Creating a Sustainable, Florida-Friendly Landscape
We hear the words "green" and "sustainable" a lot these days. More and more, the term "Florida-Friendly Landscaping" is being used to describe home landscaping design and maintenance practices that are considered healthy for the environment.
If we have a sustainable landscape, does everything in the garden have to be made of recycled material? If we want to use inorganic fertilizers, are we not being "green"? Does a Florida-Friendly Landscape imply that our gardens must look desert-like, or wild and unkempt? Do all Florida-Friendly Landscapes look alike?
The answer to all of these questions is: No.
Florida-Friendly Landscaping means that you are taking small steps in your garden to conserve water quantity and protect water quality in Florida. A Florida-Friendly Landscape is functional, environmentally sound, low maintenance, cost effective, and visually pleasing. It can be as unique and aesthetically interesting as you want. Plus, Florida-Friendly Landscaping saves money, time, and effort, because it encourages working with the natural ecosystem rather than against it.
How Do I Get Started?
The idea of having to create a whole new landscape can be daunting. Many people can't afford to remove all their current plantings and replace them with more Florida-Friendly ones. Nor is it a good idea to take out every plant in a landscape at the same time, even if you are doing a complete renovation.
Fortunately, you can make a difference by following the easy tips below to get started. Pick strategies that are best suited to your yard and your capabilities. Don't try to do everything at once—choose one or two things that you can change now, and consider which items you will implement later. Each small improvement helps to create a sustainable yard.
Select the Right Plants
A key concept of Florida-Friendly Landscaping is putting the right plant in the right place for the right purpose.
- Identify the plants you currently have in your landscape.
- Remove the invasive plants.
- Relocate or remove plants that have been planted in the wrong location.
- Choose plants that need little, if any, supplemental water once established.
- Group plants by similar water and soil needs.
- Plant more trees.
Keep Up the Maintenance
You can be Florida-Friendly without compromising aesthetics. Drought-tolerant landscape plants with a "neat" growth habit are available. Native plants that look untamed in their natural habitat may have a more appealing, ornamental look when trimmed and cared for, and can be controlled with architectural features such as arbors and fences.
- Use plants with the appropriate size and growth habit to avoid constant pruning.
- Use naturalistic pruning techniques that maintain a neat, but un-sheared, plant.
- Mix common, easy-to-recognize plants with natives and/or mix naturalistic plantings with formal plantings for a more manicured look.
- Use mulch to control weeds.
- Group trees together in large, self-mulching areas.
- Use fences and other architectural elements to control the wild appearance of some native plants.
