Monthly Archives: April 2021

Growing Bougainvillea in Northeast Florida

Large masses of colorful bracts surround three petite flowers of Bougainvillea, which grows well in Northeast Florida despite our rainfall. These Brazilian coastal natives do best in direct sunlight with numerous blooming cycles per year in sunny, dry conditions. They are available in bush, tree, and vine form. Growing Bougainvillea in Northeast Florida can be easy if planted in the right spot and protected from frost and freezing temperatures and soggy conditions as they don’t like wet feet.

“Bouganvillea is a fantastic plant if you have the right spot for it,” said Matthew Barlow, Earth Works garden center manager. “ The right spot is that place in the garden that’s hot, that’s sandy, that’s dry, get’s sun all day where nothing else wants to grow. That’s where the bougainvillea wants to be. It is a perfect solution for that place in the garden where it can be very difficult to grow other things especially if it’s getting blasted with the afternoon death rays come June, July, August, September, and sometimes October. Do not put these in a place that’s low-lying, shady, or stays wet for long periods of time. High, dry, hot, sunny, is what the bougainvillea loves.”

Growing Bougainvillea in Northeast Florida with unpredictable low temperatures can be tricky, with some years having few touches of frost and other years having numerous hard freezes. Jacksonville is designated at the lower end of zone 8(8b) and the upper region of 9 (9a). “They (bougainvillea) are a hardy perennial here, although if we have hard frosts, hard freezes they can be knocked back considerably,” said Barlow. “I have seen bougainvilleas come back from some very cold temperatures. After the first Winter or two, the maintenance on them in the Winter is much less. In the first season or two, you might want to cover and protect them, for the first couple of years to make sure their roots become established. Once the roots become established, they will bounce back very quickly in the Spring once the temperatures perk back up.”

“The best time to prune bougainvillea is in late winter or early spring after it flowers, or at the start of the rainy season,” according to the University of Florida. “If you wait until late summer or early fall, your plant may produce fewer flowers during the following winter.” There are numerous varieties of bougainvillea on the market that bloom best at different times of the year. Follow the grower’s recommendation for your specific variety.

Buy Bougainvilleas at Earth Works Gardens

“Also feeding is very important with the bougainvilleas,” said Barlow. “You want to keep them on a regular feeding schedule. For those of you who don’t like to use a water-soluble liquid fertilizer, which I recommend even a slow-release quarterly feed will encourage the blooming.” Avoid over-fertilization which can encourage too much foliage at the expense of blooms. And if kept in pots they like to be pot-bound to bloom best.

Bougainvillea is both salt and drought-tolerant, making them a hardy choice for southern coastal landscapes. Visit Earth Works garden center for a wide assortment of bougainvillea, soil amendments, and fertilizers. And talk to Matthew about any concerns you have about growing bougainvillea in your landscape. Plus, consider scheduling a design consultation to include bougainvillea and the many other plant choices we can make available for your landscape.

For comprehensive solutions to your specific lawn, garden and landscaping need contact Earth Works of Jacksonville online and at 904-996-0712. Earth Works operates a retail Garden Center/Plant Nursery in Jacksonville and provides landscaping, hardscaping, water features, lawn care service, lawn spraying, and drainage solutions. Contact us with your questions and to book design consultations.
Earth Works proudly serves clients in Northeast Florida, including Jacksonville, Ponte Vedra Beach, Atlantic Beach, Neptune Beach, Jacksonville Beach, Nocatee, St. Johns, Fleming Island, Orange Park, Middleburg, Green Cove Springs, Amelia Island, Fernandina, and St. Augustine.

Earth Day Tips

Happy Earth Day: April 22, 2021

We believe Earth Day is the perfect opportunity to share some ways we can all contribute to our remarkable planet’s continued health and beauty. Here is a list of easy things you can do at home and in your garden to celebrate.

1Plant a tree – Trees remove carbon dioxide from the air, store carbon in the trees and soil, and release oxygen into the atmosphere—all essential factors in the fight to stop climate change.

2Create a Pollinator Garden – They support and maintain pollinators by supplying food in the form of pollen and nectar to ensure that these crucial animals stay in the area to keep pollinating our crops for continued fruit and vegetable production.

3Call a Beekeeper vs. an Exterminator – Bees are a critical part of food production worldwide, and their dwindling numbers should concern us all. Help save our struggling bees by allowing a beekeeper to capture the swarm alive.

4Landscape with Native & Florida Friendly Plants – Plants whose needs meet your local climate will naturally grow better, requiring less additional water, fertilization, and pest control. All positives for the health of our local waterways. 

5Use Organic Fertilizers– Not only are they safe for the environment, your family, and your pets, they can enhance the soil. Plus, synthetic fertilizers require a significant amount of fossil fuels to produce. And their frequent runoff into our river is the cause of those harmful algae blooms.

6Build a Water Garden  When done correctly, ponds provide shelter and water to native wildlife and support for native plants. Also, by reducing your lawn area, you will conserve water and reduce the use of fertilizers.

7Consider Solar Panels – Solar power systems derive clean, pure energy from the sun. Installing solar panels on your home helps combat greenhouse gas emissions and reduces our collective dependence on fossil fuels. 

8Shop Local – The planet is perhaps the biggest beneficiary of consumers supporting locally owned small businesses. Shopping local reduces fossil fuel use by the suppliers and the shoppers, ultimately reducing your carbon footprint.

For more Earth Day tips on eco-friendly lawn and gardening practices in Northeast Florida stop into Earth Works garden center, contact us online and at 904-996-0712.
Earth Works operates a retail Garden Center/Plant Nursery in Jacksonville and provides landscaping, hardscaping, water features, lawn care service, lawn spraying, and drainage solutions.
Earth Works proudly serves clients in Northeast Florida, including Jacksonville, Ponte Vedra Beach, Atlantic Beach, Neptune Beach, Jacksonville Beach, Nocatee, St. Johns, Fleming Island, Orange Park, Middleburg, Green Cove Springs, Amelia Island, Fernandina, and St. Augustine.

 

Landscaping with Florida Native Plants

Landscaping with Florida native plants is economical and benefits our Northeast, Florida ecosystems requiring less water, fertilizers, and pesticides to sustain than non-native plants. “They are acclimated to everything that Northeast Florida can hand them the cold, the heat, the extreme drought that we can have from time to time, but also the deluge of rain we get a couple of months of thunderstorms back to back to back,” said Matt Barlow, Earth Works garden center manager. “And they are also pest and disease resistant because they evolved right here.” Native plants are also important to the ecosystem as a source of food, shelter, and habitat for native wildlife including amphibians, birds, insects, mammals, reptiles and non-native migratory species.

Native plants host beneficial insects, pollinators, and decomposers that form a healthy natural ecosystem. For example, there are 24 oak tree varieties native to Florida, which support over 500 species of moths and butterflies. According to the National Wildlife Federation nearly 100% of songbirds depend on these insects as a key food source. Remove the native plants and the insect and dependent animal species populations crash. “More than 100 species of vertebrate animals are known to consume acorns in the US, including mammals such as white-tailed deer, gray squirrels, fox squirrels, flying squirrels, mice, voles, rabbits, raccoons, opossums, gray foxes, red foxes, and wild hogs,” according to the University of Florida. “Birds that feed on acorns include wild turkey, bobwhite quail, wood ducks, mallards, woodpeckers, crows, and jays.”

Outside of their natural environment non-native species have fewer natural predators resulting in invasiveness crowding out native species without providing a similar degree of benefits to the ecosystem. A few non-native invasive plants you may be familiar with include camphor trees, Japanese honeysuckle, kudzu, melaleuca, mimosa, sword fern, torpedo grass, and water hyacinth.

Earth Works carries a variety of Florida native plants including Walters Viburnum. “It’s a great slow-growing shrub that you can use as individual plants, as focal points, but also as a hedge row,” said Barlow. “They do grow thick and dense and are evergreen. They bloom white in the Spring. Once we come out of Winter and the temperature starts to warm up the flowers pop. They do hold their buds sometimes for a very long period of time. Their buds when they are closed are kind of a rosy color, which gives the shrub in Wintertime going into Spring this really nice look and then they pop open and their covered with tiny white flowers. These are a very easy addition to your garden.”

Other Florida Native Plants typically in stock include Silver Buttonwood, Ixora, Fakahatchee Grass, Oakleaf Hydrangea, Muhly Grass, Seagrapes, and a variety of palms including the Silver Saw Palmetto, and our Florida State Tree the Sabal palm.

The Florida Native Plant Society lists 663 native plants in its database. However, most Florida native plants are not commercially available for purchase. Where native plants are grown commercially it is typically by small independent growers who cannot keep up with the commercial demand for the natives they grow. Propagating native plants to nurture commercially favorable ornamental characteristics results in what is called cultivars. “Many native plant experts and enthusiasts do not consider man-made cultivars as being native, although it might be argued that selections or hybrids could have occurred under natural conditions,” according to the University of Florida. “When purchasing native plants, ask for a plant by its scientific name. Also ask about the origin of the plant. Plants that were derived from seed or plants of natural populations in other parts of the country might not perform well in Florida.”

Zamia integrifolia the Coontie palm is another popular commercially available Florida native plant. “It’s called the Coontie palm, but it’s not an actual palm,” said Barlow. “It’s actually a cycad. It gives you a palm or tropical look without actually being a palm. They’re more of a small loose, but densely compacted shrub. Loose in the fact that they are not branched like other types of shrubs. There is a lot more separation and distance where all the stems come from the base rather than a branching type plant like a traditional shrub. They don’t require any pruning. So those of you who are looking for a low maintenance plant the coontie is a great addition. Also, the coontie is versatile. It can grow in the sun, part sun, and into almost some completely shaded conditions. It’s very versatile and easy to grow.”

Coontie palm. “They don’t require any pruning. So those of you who are looking for a low maintenance plant the coontie is a great addition.”

Florida native plants occur in diverse biomes including marshes and swamps, prairies, hammocks, sandhills, scrub forests, upland forests, and more resulting in the need to match your choice of natives to your conditions. It’s also important to understand the significance of your area’s plant communities. For Duval County alone the plant communities include; Beach Dunes, Hydric Hammocks, Mangrove Swamps, Maritime Forests, Pine Flatwoods, Saltwater Marshes, Sandhills, and Wetland Swamp Forests. Native plants adapt in these areas in relation to one another in ways that we continue striving to understand.

Salt tolerant native seagrapes are better suited for the coastal landscape than Florida’s state wildflower the Coreopsis found in fields and along roadsides across North Florida. Landscaping for Florida native plants requires considering the various categories of natives available including flowers, grasses, ground covers, palms, shrubs, trees, and vines. Search these categories at www.floridayards.org. Likewise, a variety of Florida native palms including the Florida State Tree, the Sabal Palm, and palmettos are available at Earth Works and seasonal varieties of other natives like anise.

There are small local companies that afford us the opportunity to buy Florida Native plant seeds and advocates of planting natives share them through local and national seed exchange programs and on social media. Visit our Seed Saving & Exchange blog that contains extensive information about these activities and information about groups like the 13,000 member Seed Savers Exchange.

For more information on landscaping with Florida native plants in Northeast Florida stop into Earth Works garden center and speak with Barlow, another garden guide, or schedule a consultation with one of our landscape designers to help you with your Florida-friendly landscape.

For comprehensive solutions to your specific lawn, garden and landscaping needs contact Earth Works of Jacksonville online and at 904-996-0712. Earth Works operates a retail Garden Center/Plant Nursery in Jacksonville and provides landscaping, hardscaping, water features, lawn care service, lawn spraying, and drainage solutions.

Earth Works proudly serves clients in Northeast Florida, including Jacksonville, Ponte Vedra Beach, Atlantic Beach, Neptune Beach, Jacksonville Beach, Nocatee, St. Johns, Fleming Island, Orange Park, Middleburg, Green Cove Springs, Amelia Island, Fernandina, and St. Augustine.

 

Soil Testing In Northeast Florida

Why should I do Soil Testing in Northeast Florida?
Soil is a mixture of mostly minerals, organic matter, water, and air. Plants require specific nutrients to thrive. Identifying the soil’s specific composition helps in identifying soil deficiencies and necessary remedies that can aid in avoiding over-fertilization that can result in stormwater run off pollution. Soil testing will also measure pH levels that if too low for instance can cause minerals in the soil not to be available to some plants. Plant varieties prefer varied pH levels and amounts of specific nutrients. Azaleas prefer pH levels below 5.5 whereas pink hydrangeas prefer pH above 6. A soil analysis will provide you with knowledge of your soil composition and help you make decisions that can improve the soil for your lawn and garden.

The golden rule of gardening says, “If you treat your soil well, it will treat your plants well,” according to the United States Department of Agriculture. “Successful gardening depends on good soil. One of the best ways to improve soil fertility is to add organic matter. It helps soil hold important plant nutrients. By adding organic matter to sandy soil, you improve the ability of the soil to retain water. In a clay soil, humus will loosen the soil to make it more crumbly. You can increase the organic matter in your garden by adding compost or applying mulch.”

When should I test my soil?
Soil testing in Northeast Florida can be done anytime of year whereas in northern states it should be done in warm months when the soil is not frozen. By having your soil testing done ahead of the growing season you are better prepared to treat with soil amendments if needed. For example, calcitic lime used to increase pH requires 2-3 months to work completely into the soil. Soil sampling can be done anytime and is often done to identify the cause of problems in the landscape such as plants that aren’t growing properly or dying.

Where can I get my soil analyzed?
The University of Florida Extension Office in Duval County provides free soil pH analysis that takes typically 7-10 business days to get results. Samples should be dry which is best provided to them in paper bag whereas plastic holds moisture. Samples should be gathered from a few different areas of the landscape and dropped off in person at the extension office.
Contact the University of Florida Extension Office in Duval County for more information at (904)255-7450.

Additionally, there are digital and reagent soil test kits available for purchase online from a variety of sources. The Luster Leaf 1880 Rapitest Electronic 4-Way Soil Analyzer is one inexpensive option that’s widely available. More accurate and sophisticated electronic test kits are available for hundreds, even thousands of dollars.

Many of the inexpensive digital and reagent soil test kits although providing a degree of accuracy also provide vague and inaccurate data as a Garden Fundamentals video points out in a comparison of a Rapitest reagent test kit against a laboratory analysis of the same soil sample.

For a landscaping, consultation contact us to set up an appointment. Click the link for a free lawn care, fertilization, and lawn pest control instant quote.

For comprehensive solutions to your specific lawn, garden and landscaping needs contact Earth Works of Jacksonville online and at 904-996-0712. Earth Works operates a retail Garden Center/Plant Nursery in Jacksonville and provides landscaping, hardscaping, water features, lawn care service, lawn spraying, and drainage solutions.

Earth Works proudly serves clients in Northeast Florida, including Jacksonville, Ponte Vedra Beach, Atlantic Beach, Neptune Beach, Jacksonville Beach, Nocatee, St. Johns, Fleming Island, Orange Park, Middleburg, Green Cove Springs, Amelia Island, Fernandina, and St. Augustine.

Sanctuary on 8th Street Educational Charity

Earth Works encourages your support for the Sanctuary on 8th Street educational charity serving Jacksonville children and families. Main website www.sanctuaryon8th.org. You can help as a volunteer. Find out more at https://sanctuaryon8th.org/volunteer-opportunities/

Sanctuary on 8th Street Fall Gardening Collaboration with the Man in Overalls

Jason Duffney, Matt Barlow, & Doug McGregor prepare the irrigation and soil for a Fall season garden with the children at The Sanctuary on 8th Street and collaborate with Nathan, Man in Overalls for building new boxes and more opportunities for the community.

Arbor Day with the Sanctuary on 8th Street 2021

On Arbor Day Earth Works delivered a check for $2000 from proceeds collected from 25% of gift card sales over the 2020 holiday season.

Rick Cartlidge, executive director of the Sanctuary on 8th Street Educational Charity in the historic area of Downtown Jacksonville, Florida discusses their relationship with Earth Works, their mission helping children and how you can help.

Sanctuary on 8th Street Volunteer Day with Earth Works

Earth Work of Jacksonville workday for area volunteers who came out and improved the curb appeal and did general lawn and landscaping work at the Sanctuary on 8th Street in Jacksonville’s Springfield Community. Jason & Sean Duffney along with Mark & Patricia Fechtal and Timbo were joined by a dozen U.S. Navy personnel. Thank you to everyone who participated for your service to the Sanctuary and community.
Event: Earth Works Volunteer Work Day
Date: Saturday, Dec. 5, 2020
Location: Sanctuary on 8th Street 120 E. 8th Street, Jacksonville, Florida.

Sanctuary on 8th Street Community Garden
Jason & Matt return to the Sanctuary on 8th Street community garden to work with children teaching them how to plant and care for a garden. Plus, they announce our upcoming Volunteer Work Day where everyone can join us to give the landscape at the front entrance more curb appeal. Meet us at the Sanctuary Saturday morning December 5, 2020 and help for as long as you wish!

Sanctuary on 8th Street Educational Charity Community Garden
Jason Duffney & Matthew Barlow spend the afternoon teaching children how to tend the vegetable garden at the Sanctuary on 8th Street in the Springfield area of downtown Jacksonville, Florida. Thank you for the help from kindergarten through 2nd grade students who participated including Nehemiah, Kyree, Noah, Micah, & Kendall. Special thanks to Coach Henry & Ford and Assistant Director Jaime!

Plus, remember that for comprehensive solutions to your specific lawn, garden and landscaping need contact Earth Works of Jacksonville online and at 904-996-0712.

Earth Works operates a retail Garden Center/Plant Nursery in Jacksonville and provides landscaping, hardscaping, water features, lawn care service, lawn spraying, and drainage solutions. Contact us with your questions and to book design consultations.
Earth Works proudly serves clients in Northeast Florida, including Jacksonville, Ponte Vedra Beach, Atlantic Beach, Neptune Beach, Jacksonville Beach, Nocatee, St. Johns, Fleming Island, Orange Park, Middleburg, Green Cove Springs, Amelia Island, Fernandina, and St. Augustine.


Happy Gardening!

Landscaping for Pollinators in Northeast Florida

After more freeze days in Winter than in recent years, many Northeast Florida homeowners are heading to garden centers to replace plants and want to do more landscaping for pollinators. “It’s really easy here in Northeast Florida to attract the birds, the bees, the butterflies, all the beneficial pollinators and insects that we want to have in our garden,” said Matt Barlow, Earth Works Garden Center Manager. “Simply put, you need to have a combination of flowers that not only attract them for the pollen but also for the nectar. So each insect is going to be looking for different things. So it needs to be a combination of nectar plants and pollen plants. So the bees are really interested in pollen. And then the butterflies and some of the other insects will be looking for nectar.”

Landscape designers assist clients in creating landing strips. These multi-level layered plantings draw pollinators to the garden, where plants serve as food sources and nesting habitats and protection from the elements and predators. Lawn care service providers can likewise assist by enhancing soil constituents and conserve water which can reduce plant stress and the need for pesticides that typically harm pollinators.

“Aim for at least ten flowering plant species selected to complement one another, according to the University of Florida IFAS Extension. “Specifically, design your garden to have three or more different plants blooming at any given time during the growing season, which is year-round in southern Florida, and March through November in northern areas of the state. Because bees often prefer dense floral displays, arranging flowering plants in clumps with multiple individuals per species will increase the attractiveness of the garden to bees.”

While native plant species are best for both nectar and pollen sources, they are increasingly difficult to acquire. When landscaping for pollinators your area native plant societies such as the Florida Native Plant Society (www.fnps.org) is vital for information about the availability of Florida native plants.

“Some great nectar plants for your fluttering friends will be things like pentas, salvias; they are the top two with lantana as well. Lantana alone will bring in more varieties of butterflies, I think, than any other single plant in your garden, said Barlow. “So I’d have at least a handful of lantanas to mix and sprinkle in. We have some really nice bunching, compact varieties that you can use. Traditionally people think of lantana as that giant elephant in the garden that just sprawls everywhere. Well, there are a lot of new improved and compact varieties that you can bring into your garden. Pentas are great because they are naturally compact. Most varieties 18 inches at the most. There are some larger growing varieties, but the pentas are easy because you can grow them in both full sun and partial sun. So if you don’t have a full sun position, which is four hours at the minimum, you can also use pentas if you are getting less than that.

A lot of the salvias that we have in are going to come in blues and purples, and that is important because blues, purples, and reds are the spectrum that the insects see. Also, the hummingbirds see blues and reds. Just by having blue and red in the garden, it will act as a beacon that will bring them in. And once they find the garden, they will be back day after day after day. If you were to walk around the garden center here in late Spring and all throughout the Summer, you’ll see the butterflies; the hummingbirds are just all over these tables.

The purple and the red are crucial, and they look nice together. There is some nice contrast between the colors and then sprinkle in other types of colors too because they will feed off of the other colors, but it’s the blues, the purples, and red that are going to bring them in.”

Other nectar plants available for landscaping for pollinators include Bleeding Heart, Coneflowers, Coreopsis, Cosmos, Dianthus, Hibiscus, Gaillardia, Marigold, Petunias, Verbena, and Viburnum. While milkweed is widely known as a host plant for Monarch butterflies and required to complete their lifecycle, there are others. Commercially available host plants include Bougainvillea (Cloudless Sulphur butterfly), Dill (Black Swallowtail butterfly), Dusty Miller (Painted Lady butterfly), Oleander (Queen & Monarch butterfly), Passion Vine (Gulf Fritillary), Snapdragon (Buckeye butterfly), and Violets (multiple Fritillary butterfly species). Visit our article on Butterfly, Gardening Basics for more information.

“If you have any questions on specific varieties and how to mix them together, stop in here at Earth Works, and any one of us here would be more than happy to help you put together your pollinator garden,” said Barlow. Earth Works landscape designers are also available to help with landscaping for pollinators in an eco-friendly fashion, and the lawn care division provides regular maintenance.

And remember that for comprehensive solutions to your specific lawn, garden and landscaping needs contact Earth Works of Jacksonville online and at 904-996-0712. Earth Works operates a retail Garden Center/Plant Nursery in Jacksonville and provides landscaping, hardscaping, water features, lawn care service, lawn spraying, and drainage solutions.
Earth Works proudly serves clients in Northeast Florida, including Jacksonville, Ponte Vedra Beach, Atlantic Beach, Neptune Beach, Jacksonville Beach, Nocatee, St. Johns, Fleming Island, Orange Park, Middleburg, Green Cove Springs, Amelia Island, Fernandina, and St. Augustine.

 

April Lawn and Garden Tips 2021

APRIL CLIMATE IN NORTHEAST FLORIDA:
April Lawn and Garden Tips for Northeast, Florida communities in and around Jacksonville start with a focus on climate as this is the time of year when increasing numbers of gardeners head out to work in the garden and landscape as average high temperatures are 80F and average lows of 62. Jacksonville averages 12 days and 2″ of rainfall in April. And water restrictions loosen during Daylight Savings Time (Second Sunday in March to first Sunday in November) allowing twice per week residential landscape irrigation.

APRIL ANNUAL & PERENNIAL PLANTINGS:
April Lawn and Garden tips continue with a reminder that it is time to consider planting new annuals to replace those that died back in Winter and it’s time to plant your new choice of perennials. Carefully consider any changes you want to last years’ landscape design and if those annuals served you well, and if you want more of the same or something different. Are there new varieties of annuals and perennials available that would be better suited for your flower beds? Earth Works Landscape Design staff can assist you developing your landscape design.

April is the first full month of Spring resulting in area garden centers being stocked with the best selection and quantity of annuals of the entire year, including Agastache, Bacopa, Begonias, Cannas, Coleus, Dianthus, Gazanias, Lobelia, Marigolds, Petunias, Purslane, Salvia, Sunpatiens, Verbena, Vincas, and Zinnias.
Are the perennials in your landscape greening up and looking healthy? Do you have them on a fertilization and pruning schedule? Plants can look quite similar and have dramatically different needs. Educate yourself on what your specific plants require regarding soil, light, watering, fertilization, and pruning for optimum results. A few options for perennial plants available for planting in April include African Iris, Agapanthus, Aptenia, Aztec Grass, Blue Daze, Blue My Mind, Calendula, Cannas, Dune Sunflower, Gaillardia, Geraniums, Ice Plant, Jasmine, Kalanchoe, Lantana, Liriope, Milkweed, Mondo Grass, Pentas, Porterweed, Salvia, Sedum, and Verbena.

APRIL VEGETABLE & HERB GARDENING:
In April, when night temperatures stay above 50F is when you want to begin moving vegetables, and herbs seedling started indoors as seeds to your outdoor garden. As with early April 2021, we had some temperatures in the low forty-degree range that could harm those seedlings that so much effort and care were invested in. So be careful and watch the weather trends for your area before and after transplanting your seedlings outdoors.

Vegetables appropriate for planting in April include Bell Peppers, Broccoli, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Collard Greens, Cucumbers, Eggplant, Mustard, Okra, Onions, Peas, Sweet potatoes, Squash, Swiss Chard, Tomatoes, and Watermelon.
Herbs appropriate for planting in April include Basil, Chives, Cilantro, Dill, Fennel, Lemon balm, Oregano, Parsley, Peppermint, and Thyme. Visit Earth Works online shop for a wide selection of plants, soil amendments, and more!

APRIL PRUNING:
Whenever pruning, use clean tools to avoid cross-contamination of pests and pathogens from one plant to another. April is the time to wrap up pruning on shrubs that bloom on new growth such as most roses and prune your old-growth bloomers like azaleas shortly after they bloom. These are generalizations, though, as some plants such as hydrangeas bloom on old or new growth depending on variety. In general, prune both deciduous and evergreen shrubs within the late Winter and early Spring seasons.
Become familiar with your plants’ bloom cycle and whether the blooms occur on new or old growth to determine when best to prune for the optimum amount of flowers during their seasonal blooms.

APRIL LAWN CARE:
First of all, having a soil sample analysis done provides a baseline of information for what your lawn and garden need for healthy growth and blooms. If, for instance, the analysis shows the yard has adequate amounts of phosphorus, adding more is not only unnecessary but as a constituent of stormwater runoff result in algae blooms and fish kills. The proper fertilization timing is likewise essential as nutrients, including potassium and iron, aren’t bioavailable for grass uptake until the soil is warm. Once the ground warms and turfgrass roots awaken from dormancy various fertilizer formulas allow the uptake of nutrients and benefit a healthy growth cycle.

APRIL LAWN & GARDEN PEST & PATHOGEN CONTROL:
Regularly inspect your lawn and garden in April for harmful insects such as aphids, citrus leaf-miner, chinch bugs, mealybugs, and other pests that can quickly devastate an otherwise healthy landscape. April showers bring fungus and mildew. So be on the lookout for powdery mildew, black spot, and sooty mold.
Good cultural practices involving clean pruning shears and other lawn care tools and appropriate watering and fertilization contribute to protecting your lawn and garden against pests and pathogens. And remember that not all insects are harmful. Ladybugs, lacewings, praying mantis, and many other insects provide pest control benefits to your lawn and garden, but to nurture them requires care in the types and application of commonly used pesticides. For help with identifying appropriate organic pesticides contact or visit our garden center and for lawn care, fertilization, and lawn pest control contact our lawn care department for a free quote.

And remember that for comprehensive solutions to your specific lawn, garden and landscaping needs contact Earth Works of Jacksonville online and at 904-996-0712. Earth Works operates a retail Garden Center/Plant Nursery in Jacksonville and provides landscaping, hardscaping, water features, lawn care service, lawn spraying, and drainage solutions.
Earth Works proudly serves clients in Northeast Florida, including Jacksonville, Ponte Vedra Beach, Atlantic Beach, Neptune Beach, Jacksonville Beach, Nocatee, St. Johns, Fleming Island, Orange Park, Middleburg, Green Cove Springs, Amelia Island, Fernandina, and St. Augustine.

 

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