Introduction to Florida Gardening:
There are some basic differences between Florida gardening and
northern gardening. Most of your experience in northern gardening
will help you, but these basics must be faced. If you don't
understand and acknowledge them, your chances for success are
minimal at best. They are light, heat, soil, rainfall, cold and
ocean and the their effects on plants and your garden.
Florida stretches across 4 hardiness zones (8-11). The northern
parts have average low temperatures sometimes reaching 10o F.
In the Keys, The average lows are above 40 degrees. All parts
can experience destructive cold temperatures.
Cold:
Despite what you might think, it can get cold in Florida.
Winter can be cold enough for frost, freeze and produce killing
frosts for tropical landscape plants. From December until
February is the most likely time for the occasional freeze. The
difference between hardiness zone 8 and 11 is the difference
between freezing temperatures three or four times a year, or
once every 20 years. Use only appropriate plants for your
location. You must have a plan for protecting tropical plants if
you have included them in your sub-tropical landscape in the areas
where frost is expected. Frost can damage plants even above 32
degrees. One of the best ways to insure success, is to use plants
that are for your area, and grown in your area. I picked up a
handy little 24-page guide at Home Depot. There are also booklets
and pamphlets provided by the Florida Cooperative Extension Service
and the Florida Water Management Districts. Check bookstores for
books, such as "Florida Gardening" by XXXXXXXX, and "The Art of
South Florida Gardening" by Harold Songdahl and Coralee Leon.
Temperatures:
Summers are hot and very humid. It is not uncommon to have
temperatures in the upper 80s or low 90s from April to September.
Humidity and temperatures drop dramatically in the winter. Plants
will grow year round. Plan your landscapes with plenty of space to
allow room for growth to a mature size. Pruning and maintenance or
your yard is a year-round commitment.
Light:
The length of a winter day in Florida is much longer than the
short winter day of Minnesota for example. Sun intensity is less,
but is still more than enough to grow tomatoes in South Florida.
This is the preferred time to enjoy fresh garden vegetables. The
summer can be too intense and brings on more bugs. Light levels
can be 20-30% brighter than those in the Northeast or upper Midwest.
Brighter light creates more food for plants and encourages more growth.
They grow faster in a shorter amount of time. Too much sun on
plants not needing it gives them sunburn and ruins foliage,
killing it in the long run. This close to the equator, sunsets
are quick.
Soil:
Soils in Florida are generally low in nutrition. Northern Florida
soils are high in clay with central Florida soils mostly sandy.
South Florida "soil" is either sand, marl (mixture of clay and
lime), or coral rock. Marl is found in newer subdivisions bordering
the everglades and is highly prized for its fertility. All soils
provide good drainage. They are almost too good, since peat or
other organic material must be added to retain moisture and
nutrients. The balance between alkalinity and acidity, as well
as the nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium is good to know, so
taking a soil sample for analysis to a County Cooperative
Extension Service is a good place to start. Most Florida soils
are too acid, so levels will need to be raised with lime or
alkaline nutrients.
Rainfall:
Rainfall can average about 50 to 60 inches depending on your
location (although I'm not sure how recent an estimate this is).
The rainy season is from June to December. With sandy soils,
this can easily wash away soil nutrients. Light, frequent doses
of fertilizer are better than heavy doses. Year round growing
means year round feeding for many plants. You will need to keep
aware of rainfall and not water, unless it has been several days
between rainy days. It does not take long for plants to use up
water or for it to evaporate in the intense summer heat.
Ocean:
If your plan on gardening close to the ocean, you need to be
careful of salt spray. Salt tolerant plants are a necessity in
such areas. Chlorine treated water and swimming pools can also
damage plants in the same way.
Page Created by: G. Brown
Changes last made on: Sat. Dec. 21, 2002
