The Staghorn Fern is a member of the "Polypodiaceae" plant family, found throughout Florida primarily Central and South Florida. This particular plant can be startling due to how it grows in uncommon areas such as tree trunks, branches, and ... READ MORE
Category: Agriculture, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, UF/IFAS Extension
Each fall, Floridians are suddenly "wowed" by the sight of golden raintrees blooming along the roadsides. Vivid yellow flowers are followed by equally distinctive pink or peach-colored "paper lanterns." (More on those "paper lanterns" ... READ MORE
Category: Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Invasive Species, Natural Resources
Tuberous Sword Fern/Boston Fern (Nephrolepis cordifolia) The Tuberous Sword Fern swarms our landscapes and is easily found at many nurseries around the county. It goes by many names, including Boston Fern. You can easily confuse the tuberous ... READ MORE
Category: Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Invasive Species, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension
Every so often while I am enjoying a walk through the garden, I notice a growth pattern on a plant that is just not normal. One of the more interesting patterns I see is called fasciation. This is a distortion of plant tissue that often causes ... READ MORE
Category: Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Pests & DiseaseNon-Native Lantana (Lantana camara) Lantana is an unbelievably common landscape plant, although, not all are invasive species. There are native and sterile non-native lantanas available at landscape nurseries. The non-native invasive Lantana ... READ MORE
Category: Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Invasive Species, Natural Resources, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension
The Other Florida Residents Generally, Florida residents are pretty hardy souls. For instance, early settlers required a healthy fear of bears. Florida Black Bears lived throughout the state at that time and were of great concern for anyone ... READ MORE
Category: Conservation, Home Landscapes, Home Management, Invasive Species, Pests & Disease, SFYL Hot Topic, Wildlife, Work & Life
Wild Weeds - Weed of the Month Red Chokeberry Aronia arbutifolia Red chokeberry is a deciduous shrub, native to Florida, that reaches heights of 5-10 feet and can be 3-5 feet wide. Typically found in the panhandle as well as north and ... READ MORE
Category: Agriculture, Conservation, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Forests, Home Landscapes, Natural Resources, UF/IFAS Extension, WildlifeThe Invasion of the Landscape Snatchers "It started - for me, it started last Thursday, in response to an urgent message from my nurse, I hurried home from a medical convention I'd been attending. At first glance, everything looked the same. ... READ MORE
Category: Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Invasive Species, Natural Resources, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension
The Florida Gators and Kentucky Wildcats have been meeting on the football field since 1917, and the teams will meet again this Saturday at UK’s Kroger Field. Athletic rivalries aside, the two land-grant universities share a common goalpost: ... READ MORE
Category: Agribusiness, Agriculture, Crops, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, UF/IFAS Extension, UF/IFAS Teaching
A video has been spreading through social media of an Orlando resident trapping an alligator in a trash can. Along with the potential for injuring himself and the legality of handling alligators (don't do it). This only brought one big question ... READ MORE
Category: Home Landscapes, Natural Resources, Wildlife