Your Monthly Grow-zine
February 2023
Things to do in the garden this month...
AzaleaEnjoy early spring garden color of plants like Azaleas. If you're adding these to your landscape you might prefer Dwarf Azalea varieties. (NOTE: Don't fertilize until their bloom cycle is over.)
Don't do any hard pruning yet! Wait till mid-March at the earliest. If we get any last minute cold snaps (and it has happened!), older foliage will protect your plants. Minor trimming, though, is okay any time of year.
It's not too late to plant winter annuals like Petunia, Geranium, Snapdragon, and Delphinium (pictured).
These colorful little plants are perfect to fill in the blanks in your landscape.
Run irrigation once a week unless we've had rain.
Wait till next month to fertilize. Plants don't take up much in the way of fertilizer till nights are consistently warm - usually by mid-March.
Check for pest damage. Bag cuttings and take to your local nursery for diagnosis and treatment recommendations.
The one "palm" you can behead...
Normally you can't cut the head off a palm tree or you'll kill it.
Ponytail Palm, however, is called a palm - but it's really a relative of Yucca. So cutting it back is an option.
The first picture here is a typical one, attractive enough to add a whimsical touch to the landscape on a college campus.
Ponytails grow in a unique fashion. Each one is different. They have personality. They're unusual and sometimes downright cute...
...until they're not.
This one pictured here was tall, skinny, ungainly and growing at an odd angle because a large shrub next to it was hogging its space and light.
So the homeowner decided to decapitate it and see what happened!
After several weeks, new shoots emerged from the sides of the cut and on the trunk. Some were removed to allow others to develop more fully.
This Ponytail Palm will have a completely new look - I'll keep you updated on its progress, since it's mine.
Valentine's Day idea
Instead of cut flowers, show your sweetheart you care with a gift of a Bleeding Heart vine.
Flowering in almost any kind of light, Bleeding Heart is a fast grower but can be controlled.
What's new at South-Florida-Plant-Guide.com
A web visitor asked if clusia is dangerous to horses. I looked it up on the ASPCA's list of plants poisonous to horses, and sure enough, it is.
Clusia rosea is the one they list there, but I would think all Clusia varieties would be considered toxic.
It's also listed on the ASPCA's list of plants poisonous to dogs.
As a result I've added a note on the Plant Page for Clusia.
I try to check all plants on this site for toxicity, but DO NOT TAKE MY WORD FOR IT - check things out for yourself to be sure. Even the ASPCA may not cover everything. I always recommend you take cuttings in to your vet to get his or her opinion on any plant you're not sure of...including weeds!
Here's an article about weeds in horse pastures and how they can be dangerous to your animals.
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A visitor asks...
"When planting a variegated ginger plant do you need to cut the bottom of the plastic pot that it was purchased in so the roots are exposed to combine with the dirt?"
Never plant anything in the ground with the pot still on. You need to take a plant completely out of the pot before planting.
Here's a link to my page on Planting, in case you need it
I have heard of landscapers leaving the top and sides of the pot on to keep plants from spreading, but that won't last long and you're not doing the plant any favors by constricting its growth.
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Want to learn more about South Florida planting, watering, fertilizing and dealing with weeds and pests?
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