Florida-friendly landscaping principles:

Right plant, right place

Have you ever bought a plant that looked great at the nursery or garden center, only to have it die once you planted it?

One way to avoid this heartbreaking scenario is by putting the right plant in the right place - matching the plant to the site conditions. This encompasses far more than simply putting sun worshiping plants in your yard's sunny spots. You also need to consider things like maintenance and water needs.

Water efficiently

Even though watering restrictions are commonplace throughout Florida, many homeowners still overwater. Overwatering does more than deplete the water supply; it also makes plants prone to pests and adds to storm water runoff, which pollutes our water systems. By choosing and operating a watering system correctly, you can reduce water bills, insect and disease problems, and maintenance requirements. Don't let the calendar tell you when to water - look to your plants for telltale signs of water needs.

Fertilize appropriately

At the most basic level, fertilizers feed plants, helping them to grow better. Did you know that you can choose fertilizers that can direct your plants' growth in specific ways? Different types of fertilizers encourage plants to develop:

More or larger blooms

Greener leaves

Faster growth

More fruit

Fertilizing can be done by applying composted organic material, packaged fertilizer or a specific mineral, such as iron.

Attract wildlife

A mulch layer around trees, shrubs, planted beds and covering bare ground provides many benefits. In areas that are difficult to mow, irrigate or otherwise maintain, use mulch to replace turf or groundcovers. Also consider placing mulch in shady areas where plants don't grow well.

Mulch

A mulch layer around trees, shrubs, planted beds and covering bare ground provides many benefits. In areas that are difficult to mow, irrigate or otherwise maintain, use mulch to replace turf or groundcovers. Also consider placing mulch in shady areas where plants don't grow well.

Recycle

Landscape maintenance activities - mowing, pruning, raking - generate yard waste that you can return to the soil, recycling valuable nutrients. It is easy to recycle yard waste.

Reduce runoff

Many of Florida's water resources are especially susceptible to pollution because of our unique geology and climate.

Floridians obtain most of their drinking water from ground water supplies. Dissolved pollutants reach ground water through a process called leaching. These impurities affect the quality of our drinking water. Heavy rainfall, typical during Florida's rainy season, is a major cause of leaching and stormwater runoff.

Surface waters in Florida such as lakes, streams, rivers and estuaries are very sensitive to even small amounts of pollution.

Protect waterfront

Waterfront property owners have firsthand knowledge of the special contribution lakes, ponds, rivers, streams and lagoons make to Florida's quality of life. Florida-Friendly Yards located on a waterfront must address certain challenges and responsibilities. As a next-door neighbor to these natural resource treasures, you must make it your mission to practice good environmental stewardship. To design and maintain a landscape that borders a waterfront of any sort requires a strong focus on the natural environment, as well as on environmental impact.