Category: Home Landscapes

a solid stand of cogongrass along a roadside

Fall is Almost Here – It’s time to Gear Up to Fight Cogongrass and Other Invasive Plants

by Mark Mauldin
August 18, 2026

Without question, Cogongrass is the most troublesome invasive plant that I (and my clients) deal with. Here in Northwest Florida, we have a lot of it, and it is very difficult to manage. With that in mind, I write and teach about cogongrass ... READ MORE

Category: Agriculture, Home Landscapes, Invasive Species, Natural Resources
Tags: Cogongrass, Invasive Plants, Panhandle Agriculture, Panhandle Outdoors, Vegetation Management
Asian citrus psyllid, Diaphorina citri, and larvae.

Protecting North Florida’s Citrus: Why Your Backyard Tree Matters in the Fight Against Citrus Greening

by Danielle S. Williams
August 17, 2026

This article was written by Dr. Romain Exilien, Postdoctoral Associate, UF/IFAS North Florida Research and Education Center (NFREC) and Dr. Xavier Martini, Associate Professor, UF/IFAS NFREC. The Asian citrus psyllid (ACP) is a small, mottled-brown ... READ MORE

Category: Fruits & Vegetables, Home Landscapes, Pests & Disease, UF/IFAS Extension, UF/IFAS Research
Tags: Panhandle Gardening
Green timber bamboo

Growing Giant Timber Bamboo in the Home Landscape

by Tia Saracino
August 17, 2026

Giant Timber Bamboo Giant timber bamboo, or Oldham’s bamboo (Bambusa oldhamii), has the large green culms (stems) to 3 – 5”. Bamboo is in the grass family and this one is an impressive giant clumping bamboo species growing up to 65’ ... READ MORE

Category: , Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Fruits & Vegetables, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, UF/IFAS Extension
Tags: Bamboo, Bambusa, Central Florida, Edible Shoots, Home Landscapes, Subtropical
An image of a rat outdoors eating birdseed.

Wondering About Wildlife: What to Do About Rodents

by Zahir Ringgold Cordes
August 12, 2026

Developed by our Ecology and Natural Resources program, the "Wondering About Wildlife?" blog series provides answers to frequently asked questions and concerns about the wildlife around us. This blog focuses on non-native rodent species and ... READ MORE

Category: Home Landscapes, Natural Resources, Pests & Disease, Wildlife
Tags: Animals, Pests, Pgm_EcoNR, Rodents, Urban Wildlife, Wildlife, Wonderingaboutwildlife

What do Elephants have to do with Bee Fences?

by Maria Quirico
August 11, 2026

MGV Giles Paget-Wilkes, self-described multi-national citizen and lead of the Discovery Gardens apiary, gave a fascinating talk on the development of Bee Fences on Mount Elgon in Kenya.       Map of Mount Elgon; Speaker MGV Giles Paget-Wilkes. Mount ... READ MORE

Category: Agriculture, Conservation, Crops, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Forests, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Invasive Species, Natural Resources, Pests & Disease, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension, UF/IFAS Research, Wildlife
Tags: African Bees, Bee Fences, Elephants, Human-Elephant Conflict, Kenya, Mount Elgon
Primer plano de una mariposa monarca con las alas parcialmente extendidas sobre flores amarillas, junto a una abeja de cuerpo negro y alas transparentes que se acerca a otra flor. El fondo es azul y desenfocado, lo que resalta a los dos polinizadores y las flores.

UF/IFAS invita a los residentes de Florida de todas las edades a participar en el Gran Censo de Polinizadores del Sureste del 21 al 22 de agosto

by Luz Bahder
August 11, 2026

Creado por Lourdes Mederos, gerente de relaciones públicas en español para el Departamento de Comunicaciones de UF/IFAS. ¿Qué pasaría si proteger a los polinizadores fuera tan fácil como pasar 15 minutos observando un jardín de flores? Del ... READ MORE

Category: Blog Community, Conservation, Events, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, UF/IFAS
Tags: Censo De Polinizadores, Español, Gran Censo De Polinizadores Del Sureste, Spanish
A monarch butterfly on a flower. UF/IFAS Photo by Tyler Jones.

UF/IFAS invites Floridians of all ages to join the Great Southeast Pollinator Census Aug. 21-22

by Lourdes Mederos
August 10, 2026

What if protecting pollinators were as easy as spending 15 minutes watching a patch of flowers? On Aug. 21-22, University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Extensions invites Floridians of all ages to join ... READ MORE

Category: Blog Community, Conservation, Events, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, SFYL Hot Topic, Wildlife
Tags: Beneficial Insects, Citizen Science, Great Southeast Pollinator Census, Institute Of Food And Agricultural Sciences, Master Gardener Volunteers, Pollinator, Special Topics, Top News, UF-IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension

Building Soil, Suppressing Weeds, and Supporting Pollinators at The Nassau County Demonstration Garden

by David Hébert
August 10, 2026

Healthy soil is the foundation of successful gardening and farming. At the UF/IFAS Extension Nassau County office in Callahan, a demonstration garden has spent the last four years showing how cover crops, compost, mulch, and pollinator-friendly ... READ MORE

Category: 4-H & Youth, Clubs & Volunteers, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Fruits & Vegetables, Home Landscapes, Pests & Disease
Tags: Cover Crops, Soil
large oak trees with Spanish moss hanging in the canopy.

Tree Bark: A Landscape Showstopper- A New Episode of Your Central Florida Yard Podcast

by Anne Yasalonis
August 10, 2026

Tree Bark: A Landscape Showstopper Join us in this episode as we take a closer look at trees with interesting bark. Whether you’re designing a landscape or just love trees, you’ll come away seeing bark in a whole new way! Your Central ... READ MORE

Category: Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes,
Tags: Anne Yasalonis, Ayasalonis, Central Florida, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Florida-Friendly Plants, Jschelb, Master Gardener Volunteer, Polk County, Polkgardening, Polkmg, Trees, UF-IFAS, UF/IFAS Polk County, Weeds, Your Central Florida Yard Podcast

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