into the holly to enjoy the smell when I realized that the whole bush seemed to be buzzing. Upon closer inspection, I realized that while the scent might be light to human noses, it was clearly a beacon for the honey bees, for nearly every blossom had an inquisitive fellow poking around for nectar.

At a healthy distance, bees are fascinating creatures that every gardener should have true respect for. After all, bees provide something like one-third of the pollination needed for edible plants, which is why the recent decline in honey bee populations is something to be concerned about. Since 2004, honey bees have been dying off at an alarming rate, possibly due to the widespread use of pesticides intended to control other insects. This is yet another reason My Florida Backyard avoids pesticides, except when spot-treating fire ant mounds.

Gardeners should welcome bees to their yards. Of course, as with nearly all wild creatures, it's best to give bees a wide berth and let them do their thing. As my mom used to say, "If you leave them alone, they'll leave you alone." Unless honeybees have decided to colonize your attic (in which case you should probably seek professional help!), just enjoy the busy buzzing of the bees as they help our gardens grow and thrive!

Looking for Space

My Florida Backyard took another step this week toward the goal of eliminating as much boring, fairly useless grass from our front lawn as possible. This gives us more room for interesting plants that can attract wildlife and, quite frankly, look much better than patchy grass.

To that end, we decided to expand the front garden from two arcs:

Into one big arc:

Now the tantalizing question remains... what to plant in all the new space? We already have a lot of fountain grass and muhly grass lining the walkways, with plumbago bushes on the right side and beach sunflower under the tree. We'd like to continue with more yellows, purples, and blues - we do have some Blazing Star (liatris) bulbs to scatter throughout the new and old beds, so their purple should mix nicely with the purples of the muhly grass in the fall.

Any suggestions? Bear in mind that we have some pretty firm rules about not using supplemental irrigation once a plant is established... it needs to survive on the rain Mother Nature provides (or doesn't). This area faces southwest and gets lots of sun in the hottest part of summer. We'd like some low plants along the edge in front, and higher plants or even a shrub in the middle. We prefer native plants, though we're flexible as long as they're Florida-Friendly, and we really don't like to have to do a lot of maintenance in the front yard. Now, with all these thoughts in mind, what should we put in our newly-expanded garden?

Let's Start the New Year Right

Last night's balmy weather was driven out by thunderstorms and a cold north wind early this morning - not exactly the way I would have welcomed the new year, but we did get another one of those watercolor sunsets out of it.
Regardless of the weather, a new year has begun, and optimistic people everywhere are making resolutions. We're making a few as well, ones that we hope will help us keep My Florida Backyard a Florida-friendly wildlife habitat throughout 2010.

1. Pull at least one weed every day.
2. Fill the bird feeder at least once a week.
3. Keep the palm tree free of dead fronds and fruit (which draws wasps).
   

We also have a few goals for the year, ones that can't really be called resolutions because it won't be entirely our fault if the wildlife refuses to comply.

1. Draw sulphur butterflies and caterpillars to our yard by establishing cassia plants, native when possible
2. Lure in some hummingbirds, both with plants and a feeder
3. Provide habitat for tree frogs by installing a few treefrog houses

Mark Twain said, "New Year's Day… now is the accepted time to make your regular annual good resolutions. Next week you can begin paving hell with them as usual." Still, we'll do our best, because our resolutions are for the good of everyone who lives in or visits My Florida Backyard.

"The old year has gone...
All hail the duties and possibilities of the coming twelve months!"
Edward Payson Powell

The Ants Go Marching

We love most bugs in My Florida Backyard. In general, they're part of a healthy balanced garden, and can often be fascinating to watch.

And then there are fire ants.

Ants are amazing creatures. Their colonies and work ethics are beyond compare in the animal kingdom - I have no doubt that given the opportunity, ants could take over the earth and probably run it better than we do. For the most part, I admire ants.

So why do we in My Florida Backyard feel so differently about fire ants? Perhaps this picture of a fire ant queen and some of her minions can begin to answer the question...

Still not convinced?

Fire ants are an invasive species in Florida. Originally from Argentina, fire ants were accidentally introduced to the U.S. in 1918. Since then, they've spread throughout most southern states. They have no natural controls here, so they've been able to proliferate unchecked.

Fire ants are aggressive. If you step on a mound accidentally, they will attack in force. I can understand the need to defend your home, but honestly, these guys are nasty. The bite is painful at first, and then insanely itchy. Some people (including yours truly) swell up around the bite site, and suffer from the bites for days afterward.

Fire ant colonies build enormous unsightly mounds that deface your landscaping. Case in point:

Once they show up in your yard, they can be pretty hard to get rid of. Even harsh chemical treatments are only effective temporarily. Unless you choose to treat your entire yard every couple of weeks (which is horrifyingly bad for the environment), you're going to get occasional fire ant infestations in Florida.

General "Green" Pesticide Rules:

• It's always best to use pesticides reactively rather than proactively. On other words, treat only when you discover the problem.
• Always treat as minimally as possible to eliminate the pests. More is not always better.
  
• When you can, use treatments approved for organic gardening, as they are generally better for the environment.
• Find a treatment that attacks only the specific pest you have. It's not desirable to kill every insect in your garden; in fact, that's usually the worst thing you can do.
• Always leave a "buffer zone" if you live on the water. Experts recommend avoiding pesticide and fertilizer applications within 30 feet of water to avoid runoff contamination.

All of that being said, what fire ant treatments can environmentally-conscious gardeners use? Well, as always, you're not going to find effective "green" treatments at the big box stores, so it's best to try local eco-friendly nurseries. If you can't find what you need locally, you can go online. Clean Air Gardening offers organic fire ant treatments - we like Green Light Fire Ant Control. They also offer details on less toxic ways to deal with these demon creatures.

Fire ants are a fact of life in My Florida Backyard. Because of them, I always garden in jeans with shoes and socks - the less skin I expose, the less likely I am to be bitten. But for the most part, they don't keep me from enjoying the year-round pleasures of the great Florida outdoors - and that's what's important.

It's Not That Easy Being Green (Reprise)

With yesterday's post, I've finished looking at the difficulty of implementing the National Wildlife Federation's six tips for a green garden. For those who like to see everything all at one time, all in one place, here's a summary* of my oh-so-expert analysis. Remember that all ratings are on a scale of 1 - 5, 5 being the most difficult. For more details on my analysis of each tip, click the tip to read the original post.

Tip #1:
Reduce the size of your lawn. Better yet, consider eliminating it entirely.

Our Rating:
Initial: 4 – 5
Overall: 1


Explanation:
There's definitely an initial investment of time in changing your water-hungry lawn to a greener garden. However, down the line, your payoff is very rewarding indeed! Our lawn maintenance is almost zero during the winter months, and during the summer months, it takes only 10 - 15 minutes a week. Take the time to do some up-front work, and reap the benefits in the long run.



Tip #2:
Use hand tools instead of power equipment.

Our Rating:
Overall: 2



Explanation:
Although tools like a classic reel mower may take a little more exercise and cause some Beaver Cleaver remarks from neighbors, today’s models are easy to maintain and operate. If you’ve reduced the size of your lawn as suggested in tip #1, then this tip becomes pretty easy to implement. Plus, hand tools like rakes are a heckuva lot cheaper than leaf blowers.



Tip #3:
Choose materials with low-embodied energy.

Our Rating:
Overall: 2



Explanation:
The most difficult part of this tip is probably the research involved. Just remember to consider the total amount of energy involved in manufacturing the materials and transporting them to your yard. Choose materials like wood or crushed shell over concrete bricks or solid cement. Ask questions to find out where and how materials are made, and choose locally when possible.

Tips #4 and 5:
Emphasize woody plants that capture more carbon than fleshy herbaceous species. Plant trees and shrubs where they will block winter winds and provide shade in summer.

Our Rating:
Overall: 1

Explanation:
The key here is to remember that “woody plants” doesn’t have to mean trees. In a small lot, you may not want to plant many more tall trees than you already have. However, you can choose shrubs or woody plants that provide the same benefits. Plan your plantings to help your house conserve energy, sit back, and enjoy! (Don't forget - you can get 10 free trees with an Arbor Day Foundation membership!)

Tip #6:
Minimize, or better yet eliminate, the use of fertilizers and pesticides on your property.

Our Rating:
Overall: 2 - 3


Explanation:
Most Florida-Friendly plants will need minimal fertilization to thrive in our sandy soil, but when fertilizers are necessary, choose natural over synthetic. Depending on where you live, these may not be available locally, involving a little more work combing the internet. As for pesticides – many of the bugs in your garden are beneficial. Fire Ants? Don’t get me started on Fire Ants. Try a natural killer and spot treat only when you find them rather than putting down a broadcast killer on a regular basis.


So where does that leave us? Well, I have to go back to my friend Kermit, who really says it best:

"When green is all there is to be,
It could make you wonder why. But, why wonder, why wonder?
I am green and it'll do fine.
It's beautiful and I think it's what I want to be."


*To quote Inigo Montoya, "Let me 'splain... No, there is too much. Let me sum up."

It's Not That Easy Being Green (or is it?)

Kermit the Frog famously told us it's not easy to be green. And in many ways, I think he may be right. It would be a lot easier to throw all my trash away, instead of separating for recycling. It would be a lot easier to spray every ant wandering my yard with pesticides, or to buy the Miracle-Gro readily available at every store instead of scouring the internet for organic alternatives. But surprisingly often, being green is actually easier than the alternative.

In an article from this month's National Wildlife magazine, Janet Marinelli asks "How Green Is Your Garden?" She highlights yards in California where the gardeners have created gardens that help reduce carbon emissions. Pictures highlight landscapes full of blooming flowers and cool green oases, all intended to require minimal watering, chemicals, and upkeep from power tools.

Janet's article includes Six Ways to Save Energy and Reduce Your Yard’s Carbon Footprint. In an effort to consider if it really is harder to "be green", I'm going to dedicate my next series of blog posts to considering these six tips, all of which we've employed to some extent in My Florida Backyard. I'll let you know what we've done to comply, and how they rate on a difficulty scale of 1 - 5, with 1 being ridiculously easy and 5 being a heck of a lot of effort.

For now, here are the six tips, with full and complete credit given to National Wildlife magazine, published by the National Wildlife Federation, April/May 2009 edition.

1. Reduce the size of your lawn. Better yet, consider eliminating it entirely. Families with young children require only a small area of lawn where the kids can play. Everyone else can manage without turf by creating patios for living space, enlarging planting beds or installing a rock garden.

Tip: Consider replacing your lawn with a native wildflower meadow. This will provide habitat for wildlife and requires no watering after its young plants are established. Since introducing plants to your property that are not indigenous to your region can contribute to ecological problems, ask your local native plant society which species are appropriate to cultivate.

2. Use hand tools instead of power equipment. When you reduce the size of your lawn, for example, you’ll only need a push mower.

3. Choose materials with low-embodied energy. Brick and concrete have large carbon footprints compared to gravel and especially wood. Used brick and other recycled materials are good choices, too.

4. Emphasize woody plants that capture more carbon than fleshy herbaceous species. Create a flower meadow or vegetable patch, but plant most of your property with low-maintenance native trees and shrubs, preferably those that also provide food and nesting and resting places for birds and other wildlife. Again, choose species native to your region.

5. Plant trees and shrubs where they will block winter winds and provide shade in summer. This will reduce the amount of energy required to heat and cool your home and thus reduce your carbon footprint even further. The particular landscape strategy depends on your climate.

Tip: For more details, see "Landscaping for Energy Efficiency," a booklet produced for the U.S. Department of Energy and available online at www.eere.energy.gov.

6. Minimize, or better yet eliminate, the use of fertilizers and pesticides on your property. Use compost and mulch produced from garden trimmings to enrich your soil instead, and use native plants that are naturally pest resistant.

If You Build It, They Will Come

When we first moved into the house in November 2007, we spent most of the first few months focused on the inside and basics - roof, windows, painting, minor repairs, light fixtures, etc. Finally, in March 2008, it was time to tackle the yard. To begin, of course we needed to assess what we had to work with and what we wanted to accomplish.

Our yard is tiny - about one-tenth of an acre. There were a few "gardens" around the front of the house, but the rest was patchy grass and overgrown weeds. On one side, the neighbors had a wooden fence. In the backyard, we had about 15 feet of yard from the edge of the screened-in porch; the remaining 15 feet or so down to the lake belonged to the community and was cared for by the HOA.

So, we didn't have much to start with, but we had very definite visions about what we wanted to create. Our main goal was to take our tiny piece of suburban Tampa and create our own mini wildlife refuge. We couldn't control what our neighbors did, but we could take charge of our own yard. We laid a few ground rules:

• Use native plants whenever possible. Other "Florida Friendly" plants could be used, but invasive species had to be eliminated if already present.
• Create a low-maintenance yard that would require minimal care, especially in the ridiculously hot summer months.
• Avoid chemical fertilizers and pesticides in general, and use organic-based fertilizers and pesticides on an as-needed basis.
• Garden for wildlife. Create an environment where creatures could find food, shelter, nesting areas, etc. and wouldn't be threatened by poisons or other harsh environmental factors.

As with most projects, we made sketches, laid down a budget (yeah, right!), and enlisted help (Thanks, Mom!). Over the last year, we've made remarkable progress, and today we have a yard that attracts dozens of birds each day, has a thriving butterfly garden in the summer and fall months, requires little watering, fertilizer, or pesticides, and just generally makes us happy.

My goal with this blog is to provide others with the benefit of our knowledge. I plan to show in detail how we turned a little plot of land into a thriving wildlife sanctuary, right here on the edge of a big city. I'll display pictures of our daily visitors and tell you how we bring them to our yard. And I'll share my ongoing successes and failures as I continue to learn what works in My Florida Backyard, so perhaps you can try the same in yours.