Florida Waterwise Landscapes - Alliance for Water Efficiency
Florida Waterwise Landscapes - Alliance for Water Efficiency
Florida Waterwise Landscapes - Alliance for Water Efficiency
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FERTILIZING<br />
Once established, your water-conserving yard<br />
may require only moderate amounts of supplemental<br />
fertilizer. Overfertilizing aggravates pest problems,<br />
stimulates excessive growth and requires frequent<br />
watering. Fertilizers carried by irrigation water or<br />
rain can leach into groundwater and our waterways.<br />
When needed, the best choice <strong>for</strong> plants and the<br />
environment is slow-release fertilizer. The package<br />
label on the fertilizer will say organic, slow-release or<br />
controlled release, water-insoluble nitrogen, sulfur-<br />
coated, IBDU, or resin-coated. Check the label <strong>for</strong><br />
inclusion of trace minerals.<br />
Fertilization should be used when specific nutrient<br />
deficiency symptoms are evident. Natural sources of<br />
these nutrients are available and inexpensive.<br />
Nitrogen — grass clippings, compost, cottonseed meal<br />
Phosphorus — compost, rock phosphate (many<br />
<strong>Florida</strong> soils are already phosphorus-rich)<br />
Potassium — compost, aged manure, fireplace wood<br />
ashes (raises soil pH)<br />
Some plants can make nutrients available in the<br />
soil <strong>for</strong> the benefit of other plants. Clover, <strong>for</strong><br />
example, “fixes” nitrogen (takes in nitrogen from the<br />
air), making it available <strong>for</strong> grass. Thus, leaving<br />
clover mixed in with lawn grasses is actually healthier<br />
than trying to eliminate it.<br />
PRUNING<br />
If a plant is placed in the right location and given<br />
enough room to mature, pruning should be minimal.<br />
Prune to retain the natural shape, or structure, of<br />
trees and shrubs and to promote or maintain strong<br />
structure. Less pruning is usually better because<br />
pruning is stressful to a tree or shrub, which causes it<br />
to require more water. Also, pruning at the wrong<br />
time of the year can stress plants.<br />
Your County Cooperative Extension Service<br />
office has brochures with simple graphics showing<br />
how to make proper pruning cuts.<br />
19<br />
An example of “hat racking,” a pruning practice that<br />
stresses a plant and increases the plant’s water needs.<br />
• Trees — Prune carefully to promote strong<br />
development in the trunk and main branches. Don’t<br />
prune the first year after transplanting. Never cut off<br />
the top of a tree to control height.<br />
• Palms — Only dead and diseased fronds should be<br />
removed. If a palm frond is living and green, it is<br />
producing energy <strong>for</strong> the plant and should not be cut.<br />
• Shrubs — Shearing shrubs results in foliage<br />
<strong>for</strong>ming only at the outer, sheared surface, with no<br />
internal foliage. By selectively thinning branches<br />
following the natural shape of a shrub, you can open<br />
the shrub foliage to permit light penetration while<br />
retaining some control over its size.