I so enjoy going to the FNPS Villages Chapter meetings – 4th Friday of the month at Big Cypress Recreation Center. Meetings start at 1:30pm, but I would go early to see what plants were in the raffle / auction, or what free literature was available. I kept notes in a Composition Book. Looking back here are some snippets – keep mind what a novice I am:
· Right plant in the right place
· Layer 1 – TREES – overall canopy for nesting,
food source, protection
· Layer 2 – SHRUBS – add depth, ecological
relationship
· Layer 3 – WILDFLOWERS – annuals can be high maintenance;
keep manageable, keep small and weed-able
· Don’t skimp on the mulch!
· You need grouping or mass plantings of a plant
so the birds can see when flying over
· Define edges and separate groups / beds of
plants, put plants with similar moisture requirements together
Many of these tips must be obvious to anyone who’s had a yard, and flower or vegetable gardens. But I was trying to soak up what I needed to know in a relatively short time.
Oh my gosh, Dr. Jason A. Smith, an associate professor at the University of Florida spoke on Urban Tree Diversity – I tried to write down the names of all the trees that looked interesting to me – and I starred a couple like the Sweet Acacia (Acacia farnesiana) with its yellow flowers and the Atlantic White Cedar (Chamaecyparis thyoides) for its aromatic wood. I miss tall trees!
Below: (Left) A Catbird enjoys some grape jelly in “my” Maryland back yard, which had a beautiful canopy of tall trees. (Right) But my “cottage” yard, is too small to grow a majestic Native Live Oak.
No comments:
Post a Comment