How to garden effectively for shade in Florida.

Descriptions and photographs for 70 native plants that will thrive with little care in the yards of most Florida homeowners. Covers the peninsula south of Marion, Levy, and Volusia counties through the Keys.

Spectacular additions to any gardener's planting options "Huegel has created an excellent guide to growing and using native ferns and wildflowers. Gardeners of all levels will find many new and relatively unknown jewels to add to their landscapes. The wealth of experience and personal knowledge Huegel brings to his subject makes this a veritable step-by-step handbook for the wildflower gardener."--Gil Nelson, author of Best Native Plants for Southern Gardens "Huegel has compiled a large amount of information on Florida's native wildflowers and groundcovers. This is an extremely helpful and refreshing addition to the resources for people interested in these plants, whether they wish to grow them or not."--Daniel Austin, University of Arizona Florida gardens and lawns are full of flowering plants and turfgrass, most commonly exotic species. Recently, however, statewide water restrictions and a rekindling of environmental awareness have increased interest in native plants, which are better adapted to the local climate and require less maintenance. In this engaging and authoritative guide, ecologist and avid gardener Craig Huegel offers valuable information to anyone interested in integrating native ground covers into an outdoor space. As many of the plants featured in this book are not frequently or adequately discussed elsewhere, Native Wildflowers and Other Ground Covers for Florida Landscapes is a singular resource for homeowners and commercial growers alike. Brilliantly illustrated with nearly 300 color photos, this handy book provides clear instructions on how to garden with more than 17 native ferns, 17 native grasses, and 175 wildflowers--all commercially available plants that work well together in the landscape. If you're interested in adding these beautiful, diverse plants to your garden or yard, pick up Craig Huegel's latest book and start planning your native plant landscape today.

Choice Outstanding Academic Title Florida Book Awards, Bronze Medal for General Nonfiction Plants play a critical role in how we experience our environment. They create calming green spaces, provide oxygen for us to breathe, and nourish our senses. In The Nature of Plants, ecologist and nursery owner Craig Huegel demystifies the complex lives of plants and provides readers with an extensive tour into their workings. Beginning with the importance of light, water, and soil, Huegel describes the process of photosynthesis and how best to position plants to receive optimal sunlight. He explains why plants suffer from overwatering, what essential elements plants need to flourish, and what important soil organisms reside with them. Readers will understand the difference between friendly and hostile bacteria, fungi, and insects. Sections on plant structure and reproduction focus in detail on major plant organs—roots, stems, and leaves—and cover flowering, pollination, fruit development, and seed germination. Huegel even delves into the mysterious world of plant communication, exploring the messages conveyed to animals or other plants through chemical scents and hormones. With color illustrations, photographs, and real-life examples from his own gardening experiences, Huegel equips budding botanists, ecologists, and even the most novice gardeners with knowledge that will help them understand and foster plants of all types.

Many counties in Florida now require that new commercial landscapes contain a percentage of native plants. Native landscapes are easier to maintain, use less water and thrive without chemical pesticides and fertilizers. Native Florida Plants describes every type of regional flora—-from seaside foliage and wildflowers to grassy meadows, shrubs, vines, and aquatic gardens—-in 301 profiles and accompanying color photographs.

More and more Florida residents are deciding to replace highly fertilized, over-watered, pesticide-dependent lawns with native plants. They want to reduce their carbon footprints; save time, water, and money; and attract birds and butterflies. But where to begin? This illustrated guide will help you create new outdoor spaces that are both sustainable and beautiful. Taking the common ⅓-acre lot as an example, Ginny Stibolt and Marjorie Shropshire provide a sample layout for a basic native plant landscape. They use a grid system that allows gardeners to work on their yards in small sections instead of trying to revamp the entire landscape at once. The grid system can also be reduced or expanded for yards of varying size. By breaking down the process into individual steps, creating a Florida garden is achievable for beginners and experts alike. The first step is assessing your property and choosing which plants to keep and which to remove. Then, design your landscape to soak up more stormwater through the use of rain barrels, rain gardens, or ponds. The next steps involve planting trees, understory plants, and installing butterfly gardens. There are additional instructions for building wild areas into your landscape to provide habitat for birds and pollinators; creating a flexible outdoor room perfect for your family's needs today and into the future; and using plants to cool the air, provide screening for privacy, buffer incoming winds, and reduce noise. By following these methods, anyone can convert all or part of their yard into a more natural area without using pesticides or artificial fertilizers, which will save money, reduce pollution, and help support wildlife. Complete with detailed diagrams, a timeline for growth and maintenance, and lists of suggested plants for each step, this guide will help readers set up an environmentally friendly habitat and give them the time and peace of mind to enjoy it.

In this eloquent plea for compassion and respect for all species, journalist and gardener Nancy Lawson describes why and how to welcome wildlife to our backyards. Through engaging anecdotes and inspired advice, profiles of home gardeners throughout the country, and interviews with scientists and horticulturalists, Lawson applies the broader lessons of ecology to our own outdoor spaces. Detailed chapters address planting for wildlife by choosing native species; providing habitats that shelter baby animals, as well as birds, bees, and butterflies; creating safe zones in the garden; cohabiting with creatures often regarded as pests; letting nature be your garden designer; and encouraging natural processes and evolution in the garden. The Humane Gardener fills a unique niche in describing simple principles for both attracting wildlife and peacefully resolving conflicts with all the creatures that share our world.

This useful guide will help any gardener, experienced or inexperienced, take full advantage of those sometimes tricky shady areas. The book considers shade in several different garden situations and takes an in-depth look at shade-loving plants. Also included are tips on the design and maintenance of a shade garden.

An encyclopedic reference on shade perennials provides information on more than 7,000 species and cultivars in 184 genera, including practical growing tips and chapters on soils, watering, fertilizing, and types of shade.

"In one volume this book seems to encompass all the plants native and exotic grown in Florida. No small feat! . . . No other reference work that I know of covers the field as comprehensively as this."--Edward Golden, horticutural consultant and past president, Sarasota Orchid Society From Florida to California and on to Hawaii, gardeners who want a current, thorough, and user-friendly guide to the common indoor foliage and outdoor landscape plants for U.S. Department of Agriculture zones 8, 9, 10, and 11 will welcome this fully illustrated book. With precise line drawings for nearly 500 plant species, the work presents a description of cultivated ferns, cone-bearing plants, and flowering ornamental plants for warmer climates. It offers a description of the families, essential identifying features, and horticultural information for each plant, including origin, cold hardiness zones, propagation techniques, and soil, fertilizer, irrigation, and light requirements. The author also discusses identification features under clearly demarcated headings of growth habit, foliage, stem and bark, flower, and fruit. With a comprehensive glossary of terms commonly used in plant identification and a cross-referenced index of common and scientific names, readers will be able to find information with minimal effort. This book is intended for use by backyard gardeners and will be especially handy for newcomers to warm temperate and subtropical areas who seek a reliable resource for plant selection and care. In addition, it will be indispensable to garden clubs, volunteer Master Gardeners, nursery professionals, extension agents, and landscape architects. It also can serve as a plant identification text for students of environmental horticulture, forestry, and other plant science-related fields. Bijan Dehgan is professor of environmental horticulture at the University of Florida. He is internationally recognized for his taxonomic and horticultural research and major publications on the endangered sago palms (cycads) and the physic nuts (Jatropha).