While National Arbor Day is always in April, many Floridians do not know that Florida’s Arbor Day is the third Friday in January. In 2025 that date is Friday, January 17th. This early date is perfect for planting trees in our area. The trees ... READ MORE
Category: Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Forests, Home Landscapes, Natural Resources, UF/IFAS
We often hear that spring is the best time to plant trees. Even Arbor Day, the day dedicated to planting trees, is in the spring. While there is no “bad” time to plant a tree, fall is a perfect time to put a tree in the ground. By ... READ MORE
Category: Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, UF/IFAS ExtensionAs part of my duties as an extension agent, I answer a lot of questions about trees. Many times, folks are surprised that the solution that they found online was not the best one, and that sometimes it was actually harmful. It is surprising ... READ MORE
Category: Horticulture
This post entertains an ongoing debate that I often hear: Are palm trees really trees? Could our state tree, the sable palm, not even be a tree? This has been argued in many different ways with the answer lying somewhere in the middle. Skip ... READ MORE
Category: Home Landscapes, Horticulture, UF/IFAS Extension
Historically, nothing said spring had arrived any better than a flowering dogwood tree. It remains a favored tree in southern landscapes. Sometimes you may see an occasional dogwood in bloom in the local pine forests. However, it is very ... READ MORE
Category: , Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Pests & Disease
While the National Arbor Day is always in April, many Floridians do not know that Florida’s Arbor Day is the third Friday in January. In 2022 that date is Friday, January 21st. This early date is perfect for planting trees in northeast Florida. ... READ MORE
Category: Agriculture, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Horticulture
We don’t often think about the roots of trees until there is a problem. A forester friend of mine called it a “fencepost mentality”. Being underground, they are often out of sight out of mind. However, without well-functioning roots trees ... READ MORE
Category: , Home Landscapes, HorticultureOur landscape trees rarely die of old age. Usually there is something we have done or failed to have done that shortens the lifespan of our landscape trees. Sometimes it is easy to forget that they are living things that need certain conditions ... READ MORE
Category: Home Landscapes, Horticulture
We have been taught since we were children that lightning strikes the tallest object. It is no wonder then, that lightning is one of the most common natural causes of tree damage. Lightning is formed when negative charged ions ... READ MORE
Category: Disaster Preparation, Home Landscapes, Horticulture
So often we choose a tree because of its flowers, leaves, fall color, or its fruit. Often we forget about the bark. However on many trees, the bark is the most interesting part of the tree. This can be especially true on deciduous trees that ... READ MORE
Category: , Home Landscapes