Two Years and Counting: Lessons Learned

Our wonderful landscape designer, Lisa Strange, reminded me last week that it has been two years since we completed our Extreme Yard Makeover. Lisa stopped by our yard to see how everything looked and I thought back about all the work we put into the landscape transformation and what I've learned from the experience. Here are my Top Five Lessons Learned:


1. There is no such thing as a garden that takes care of itself.


I had an unrealistic view that our grass-free landscape, once completed, would just truck along without any assistance from us. Hah! I know now that all landscapes need care and maintenance to thrive. Plants grow, mulch breaks down, leaves fall, drought happens.  Plants need water, pruning, dividing, mulching, and occasionally some non-toxic pest control to look their best. Like a marriage, you can't just plant a garden and forget about it. You must nurture it.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        

Our back yard May 2012

Our back yard May 2010

But I am happy to report that our original goal for the yard makeover -- Mo' Fishing! Less Mowing! --  has been achieved. Ditching the grass; choosing tough, Florida-tested plants; and installing easy-care shell and gravel pathways has dramatically reduced the amount of time we spend on "yard work." We now spend most of our weekends having fun. Truthfully, even working in our new and vastly improved yard is fun!


2. Garden projects will always take longer, be more difficult and cost more money than you expect.


I coerced my husband into the Extreme Yard Makeover by telling him that it would only take us a couple of months, and would be relatively easy and cheap.  Part of that was true -- much of it was not. I didn't lie. I just didn't know what "lie" ahead!!


Getting rid of the grass was easy. But then came the hard part. We had to rent a small Bobcat to smooth out the "moguls" in our front yard (Rick did have a good time with that "Big Boy Toy!"). We had to remove literally every existing plant in our yard, most of which had been planted in the wrong place to begin with, or were just butt-ugly things like those horrid queen palms we dug up. If you have ever tried to remove a palm root ball (or any tree) by hand, you know what we went through! We hauled in truckloads of mulch and shell and gravel and had to cart it, one wheelbarrow at a time, to its final destination.

Rick driving the Bobcat

We discovered that having large trees all around means that you have large roots underneath. We could easily work around our live oak roots, but the elm trees in the back had a sprawling network of vein-like roots that apparently cover every square foot of our property.  They made planting anything an expletive-laced exercise in frustration. Example: It took two weeks for us to clear and completely plant the front yard, with our huge live oak. It took more than two months to clear and plant our back yard, even with our beloved tree shovel (see Lesson #3). I did, however, have some serious muscles in my upper arms by the time we were done.


Plants themselves are expensive, although I was fortunate to acquire many freebies (see Lesson #4). Our small trees, the two East Palatka hollies, Weeping Yaupon holly, and Majestic Beauty Hawthorne, cost $75 each. Coonties are $15-$20 each and we have about 15 of them. Evergreen Liriope is a bargain, at about $2 each, but we have about 40 of those! However, there is no doubt in my mind that the front-end investment is more than justified. We use hardly any water on this landscape, and most of the water we use comes from our rain barrels. I know folks in high-end developments with in-ground irrigation systems and large, grass-dominated landscapes who spend $50-$100 or more every month just to water their grass! Our water bill averages $5-$6 a month.

Our weeping yaupon holly
 right after planting

We don't have to pay a lawn service to mow, fertilize or apply pesticides to our new yard, or spend our free time doing that ourselves. We gave away our lawn mower!


And most of the plants we chose are "lifers" -- they'll be with us for years, or even decades. 


Grass is definitely the cheapest landscape choice in the short run - that's why developers love to thrown down sod on new homesites-- but the most expensive in the long run. Plus, IMHO, grass is just plain boring.



3. Good garden tools are worth their weight in gold.

Rick with our new wheelbarrow
and the "Super Shovel"

We started the yard makeover with a cheap shovel, a hoe, a rake and a rusty wheelbarrow with one wheel about to fall off. It did, in fact, fall off about two weeks into the project. By the time we finished, we owned a good wheelbarrow, an axe, a pickax, a posthole digger, a good tree saw, and -- my favorite garden tool ever -- an $80 tree shovel that will slice through just about anything short of concrete.


I still remember my husband's sticker shock when I came home with the $80 shovel. Then he used it. Never heard a peep out of him after that. 


4. Gardeners are the most generous and helpful people on earth.


My plant-loving friends, neighbors and colleagues took a keen interest in our yard makeover. Free seeds, cuttings and starter pots of plants came pouring in. Many were not in Lisa's landscape plan, but many were. I received a chickasaw plum seedling and several home-grown coonties from my colleague Carlos -- saving me a bunch of money, since coonties are expensive. Virginia provided, and continues to provide, all sorts of native wildflower seeds. She also gave me a stunning bird's nest anthurium that is a focal point of our backyard. Suzanne gave me a cardboard palm that she had carried with her in a pot from one new home to another for 15 years. I planted it in the front yard, and it has taken off.

Thank you sign I posted by little coontie
 plants Carlos gave me.

5. Landscape designers and garden coaches are very good investments.


I knew I needed professional help with our yard makeover. I realized I had many every mistake in the gardening book. Both Rick and I agreed that, if were going to go to all this trouble and work, we wanted to do it right this time. We have never regretted hiring Lisa to develop a landscape plan for us. She came up with a design that looks good (instead of the haphazard mess I left behind) and that fits our needs and lifestyle. She chose lots of native plants, at our request, and also lots of inexpensive, Florida-friendly plants (like the liriope) that helped keep our costs down.

Our landscape plan

Having expert assistance in developing a landscape plan will probably cost less than you think, and save you from wasting money on plants not suited to your site conditions or location. Whether you want to make small changes or wholesale do-overs like we did, landscape designers and gardening coaches can help you plant the "right plant in the right place" and achieve success.


So, these are a few of the lessons I've learned from my yard makeover. What are the most important lessons you've learned as a gardener?

Made In The Shade

Farewell, Spring. You were glorious and surprisingly persistent this year. But Summer has finally moved in and with it the sizzling heat and wilting humidity that can make gardening in West Central Florida such a challenge. 


Thanks to the magnificent mature live oak in my front yard, my front yard sails through summer. The plants there have their own "beach umbrella" thanks to the oak's leafy canopy. We had no idea how beneficial large trees can be until we embarked on our grand yard makeover. We have been amazed at how well the oak canopy insulates our plants from cold in the winter, and from heat in the summer. The plants under the oak also require much less water than those in full sun, thanks to both the shade and the free mulch provided by the thick layer of oak leaves.


The oak tree keeps us cool too. What's not to love?

My front yard, shaded by a large live oak

Granted, you do need to keep in mind that large trees have large appetites. They an easily outcompete other plants for available resources, especially water. Contrary to popular belief, their root systems are generally shallow and wide, not narrow and deep. Roots typically extend 2 to 3 times beyond the drip line of the canopy, so the actual "footprint" of a tree is much larger than what you see.


In our backyard, which is shaded by two large elms, many of the Ocala anise shrubs we planted along the fence line are struggling. They like wet feet to begin with, and the elms are hogging all the water. Additionally the roots of the elms are so numerous and densely packed that the roots of the anise  have literally no room to spread out. The anise shrubs farthest away from the elms are flourishing; those closest to the elms have barely grown since we planted them two years ago. A classic case of "wrong plant, wrong place." I finally took the pathetic anise shrubs out and am mulling over what to try in that area next. Suggestions, anyone? 


Unlike the elms, the live oak coexists beautifully with other plants. I continue to marvel at the variety of shrubs, groundcovers and even flowers that bask in its leafy embrace. 


Many people seem to think the areas underneath large trees are destined to be dead zones. Nothing could be further from the truth.


Here are my top six favorite shade plants. Six because five just wasn't enough! 

Oakleaf Hydrangea

Oakleaf Hydrangea  
(Hydrangea quercifolia)                                                                 
This native hydrangea produces large, showy leaves and gorgeous clusters of white blossoms. Give it lots of room -- it can get big and wide, but what a  showstopper!                                                                              

Cast Iron Plant

Cast Iron Plant
(Aspidistra elatior)                   


The ultimate trouble-free shade champion. Its tall, glossy, deep green leaves look great in mass plantings under a tree.

Peacock Ginger

Peacock Ginger (Kaempferia spp.)  
               
A lovely low-growing groundcover, with wide leaves and delicate purple flowers. I have seen peacock ginger thriving in rain gardens, but mine is very drought-tolerant in its shady home and spreads readily.

Rouge Plant

Rouge Plant 
(Rivina humilis)                                      
Another Florida native, named because its crushed berries were used in cosmetics. Pretty pinkish-white flowers and red berries grace this small shrub that will reach only 5-6 feet in height. Very shallow-growing, thin roots make this a great choice beneath trees.                                                    

'White Christmas' Caladium

Caladiums
(Caladium spp.)   


Thanks to Hoe and Shovel blogger Meems and Central Florida Gardener blogger Susan, I am now a passionate fan of these summertime splashes of color. Pick your favorite, or mix and match light and dark-leaved varieties, and you'll have stunning color in your shade garden all summer. And, they'll pop back up all by themselves every year!               

Neoregelia 'Orange Crush'

Bromeliads 
(Bromeliad spp.)     
                                                             Another perfect plant for adding color to a shady area. Bromeliads come in an amazing variety of styles and colors. Some produce stunning flower spikes; others climb, and others have richly colored foliage. My favorite: Neoregilia 'Orange Crush'

Now it's your turn. What are your favorite "made in the shade" choices?

Butterflies are Evil Creatures

Aha! I bet I got your interest with the headline.

Do I really think butterflies are evil? Of course not! Like many of you, I've dedicated a sizable chunk of my landscape to encouraging them to visit, sip a while, and lay eggs. I have larval host plants for monarch butterflies, sulfur butterflies, black swallowtails, zebra longwings and Gulf fritillaries. 

But that's where the conundrum lies. I love, love, love these flying gems, but the gardener in me is horrified by the destruction they leave in their wake.

Exhibit Number One:

A lush, robust and garishly blooming red passionvine that looked spectacular on my fence in early March due to our warm winter.

And, here it is below, two days ago. Agent Orange could not have done a better job of defoliating it than the army of Gulf fritillaries that has stripped it over the last month. At peak munch, we counted 32 caterpillars on it at one time -- and I know we missed some!

The culprit: a Gulf fritillary caterpillar,
one of dozens

Yesterday, one lone caterpillar remained, relegated to chewing on bare stems.

I know red passionvine can be horribly invasive -- I've heard horror tales of it taking over pool enclosures and even climbing over roofs -- but in my yard it never gets the chance to outgrow its allotted space. The fritillaries see to that.

The sulfurs have arrived too, and their babies have already given the cassia tree a severe pruning.

 

I bought more milkweed to tide over the monarchs till the remnants of the last group gluttony recover. 

And I expect the parsley I scattered in pots around the yard will soon attract the interest of the black swallowtails. I saw one feeding on angelonia blooms recently, so I know the parsley's days are short-lived.

One of last year's crop of black swallowtails on parsley. Dill and fennel are also good host plants for this species, but parsley is easiest for me to grow in our hot summers.

It's always hard for me to bear the plant mutilation. I take great pride in caring for my garden and having it look good. But I wouldn't trade the result -- the fluttering, dipping and swooping splashes of color that grace my garden when the caterpillars finally turn into perfect winged jewels that always lift my spirits.

The reward: A Gulf fritillary butterfly

Besides, the plants will recover. They always do, and pretty quickly too. And then we'll be counting caterpillars again. 

The Subtle Beauty of Spiderwort

It pops up like a weed every Spring, and many people treat it like one, trampling it, ripping it out or mowing it down. Spiderwort (Tradescantia ohiensis) deserves better.

Spiderwort is not too picky about its home. It grows everywhere from the rich, mucky edges of ponds to pure sand. It takes blazing sun to part shade, and it doesn't ask for much water. It spreads by rhizomes, so a single plant will, in fairly short order, give you an entire bed.


Most importantly, they produce lovely little blue flowers. Who doesn't love blue in the garden, as a contrast to all that pink and red and yellow? A bonus? Bees, which apparently have a great affinity for blue, like it too!

Also called Dayflower because its blossoms open in the morning and close by midday, Spiderwort is a true Florida native found along roadsides, ponds, the understory of shrubs and trees, and anywhere it can get a toehold in a residential landscape, including cracks in sidewalks and driveways! I admit that I too viewed it as an unsightly weed until a few years ago, when a friend gave me a huge bag of them harvested from her garden.

Spiderwort blooms from spring to early summer. If you cut it back close to the ground in mid-summer, it will rejuvenate and bloom again in the fall. It makes a nice groundcover or addition to a wildflower bed. It only grows to 1-2 feet in height and will be happy in whatever space you give it.

I have grown to love it for its easygoing nature, extreme drought tolerance and its subtle beauty. Not big, not flashy, just steady, reliable and no trouble at all.  


That's my kind of plant.

It's Xeriscape, Not Zero-Scape!

It happens all the time. We tell people we have NO grass in our landscape, and their response is astonishment, followed by the inevitable question: "What do you have, one of those gravel yards?"


"No," we patiently answer, "we have plants. There are other plants besides grass, you know. Flowers, shrubs, trees, groundcovers."


The concept is called Xeriscaping, from the Latin word  for "dry" because of the focus on water-thrifty plants plants that thrive in Florida's heat -- a surprisingly long list, actually, but one that doesn't include St. Augustine, the most popular and coveted variety of turfgrass.


It is not Zero-scape, though I often hear it mispronounced that way.

Our backyard before the Extreme Yard Makeover

That same area of our backyard after the makeover

I knew, theoretically, about our society's obsession with manicured green lawns. But I didn't fully realize how deeply rooted (pun intended ) that obsession was until we kicked the lawn addiction ourselves.


The obsession seems to be most intense in deed-restricted neighborhoods, where HOA boards often view grass as the only landscape option. Who hasn't read about some poor hapless schmuck who was fined, or even taken to court, by his or her HOA for failure to maintain that lush green carpet of grass?


When I met my husband, he lived in a deed-restricted community in New Port Richey. Those of you who regularly read this blog will know that Rick is not exactly Mr. Greenjeans. "Despise" is not too strong a word to describe his view of yard work. Now, I'm still not sure why he moved into a deed-restricted community at all, but of course it resulted in numerous nastygrams from the HOA about the brown patches in his lawn, and even a personal visit from board emissaries. Once he received a letter for leaving four pieces of grapefruit from his backyard tree on the ground. When he received a letter threatening to place a lien on his house if he didn't comply with the lawn edicts, he gave in and hired a professional lawn care company to dump fertilizer, herbicides and pesticides on the lawn just to get the HOA off his back. Does this sound familiar to anyone?


At any rate, Rick moved into my house when we married. Seminole Heights is the polar opposite of a deed-restricted community, and we can safely flaunt our grass-free landscape with full impunity. Hopefully the happiest day of Rick's life was our wedding day. I suspect the second happiest was the day he gave away the lawn mower for good.


Even those of you who do live in neighborhoods with covenants and deed restrictions need not abandon hope of creating a Florida Yard. State law now forbids HOAs from preventing homeowners from implementing Florida-Friendly Landscapes following the principles taught by the Cooperative Extension Service. This fact sheet provides a simple summary of the law. Read the actual law here.


Now, that doesn't mean your community no longer has any say in your landscape.  You may very well still have to keep some grass -- usually around 30% coverage, and often including those small strips between sidewalks and streets. Rain barrels and compost bins may need to be kept in the backyard out of view. And rock and gravel landscapes are a definite no-go.  The first step in the process of working with your HOA is to read your covenants and restrictions with regard to landscaping standards, so you know what is expected.


Most importantly, you still need to get your board's approval before you begin. They may not have the slightest idea what a Florida-Friendly Landscape is. They may not know about the state law allowing FFL. Your mission is to be a Florida Yard ambassador, not a Florida Yard warrior. Don't go in with guns blazing, assuming they will say no to what you propose. Give them a chance, do your homework, and be patient. 


I can guarantee your Board's biggest fear is that your landscape will wind up as a barren wasteland of rocks and weeds, with a few shrubs scattered haphazardly around. Remember that a picture is worth a thousand words. Sketch out the design changes you want to make, and cut out photos of the plants you want to use and glue or tape them on your simple landscape plan.   


Below is a video featuring Gardening Coach and Be Floridian partner Pam Brown of Pampered Gardeners, who lives in a deed-restricted community herself. Pam has gradually, over a period of a few years, convinced her HOA to allow her to remove ALL the grass in her front yard except for that small sidewalk strip. I think you'll agree that her yard enhances property values in her neighborhood.


How'd she do this? Watch the video and see. Her advice may give you the confidence and determination to convince your own HOA board that Xeriscape is NOT zero-scape.

Trending Now: Florida-ness!

Call me delusional, but I really believe that people are beginning to understand that designing a yard adapted to Florida's fickle climate and sensitive environment makes sense.

We like to sit on our front porch and admire our beautiful Bay-Friendly Landscape 

The sheer numbers of friends and neighbors who have toured my own Bay-Friendly Landscape in the last two years indicate a growing interest in moving beyond that boring old monoculture of St. Augustine grass toward diverse and hardy landscapes that embrace our "Florida-ness." No matter where we hailed from originally, we are all Floridians now, and things are different here. Let the plastic pink yard flamingos run free!

I love my flamingo yard art!

I've also noticed, sadly, that interest in transforming landscapes often is followed by a dejected "I just don't know where to begin" resignation that often results in total inertia. 


I've been thinking lately about how to bridge this gap between desire and action, and offer these simple steps for all you landscape procrastinators:

• Take small bites. Tackle one area at a time. Of course, I didn't do this, but I was also prepared to dedicate every weekend for three months to remaking our entire yard. I realize most people can't do that -- and wouldn't want to if they could! Just start by removing one area of turf grass and replacing it with a groundcover, or carving out a nice bed for butterfly plants. My guess is that you'll like it so much you'll want to do more.

• Get a plan. Do some homework before you go to the nursery and start buying those oh-so-pretty plants you've never seen before that are calling your name. Think about what type of soil you have, whether you have sun or shade, how much watering you want to do, and whether you are willing to constantly replace tender tropicals every time we get a winter freeze.  Then select plants that share similar sun, soil and water needs -- a concept called "Right Plant, Right Place." Look for plants that meet your needs on www.floridata.com or www.floridayards.org. 

• Put it on paper. You don't have to be an artist, but it is very helpful to sketch out your landscape beds on paper. Note what plants you want in that area, and how far apart to plant them based on their mature height and width. You can even cut out photos of plants you like (the Internet is a gardener's delight) and group them so you can visualize how they'll look together. If you really think you are completely hopeless at this (I was!), hire a landscape designer or gardening coach. My husband and I did, and we never regretted it. Their fees are more reasonable than you might think, and they will almost always SAVE you money over the long run.  Check out the Be Floridian campaign's landscape design partners at http://www.befloridian.org/partners for designers and gardening coaches who specialize in landscapes for True Floridians.

Signs throughout the Bette Walker Discovery Garden describe important
 elements of Florida-Friendly Landscapes

• Beg, borrow and steal. Gardening is one area where all are condoned. Tour a lot of landscapes and take pictures of elements you like (color combos, planting beds, mulches) and then incorporate those great ideas into your own projects. I highly recommend visiting the Bette Walker Discovery Garden at the Hillsborough County Extension Office to see examples of all nine of the Florida-Friendly Landscaping principles in action.  Ask for seeds, cuttings or transplants of plants you like from friends' yards. Gardeners live to spread the love! 

• Attend workshops on Florida-Friendly gardening. Each county extension office offers these, and Master Gardeners trained by Extension experts give a variety of gardening workshops and clinics at libraries and other community venues. In my neighborhood, Master Gardeners give evening workshops on a different topic each month at my branch library. They are short, free and packed with information. If you can spare a Saturday, please attend the "Maintaining Your Florida Yard" workshop co-sponsored by the Tampa Bay Estuary Program and Pinellas County Extension on March 24 at Weedon Island Preserve in St. Petersburg.

Recognize these guys?
They're giving out good advice at the Discovery Garden.

Alright then, no more excuses! It's almost Spring -- time to get moving on making your yard a little more "Floridian." Please let me know if any of these tips are helpful, and how your landscape makeovers are coming along. YOU CAN DO IT!!!

Nature's Calendar on a Fast Track

As we bask smugly in vintage Florida postcard weather this winter, let's pause for a moment to remember the roller-coaster ride of the previous two years:

• Early 2010 was marked by the coldest January in a century, including 10 straight nights of temperatures near or below freezing.
• The Summer of 2010 was the warmest on record for West Central Florida, with 151 days of temperatures that reached or exceeded 90 degrees.
• December 2010 was the coldest December on record, with not one but TWO early freezes.
• Summer 2011 was among the 10 warmest ever in West Central Florida.
• The mercury hasn't let up in this winter of 2011-2012, with no end in sight to the exceptionally mild temps we've had so far.

Everything in Nature happens for a reason, and so it is with the wild weather fluctuations. Blame it on our changing climate.

Winter surprise: Blanket flower (Gaillardia) still going strong

 I suspect not very many gardeners would argue that climate change isn't upon us. We see it with our own eyes. Flowers blooming earlier, leaves changing color later, or birds and butterflies coming and going sooner or later than expected. In my own garden, I've already had a few monarch butterflies hatching, my native Walter's viburnum is starting to produce its fragrant white flowers about two months early, and my red passion flower-- which normally dies back to the ground in winter - hasn't stopped blooming at all!

What winter surprises do you have in your garden? 

Passion vine in full bloom in January!!

Rather than call it Global Warming, a more accurate term is Climate Disruption, or simply Climate Change.The earth's climate overall is growing warmer (and ours in West Central Florida along with it), but the trajectory is not a straight line, but instead a meandering one with all sorts of extremes thrown into the mix. Record cold, record heat, more intense storms, floods and drought. Think of all the catastrophic, record-setting weather events of just the past year: the Japanese tsunami, the horrendous tornadoes in Missouri, Alabama and North Carolina; the earthquakes in Virginia and New Zealand; the unbelievable flooding from Hurricane Irene.

Never thought I'd see wild cotton
 in bloom this time of year

Gardeners, with their finely tuned powers of observation and love of nature, are perfect assistants for scientists studying the effects of climate change on plants and animals. That is why I am co-sponsoring, through my job with the Tampa Bay Estuary Program, a workshop to recruit gardeners and other interested people to participate in a program called Nature's Notebook. I took this workshop myself last year and loved it. As I walk around my yard, I note which of the plants in the national database that are in my yard are blooming or budding, or actively growing. 


Ditto for the birds, amphibians, insects and mammals that I see. I make note of the biological phase (singing, nesting, feeding, etc.) and then submit my observations online to the Nature's Notebook database, using simple electronic observation sheets. It's fun, easy and makes me feel like I am making a small but important contribution to scientific understanding of our natural world and how it is responding to our changing climate.


The workshop is Saturday, Feb. 11 from 9 a.m.- 2 p.m. at the Hillsborough County Extension Service. It is being taught by a scientist with the U.S. Geological Survey, one of the lead agencies in the Nature's Notebook partnership. 


For more information and to register, visit www.tbep.org


Hope to see some of my gardening pen pals there!

Warm welcome: A monarch just after emerging from its chrysalis this January