Your Monthly Grow-zine
April 2025
Things to do in the garden this month...
Shop for new plants for the yard. Visit your locally-owned nursery for ideas, healthy plants, and a nice day out of doors. This is a good time of year to see lots of the nurseries' flowers in bloom, such as the Agapanthus pictured.
Move any plants not in the right place. Sometimes things are placed incorrectly and can be moved to a better spot.
Prune and trim any plants that need it. This is the perfect time to cut back leggy Cordylines ("Ti plants") and Dracaenas. Cut anywhere on the stem and a new "head" or two will grow out of the side by the cut.
Feed your plants, if you haven't already done so. Exceptions are spring flowering shrubs like Gardenia - wait till the bloom is completely finished before fertilizing.
Run irrigation once a week if we haven't had rain. If temps soar and are consistently hot (summer has been known to start in April), water twice a week. (NOTE: Some areas only allow once-a-week watering.)
Check your plants for bugs. Take bagged cuttings bagged to your local nursery for diagnosis and treatment options.
Not looking forward to yardwork this year? Check out my ebook The Lazy Gardener's Guide to South Florida for ways to take it easier.
"Should I plant a surround?"
It's tempting to surround the base of palms and trees with pretty plants. Landscapers sometimes call this a "skirt."
Many of us plant shrubs and groundcovers around our palms and trees.
But there are trees that don't like this practice since it may be detrimental to the health of the tree. Here are some to consider:
Some trees, including Japanese Fern Tree, Live Oak, and Shady Lady Black Olive, don't want anything planted beneath them while young.
This includes turf grass, so keep the area right around the base free of grass as well.
Bald Cypress, Geiger Tree and Weeping Willow Tree don't EVER want anything planted around their base...including turf grass.
Another tree in this category is Florida Maple. Surface roots can be damaged by lawn mowers.
The Slash Pine Tree doesn't like to have its roots disturbed from planting things around its base.
Another issue is the pine needles that will fall onto (and cover) anything planted beneath it.
Some other trees, such as Variegated Mahoe Tree, drop enough leaves to make planting under them a waste of energy...the energy you'll need to regularly clean leaves off the plants underneath.
And then there's the Gumbo Limbo Tree with surface roots growing out of the ground. Plus low branches (did they name it Limbo for the dance?) make it best with no plantings beneath.
What's New at South Florida Plant Guide
NEW PAGE! I've added a new page about deer-resistant plants. Lots of people have contacted me on the subject so I created a page that has been added to the Plant Lists section.
My latest ebooks are here!
"Best of the Grow-zines"
All the best info and ideas from past issues of our monthly newsletter - The Grow-zine!
Garden Ideas & FAQs
Landscaping Tips & Problem Solvers
Buy both "Best Of" ebooks & get this one FREE!
Thanks for subscribing to the Grow-zine!
If you have any
questions, comments or suggestions about what you'd like to see included
in the Grow-zine - or the Website - please let me know!
Chase Landre
Take a break!
The ultimate guide to low-maintenance plants
and landscaping!
An ebook by
Chase Landre
author of
South-Florida-Plant-Guide.com
Learn more!
Easter flowers
At Eastertime you may see plants like Hydrangea and Easter Lily for sale.
Though these make beautiful potted decorations, planting them in your yard will likely not be successful.
Both need cooler temps than we have here...Hydrangeas may do better in north Florida, and Easter Lilies need consistently chilly temps - which we don't have here - to flower.
Get a greener thumb!
Want to learn more about South Florida planting, watering, fertilizing and dealing with weeds and pests?
See our Gardening How-To section for answers!
Get instant curb appeal!
An ebook by
Chase Landre
author of
South-Florida-Plant-Guide.com
Learn how to get instant curb appeal with fast growing plants and landscaping techniques!
Take a crash course!
|
