The vegetable gardens in Lake Nona are in full bloom for the spring. If you planted your spring vegetable garden back in March, then your seeds have all sprouted and matured, and your starter plants have started to produce. Now is a time for fertilizing, pruning, and dealing with any insect issues in the garden. When the season started, most gardeners amended the soil with … [Read more...]
In the Garden: The Power of Herbs!
Did you know that herbs are not only delicious and nutritious, but they can also be used in landscaping and they can help control insects in the surrounding areas of the yard? Herbs can be a beautiful addition to the Florida-friendly landscape. Any lawn can be enhanced by adding heat-tolerant herbs like the beautiful rosemary or African Blue Basil to the border of walkways … [Read more...]
In the Garden: Attracting Pollinators to the Central Florida Garden
Many of us live in areas that have had a lot of recent construction or current construction that is damaging to the environment and natural habitat. We recognize the animals that are displaced, but what about the beneficial insects like bees, butterflies and other pollinators? Pollinators are vital to a vegetable garden. Some vegetables are self-pollinating, but others … [Read more...]
In the Garden: Who Knew a Properly Planned Spring Vegetable Garden Will Produce for Six Months?
The spring vegetable gardening season begins, for most, after the threat of frost is gone. Planting in the beginning of March is typically a safe bet as the last frost of the year in Central Florida is usually sometime in February. This winter season was quite mild, where we never even got a frost. In comparison, last year we got our first frost in November and a hard freeze in … [Read more...]
In the Garden: Size Doesn’t Matter in a Square Foot Vegetable Garden!
Here’s how to get the most out of vegetable gardening in small spaces. Now, I didn’t invent square foot gardening – it’s been around for decades. Mel Bartholomew documented square foot gardening principles in 1976 as an alternative to traditional row vegetable gardens. As many of us live in social communities with smaller lot lines, we know that a traditional row vegetable … [Read more...]