Category: Fruits & Vegetables

Ghost Snails Are Showing Up in Florida Gardens

by Sara MacDonald
July 22, 2026

Have you noticed small, cone-shaped snails climbing your plants? We recently found large groups of ghost snails (Bulimulus bonariensis) feeding on marigolds and herbs in a St. Lucie County garden. These snails are becoming more common across ... READ MORE

Category: Agriculture, , Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Fruits & Vegetables, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Invasive Species, Natural Resources, Pests & Disease, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension
Tags: Florida Friendly Landscape, Invasive Species, UF/IFAS Extension St. Lucie County
Person wearing a blue UF/IFAS polo shirt bends over to examine potted pineapple plants inside a greenhouse. The plants are arranged on benches beneath a translucent greenhouse covering, with structural supports and utility equipment visible in the background.

Researchers at IRREC Test Pineapple Varieties for Salt Tolerance

by Joe McQueen
July 22, 2026

A new University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) study looked at how multiple varieties of pineapple tolerated different levels of salinity. Lukas Hallman, postdoctoral research associate at the UF/IFAS Indian ... READ MORE

Category: Agriculture, Coasts & Marine, Crops, Fruits & Vegetables, Natural Resources, UF/IFAS Research
Tags: Agriculture, Alternative Crops, Pineapple, Water
photo of bee on pink flower

Florida Heat Isn’t Just Hard on Your Plants—It’s Hard on You, Too

by Angelika Keene
July 21, 2026

As Florida Master Gardeners, we know summer gardening isn't for the faint of heart. We carefully watch our plants for signs of heat stress, adjust our watering schedules, and look for ways to help our gardens survive another hot, humid day. But ... READ MORE

Category: Agribusiness, Agriculture, Crops, Farm Management, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Forests, Fruits & Vegetables, Health & Nutrition, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Lawn, Natural Resources, Recreation, UF/IFAS Extension, Water, Wildlife, Work & Life
Tags: Community Wellness, Fall Gardening, Florida Heat, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Gardening, Heat Illness Prevention, Heat Safety, Hydration, Master Gardener Volunteer, Mental Health, Mental Health First Aid, Mental Wellness, Outdoor Safety, Self Care, Spring Gardening Summer Gardening, Stay Cool, Summer Gardening, UF/IFAS Extension, Vegetable Gardening, Winter Gardening

The Landscape Order of Operations: Water. Test. Fertilize—if needed.

by Lauren Spaduzzi
July 15, 2026

A simple guide to diagnosing landscape problems before reaching for fertilizer. When plants start looking unhealthy, it's tempting to reach for a bag of fertilizer. Yellowing leaves, stunted growth, or poor flowering often seem like obvious ... READ MORE

Category: Agriculture, , Conservation, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Fruits & Vegetables, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Lawn, Natural Resources, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension, UF/IFAS Teaching, Water
Tags: Central Florida, Fertilizer, Fertilizer Ordinances, Florida, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Fruit, Garden, Gardening, Hillsborough, Hillsborough County, Home Landscapes, Irrigation, Landscape, Master Gardener, Soil PH, Soil Test, UF/IFAS Extension, Vegetable, Vegetable Gardening, Watering Efficiently
a mixture of grass, grain and legume plants growing together in a field

Summer Cover Crops for the Home Vegetable Garden

by Beth Marlowe
June 30, 2026

By early summer, many of us have pulled up our spent spring crops.  No disrespect to okra or lima beans, but sometimes we just don't want to actively garden in the intense heat.  So what can we do with our garden beds instead?  We can grow ... READ MORE

Category: Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Fruits & Vegetables, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, UF/IFAS Extension
Tags: Cover Crops, Duval, Gardening, IFAS, Marlowe, Vegetable Gardening, Vegetables

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