Tag: horticulture

Florida-Friendly Landscaping™ – Right plant, right place

by wholley
August 17, 2016

Many homeowners turn to their yards when it comes time to bump up the beauty and pump up the property value, only to watch in mounting frustration as plant after plant withers under blazing sunlight or sags in torrential rains. If only they'd ... READ MORE

Category: Conservation, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Lawn, Pests & Disease, Water, Wildlife
Tags: Conservation, FFL, Florida Friendly, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Horticulture, Landscaping, Lawn, Pest, Pgm_HortRes, Plant, Pollinator, Pollinators, Sustainability, Water, Wildlife, Yard

Little beetle battles big problem

by Kevin O'Horan
October 16, 2015

Call it a beetle to battle the bulbil. The tiny air potato beetle (Lilioceris cheni) might be the key to stemming the invasion of a “noxious weed” – the air potato plant – that can overrun Florida’s natural ecosystems, and you can ... READ MORE

Category: Agriculture, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Natural Resources, Pests & Disease, Wildlife
Tags: Air Potato, Beetle, Biological Control, Bulbis, Dioscorea, Exotic, Horticulture, Invasive, Leaf Beetle, Lilioceris, Pgm_HortComm, Pgm_HortRes

Chinch Bugs in Florida Lawns

by Kevin O'Horan
July 13, 2015

During the hot summer months in Florida we often receive questions regarding dead brown patches in St. Augustine lawns. It is often incorrectly assumed, since our summers are so wet, that fungus is to blame. Most residents are unfamiliar ... READ MORE

Category: Home Landscapes, Lawn, Pests & Disease, Turf
Tags: Brown Spots, Chinch Bugs, Extension, Horticulture, IFAS, Lawn Pests, Pgm_HortComm, Pgm_HortRes, Summer, UF

Fertilizing in the Summer

by Kevin O'Horan
July 6, 2015

Sarasota County is one of many counties in Southwest Florida that have established restrictions on the application of fertilizers containing nitrogen and/or phosphorous. Sarasota County’s fertilizer blackout prohibits applying such products ... READ MORE

Category: Home Landscapes, Lawn, Natural Resources, Turf, Water
Tags: Extension, Fertilizer, Horticulture, IFAS, Lawn, Pgm_HortComm, Pgm_HortRes, Pollution, Runoff, Sarasota, UF, Water Quality

Take-all Root Rot

by Kevin O'Horan
June 4, 2015

Take-all root rot is a disease that is common on warm season turfgrass. It occurs during the summer and fall months when Florida receives the majority of its rainfall. Extended rainfall or long periods when the turfgrass is wet are especially ... READ MORE

Category: Home Landscapes, Lawn, Pests & Disease, Turf, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension
Tags: Brown Patch, Dead Grass, Disease, Fungus, Horticulture, Lawn, Pgm_HortComm, Pgm_HortRes, Root, Turf

Palmetto Weevils

by Kevin O'Horan
March 2, 2015

Post by Bob Mertens; Horticulture Program Specialist Once considered a minor pest of palms, the palmetto weevil (Rhynchophorus cruentatus) has in recent years become a serious problem on Canary Island Date palms (Phoenix canariensis) and ... READ MORE

Category: Agriculture, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Lawn, Pests & Disease, Pests & Disease, Turf, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension
Tags: Extension, Gardens, Horticulture, Landscaping, Palmetto, Pesticides, Pests, Pgm_HortComm, Pgm_HortRes, UF, Weevil

Cyclic Water Struggle

by Kevin O'Horan
December 1, 2014

At 3 o’clock expect rain. Those were the words I heard over and over when I first moved to the Tampa Bay area. It took time for the wisdom to sink in. Here in Florida we receive the majority of the 54.2 inches of average rainfall during the ... READ MORE

Category: Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Lawn, Natural Resources, UF/IFAS Research, Water
Tags: Apps, Horticulture, Irrigation, Lawns, Sustainability, Technology, Water

The Green Slime Monster

by Kevin O'Horan
November 4, 2014

I moved to Florida thirteen years ago and instantly hated it. It was flat, hot and humid with few redeeming qualities. It took about five years and a departure from the urban areas for the beauty to really sink in. The green swamps with hidden ... READ MORE

Category: Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Lawn, Natural Resources, Turf, Water, Work & Life
Tags: Environment, Fertilizer, Horticulture, Lawn, Nutrient, Pgm_HortComm, Pgm_HortRes, Pollution, Red Tide, Water Quality

Citizen Science

by Kevin O'Horan
August 18, 2014

I’ve often thought about the public’s opinion of scientists as one most closely related to “the man behind the curtain” in the movie The Wizard of Oz. Scientists are often seen as an enigmatic figure, acting in secrecy to create things ... READ MORE

Category: Community Volunteers, Conservation, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Natural Resources, UF/IFAS Extension, UF/IFAS Research, Wildlife
Tags: Apps, Data Collection, Education, Horticulture, Irrigation, Research, Science, Technology, Volunteer

Systems Thinking

by Kevin O'Horan
August 11, 2014

I am not a traditional horticulturalist. I admit it, but I am involved in the world and work of Horticulture. Horticulture for those that aren't familiar is the study of plant cultivation, disease diagnosis, breeding for variety and trait, irrigation ... READ MORE

Category: Home Landscapes, Natural Resources, UF/IFAS Teaching, Work & Life
Tags: Environment, Horticulture, Systems Thinking

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