A Gardener’s Guide to Plant Propagation, Part II: Propagating Plants from Stem and Leaf Cuttings

by Lauren Spaduzzi
September 22, 2026

In Part I of this series, we looked at the plant structures involved in propagation, including stems, leaves, buds and roots. Now it’s time to put that anatomy knowledge to work! A cutting is a portion of a plant that is removed from ... READ MORE

Category: Agriculture, , Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Fruits & Vegetables, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Natural Resources, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension, UF/IFAS Teaching
Tags: Central Florida, Cuttings, Florida, Florida Friendly, Florida Native Plants, Florida-friendly Landscaping, Garden, Gardening, Hillsborough, Hillsborough County, Home Landscapes, Landscape, Master Gardener, Native Plants, Plant Propagation, Propagation, Tampa
A row of large collard plants in a vegetable garden

Fall Vegetable Planting Dates for Central Florida

by Tia Saracino
September 19, 2026

When to Plant Warm-Season Vegetables in Central Florida The ideal planting date for warm-season vegetable crops in Central Florida is September 15. Gardeners in North Florida can generally plant about two weeks earlier, while South Florida ... READ MORE

Category: , Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Fruits & Vegetables, Health & Nutrition, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, SFYL Hot Topic, UF/IFAS Extension
Tags: Central Florida, Florida Vegetable Gardening Guide, Fruit And Vegetable, Garden Calendar, Garden Planning, Planting Dates, Vegetable Gardening

Getting to the Root of the Problem

by Alyssa Vinson
September 11, 2026

Getting to the Root of the Problem: What Tree Diagnosis Really Looks Like When a homeowner notices a tree declining, the first question is usually straightforward: What's wrong with my tree? The answer, however, is often anything but simple. In ... READ MORE

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Vanilla orchid flowers

Growing Vanilla in the Home Garden

by Tia Saracino
September 3, 2026

Vanilla is one of the world's most valuable spices, second only to saffron, and many gardeners are surprised to learn that it comes from an orchid. In fact, vanilla is the only genus of orchid that produces an edible fruit. While more than ... READ MORE

Category: , Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Fruits & Vegetables, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, UF/IFAS Extension
Tags: Home Landscapes, Orchid, South Florida, Specialty Crop, Spices, Tsilvasy, Vanilla, Vanilla Extract
Propagating fig cuttings

A Gardener’s Guide to Plant Propagation, Part I: The Anatomy of Propagation

by Lauren Spaduzzi
August 27, 2026

Have you ever read instructions to “cut just below a node” or “include an axillary bud” and wondered exactly what part of the plant that meant? Understanding a few basics of plant anatomy can make propagation much easier to understand, ... READ MORE

Category: Agriculture, , Crops, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Fruits & Vegetables, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension, UF/IFAS Teaching
Tags: Central Florida, Florida, Florida-friendly Landscaping, Fruit, Garden, Gardening, Hillsborough, Hillsborough County, Horticulture, Master Gardener, Plant Anatomy, Plant Propagation, Propagation, Residential Horticulture, Uf/ifas Extension
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
Hands of bananas on a cutting board next to a pair of red clippers.

Top Five Sub-tropical Fruits to Grow in Central Florida

by Tia Saracino
July 30, 2026

Central Florida has a sub-tropical climate that is excellent for growing a variety of fruits. Here are our top five choices for easy-to-grow productive fruits for your home landscape.   Pineapple Pineapples can be grown and fruit ... READ MORE

Category: , Fruits & Vegetables, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, UF/IFAS Extension
Tags: Avocado, Banana, Central Florida, Edible Landscaping, Featured Hot Topic, Fruit, Home Landscapes, Mango, Papaya, Pineapple, Silvasy, Tampa Bay
Pasture mealybugs on grass

New Invasive Turfgrass Pest: Pasture Mealybug

by Susan Haddock
July 15, 2026

There’s a new invasive insect that may invade your turfgrass…The Pasture Mealybug has been found in 15 south Florida counties in pastures including bahiagrass and bermudagrass pastures, other forage, and sugarcane. It has not been documented ... READ MORE

Category: Horticulture, Lawn, Pests & Disease, Pests & Disease, Turf, UF/IFAS Extension
Tags: Invasive Pest, Landscape Insect, Landscape Maintenance, Landscape Pests, Pasture Mealybug, SW ProHort, SWProHort, Turfgrass Insect, Turfgrass Pest

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