Right place, right landscape Story and Photo by Diana Sageser When Judy and Bart Lipofsky built their Brevard County home in 1986, the 1-acre plot was covered in pines and palmettos. A berm, created in the 1950s to allow canal water to be channeled in the direction of either the St. John or Indian rivers …
Front yard flower farm Story By Julie Thompson-Adolf juliesgardendelights.com When a passionate grower moves from a 56-acre Texas farm to a slightly-less-than-half-acre urban property in Greenville, South Carolina, what’s she to do? Rip out the lawn and create a front yard flower farm, of course! Julie Hill, owner of Southern Wild Flowers, a boutique sustainable …
Prima donnas of the tropical garden Story and Photos by Karinluise Calasant I am a sucker for heliconias. It seems every year I cannot resist adding one, or two, of these bold, colorful, but elusive, members of the Zingiberales order to an already burgeoning garden. These cousins of gingers and bananas are the prima donnas …
Consider window boxes as great container gardening options Story and Photos by Tom Hewitt Many years ago I wrote an article about window boxes for Florida Gardening. Though the basic rules remain the same, the wide selection of plant material available today means we’re long overdue for an update. I still insist window boxes would …
A look at Florida’s native palms Story by Theresa Badurek When you think of Florida, you may picture palm trees swaying in an orange-blossom scented breeze. Tropical romantic scenes painted by savvy real estate investors lured many a dreamer (and quite a few cold Michiganders) to Florida’s shores. But how realistic is that picture when …
Landscaping alternatives for your Florida lawn Story and Photos by Lynette L. Walther Our luscious, spacious, green, and greedy lawns – those aristocratic symbols of conspicuous consumption, are beginning to appear so “Downton Abbey.” In other words, grand and appealing but perplexingly dramatic and dated as dinosaurs. Many now find themselves questioning their practicality. After …
West Palm Beach landscape designer Todd MacLean knows a thing or two about adding texture to a garden Story and Photos by Tom Hewitt Lush vegetation surrounds the Spanish bungalow he shares with real estate agent Geoff Darnell, covering almost 1/3 of an acre. But even though green is the predominant color, it is a …
8 easy beans that add both taste and color to the garden Story by Kenny Coogan kennycoogan.com Versatile and adaptable to many type of cuisines, beans are not only easy to grow, but they can be beautiful as well. Step away from the green and try these colorful varieties. ‘Amethyst’ – Widely available, this beautiful …
Is there such a thing as too many tomatoes? Nah! Story by Kenny Coogan kennycoogan.com Tomatoes are one of the most popular vegetables with home gardeners, and for good reason: Compared to homegrown, store-bought tomatoes are unfortunately quite disappointing. Homegrown tomatoes taste so much better, with flavors that are more complex. Florida’s warm climate allows …
‘Picasso’s Paintbrush’ croton Story and Photos by Kenny Coogan kennycoogan.com ‘Picasso’s Paintbrush’ croton is a slow-growing plant that is relatively new on the scene. It was a huge focal point at a recent plant show I attended, with many people walking out the gate with them. Small 4-inch plants were selling for around $10, while …
