Tag: native plants

Gardening with Florida Native Plants

by Tia Saracino
May 19, 2026

Watch our Gardening with Native Plants webinar with Tia Silvasy, UF/IFAS Extension and Anita Camacho, Little Red Wagon Native Nursery What is a native plant?Let's start with a few definitions. A native plant is one that has been documented ... READ MORE

Category: Agriculture, , Conservation, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Invasive Species, Lawn, Natural Resources, Pests & Disease, UF/IFAS Extension, Water, Wildlife
Tags: Central Florida, Florida, Florida Friendly, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Garden, Home Landscapes, Landscape, Landscaping, Milkweed, Monarch, Native, Native Plants, Plants, Tsilvasy

Tropical Milkweed and OE

by Tia Saracino
May 19, 2026

Tropical Milkweed (Asclepias curassavica) is commonly found in garden centers and is easy to grow. However, recent research has suggested that gardeners should avoid tropical milkweed and plant native species instead. As of June 2025, tropical ... READ MORE

Category: Agriculture, , Conservation, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Invasive Species, Natural Resources, Pests & Disease, UF/IFAS Extension, Wildlife
Tags: Butterflies, Butterfly Garden, Florida, Florida Native Plants, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Milkweed, Monarch, Native Plants, OE, Pollinators, Tropical Milkweed, Tsilvasy, Video

Native Plants to Protect the Tampa Bay Watershed

by Tia Saracino
May 19, 2026

Thanks to a $5,000 bay-mini-grant from the Tampa Bay Estuary Program, UF/IFAS Extension Hillsborough County was able to develop a Bay Friendly Landscaping program. Educational classes were offered to teach residents about protecting the environment ... READ MORE

Category: , Coasts & Marine, Conservation, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Lawn, Natural Resources, Pests & Disease, UF/IFAS Extension
Tags: Central Florida, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Gardening, Home Landscapes, Native Plants, Tampa Bay, Tampa Riverwalk, Tsilvasy, Urban Wildlife, Video, Water, Water Quality, Watershed, Webinar, Wildlife

Florida Native Plants to Attract Hummingbirds

by Tia Saracino
May 19, 2026

There are three species of hummingbirds in Florida, by far the most common species is the Ruby throated hummingbird. They are attracted to red, orange, and pink tubular flowers. To attract hummingbirds to your yard, plant a variety of plant ... READ MORE

Category: , Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Natural Resources, UF/IFAS Extension, Wildlife
Tags: Birds, Butterflies, Central Florida, Florida Friendly, Home Landscapes, Hummingbirds, Native Plants, Perennial, Tsilvasy, Vine, Wildlife

Drought Tolerant Native Plants for Central Florida

by Tia Saracino
May 19, 2026

In the late spring when it starts to get hot and dry in Central Florida you may notice some plants wilting and others thriving. This is a good time to consider remove plants that are not well suited for your landscape and replace with drought ... READ MORE

Category: , Conservation, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Lawn, Natural Resources, UF/IFAS Extension, Wildlife
Tags: Central Florida, Drought, Hillsborough County, Home Landscapes, Hurricane, Native Plants, Salt, Tsilvasy

Success Story: UF/IFAS Extension Launches Pollinator Corridor in Tampa

by Tia Saracino
May 19, 2026

UF/IFAS Extension and Hillsborough County Parks partnered to create a pollinator corridor in the Carrollwood neighborhood of Tampa, FL with funding from the ‘Viva Florida’ grant. The Florida Wildflower Foundation funds planting of native ... READ MORE

Category: , Events, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Natural Resources, UF/IFAS Extension, Wildlife
Tags: Butterflies, Hillsborough County, Home Landscapes, Native Plants, Pollinators, Success Story, Tampa, Wildflowers

Plant Status Change – Tropical Milkweed is Now Listed as a Category II Invasive

by Tia Saracino
May 19, 2026

Tropical Milkweed is now Invasive! Tropical milkweed (Asclepias curassavica) was once a go to larval host plant for monarch butterflies. As of June 2025 the plant status has changed. It is now listed as invasive in the entire state ... READ MORE

Category: , Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Invasive Species, Natural Resources, Pests & Disease, Pests & Disease, SFYL Hot Topic, UF/IFAS Extension
Tags: Asclepias, Butterfly, Invasive Species, Native Plants, Tropical Milkweed, Tsilvasy

The David W. Marshall IFAS Extension Office Demonstration Garden

by BLOGS.IFAS
May 19, 2026

Guest Article for the Tallahassee Democrat November 6, 2015 By: Lana Arnold “…that which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” is the often quoted Shakespearean line. The “rose “ with a new name is ... READ MORE

Category: Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, UF/IFAS Extension
Tags: Annuals, Grasses, Native Plants, October-December 2015, Orchards, Perennials, Roses, Shrubs, Trees, Tropical Plants, Vegetables Heerbs, Vines And Non-invasive Plants

Reimagining new home construction landscapes, backed by science

by Tory Moore
May 19, 2026

UF/IFAS researchers have partnered with award-winning land developers in Central Florida to study the benefits of landscapes that move away from traditional turf lawns and instead incorporate drought-tolerant plants native to Florida. Studying ... READ MORE

Category: Home Landscapes, SFYL Hot Topic, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension, UF/IFAS Research, Water, Wildlife
Tags: Center For Land Use Efficiency, Compost, Native Plants, School Of Forest Fisheries And Geomatics Sciences, Soil Health, Turf Alternatives, UF/IFAS Extension Lake County, UF/IFAS Extension Osceola County, Urban Ecology, Urban Landscape Ecology, Water Conservation, Water Quality, Water Resources

UF study: Native plants can thrive in size and floral abundance in limited water situations

by Brad Buck
May 19, 2026

New University of Florida research suggests native plants may be able to produce more flowers for pollinators under both full and partial irrigation. That means more pollinators, such as bees, may be attracted to them. For the study, scientists ... READ MORE

Category: UF/IFAS
Tags: Bloom, Department Of Entomology And Nematology, Ecology, Florida-Friendly Plants, Growth, Irrigation, Joanna Silva, Native Plants, Non-native Plants, North Florida Research And Education Center, Plant Science Research And Education Unit, Pollinators, Rachel Mallinger

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