How My Garden Grows: Three

Margot’s “Get-Real” Guide for Gardening in the South

Dear Readers,

[After you read this entry, click: How My Garden Grows: Four.]

I confess that I am a “fair-weather” gardener.  The best months in NW Florida to enjoy gardening are:  October, November, early December; March, April, and May.

There are many things you need to know about, if you are a first-time gardener, or if you are a “frustrated” gardener.

I will give you my best gardening tips:

Purchase the Book:

• The very best book I have found is The Southern Living Garden Book.
• This one is specific to the Southern climate and heat zone.

 Know Your Climate:

• Record Your Climate Zone here:   ____________   Mine in NW Florida is “Lower South” [LS].

• Record Your Plant Heat Zone here:   _____________  Mine is Zone 9.

Find a Nursery:

Find a small, locally-owned nursery that specializes in:

•  native plants
• education
• rain gardens
• xeriscaping
• attracting wildlife

In Tallahassee, my favorite nursery is Native Nursery.  If you go, please tell them I sent you:  I won’t receive any compensation but my friends at Native Nursery will be delighted to meet you.  Get to know the owners and staff by name.

Know Your Gardening Terms:

For instance, grass that you cut is “turf.”  Save the term “grass” to describe the “ornamental grasses.”

Turf plus everything else is “the garden,” a term which Anglophiles, such as I, relish using.

“Plants” is a woefully inadequate general term but I am going to use the term, anyway.

Look below at the amazing choices of “plants:”

Choose a Category:

In what plant category are you interested?

• Annuals
• Bulbs & bulb-like [corms, rhizomes, etc.]
• Evergreens
• Ferns
• Foliage:  solid color; variegated
• Fruits & berries
• Grasses:  Ornamental
• Ground covers
• Herbs
• Perennials
• Shrubs & bushes [I cannot remember the difference.]
• Trees
• Vegetables
• Vines

Speak Compass: 

• Use a compass to identify the sun exposure on the sides of your home and garden.
• Draw a rough sketch of your home and garden.
• Label:  N, S, E W.
• Take the sketch to the nursery.

Know the Requirements of the Plant:

The label on the plant may not be correct because the labels are not “regional.”

Always check The Southern Living Garden Book first!

Requirements vary:

• Sun exposure:  Full Sun, Part Sun, Part Shade, Full Shade
• Moisture:  water and drainage
• Climate: heat and humidity
• Soil texture: sand, clay, or loam*
• Soil pH

 Speak Latin:

• Learn the Latin names of the plants!
• Regional names are not specific enough.
• There are many “spider lilies,” for example, but only one Lycoris.

 Choose a Theme:

What theme or purpose do you have in your garden?

For what problem do you require a solution?

• Beauty spots:  bed, border, or island
• Bullet-proof:  You cannot easily kill it.
• Care-free:  Very low maintenance.
• Containers:  pots, hanging baskets, and window boxes
• Exposure: sun or shade
• Food:  fruits & berries, kitchen herbs, or vegetables
• Flowers:  fragrant blooms and/or flowers for cutting
• Moisture:  Damp or wet area [Rain Garden is a solution]
• Moisture: Drought conditions [Xeriscape is a solution]
• Privacy:  hedge or screen
• Showy:  Color [blooms, foliage, stems, or bark] or seasonal interest
• Southern:  Heritage or Native
• Wildlife:  butterflies, songbirds, and hummers

Choose plants that are Care-Free AND Bullet-Proof:

Must have: 

Pleasant fragrance/odor

Long-life

Attraction for wildlife:  butterflies, hummingbirds, and songbirds

Must be:

“Self-cleaning”

Self-propogating

Hardy and tough

Native

Non-invasive

Tolerant of extreme ranges of:  salt, sun/shade, temperature, moisture, ph, soil quality, and soil texture.

Must be free of:

Pests

Fungus

Soot

Mold

Toxicity and poisonous properties

Allergic reaction in people or pets

Does not require:

Spray, soap, oil, powder

Pruning

Staking

Dividing

Fertilizer [special]

Soil amendment

Desirable:

Color:  blooms or foliage or bark

Year-round interest [or at least more than one season]

Evergreen

Florida Native

~~~Compiled by Margot Blair Payne, May 2012