LiveBetterGarden.com: Florida

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Backyard mango orchard - how to grow tips for South Florida

Paul from Fruitful Trees YouTube channel interviewed Alex Salazar from Tropical Acres in Alex's home backayrd orchard, info current as of 01.2022:

https://www.tropicalacresfarms.com/about

Sapodilla in South Florida - how to grow tips

Paul from Fruitful Trees YouTube channel interviewed Alex Salazar from Tropical Acres about sapodilla growing in South Florida, info current as of 01.2022:

https://www.tropicalacresfarms.com/about

Florida avocados at Lara Farms in Homestead, FL

Florida avocados at Lara Farms in Homestead, FL - Paul from Fruitful trees YouTube channel interviewed Julian Lara, info current as of 01.2022:

https://larafarmsmiami.com sells avocados online as of 01.2022.

Sugar apple (Annona squamosa)

Annonas with Har | Sugar Apple (Annona squamosa). Har is an Annona expert, in this video, he talks about Sugar Apples (Annona squamosa):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8_R6orV-2I

Growing Jackfruit in South Florida - UF/IFAS Extension Miami-Dade video lecture

The UF/IFAS Tropical Fruit Extension agent for Miami-Dade County, Jeff Wasielewski, teaches you how to grow jackfruit in South Florida. This is part of the Tropical Fruit Tuesdays webinar series.

Top Plants for a Food Garden in Subtropical Climates

From Rob Greenfield: Pete Kanaris's 10 top plants for a food garden in subtropical climates - Florida gardening.

1. Chaya (Cnidoscolus aconitifolius)
2. Moringa (Moringa oleifera)
3. Yuca / cassava (Manihot esculenta)
4. Sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas)
5. Sissoo / Miami / Brazilian spinach (Alternanthera sissoo)
6. Katuk (Sauropus androgynus)
7. Papaya (Carica papaya)
8. Edible leaf hibiscus (Abelmoschus manihot)
9. Cranberry hibiscus (Hibiscus acetosella)
10. Okinawa spinach (Gynura crepioides)

Plants available for purchase from Pete’s nursery by visit or by mail.
Details here: https://www.greendreamsfl.com/

Tithonia diversifolia (tree marigold) as a chop-and-drop mulch and fertilizer in Florida

Tithonia diversifolia is a species of flowering plant that is commonly known as the tree marigold, Mexican tournesol, Mexican sunflower, Japanese sunflower or Nitobe chrysanthemum. It is native to Mexico and Central America but has a nearly pantropical distribution as an introduced species.

It has shown potential in raising the soil fertility in soils depleted in nutrients. This plant is a "weed" that grows quickly and has become an option as an affordable alternative to expensive synthetic fertilizers.

It can be grown as shrub of hedge

Tithonia diversifolia is 2–3 m (6.6–9.8 ft) in height with upright and sometimes ligneous stalks in the form of woody shrubs. The large, showy flowers are yellow to orange colored and 5–15 cm wide and 10–30 cm long.

It works as a fertilizer but it takes a lot of work

Harvesting and distributing this fertilizer over the land by hand is very labor-intensive. The best yields come when T. diversifolia is grown off the land as to not take up growing space. For this reason, when time spent on labor has been factored, this approach may not be beneficial to a farmer.

Tithonia diversifolia can be used as organic fertilizer biomass. For this use, the plant is first grown in hedges around the edges of harvest land. The green stems (not the woody stems), leaves, and flowers can be removed from the plant at a farmer selected time, though it is recommended that cutting every 5 months will give a plentiful amount of nutrients in the biomass. The biomass can also be used as a mulch and can be left on top of the soil to decompose into the ground.

How to propagate

Cuttings root very easily, just like cassava, in fact, you can grow them together.

Videos:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3L3gcvS0oZQ

References:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tithonia_diversifolia

https://growerjim.blogspot.com/2014/08/tithonia-diversifolia-bolivian-sunflower.html

http://www.thesurvivalgardener.com/meet-amazing-giant-sunflower-that-fixes/

https://www.echocommunity.org/en/resources/61d7b231-5e4e-4448-82d0-51d83a5025e8

Yaupon Tea - America's Original Native Caffenated 'Tea' Plant

Ilex vomitoria, commonly known as yaupon or yaupon holly, is a species of holly that is native to southeastern North America.

The word yaupon was derived from its Catawban name, yopún, which is a diminutive form of the word yop, meaning "tree". The Latin name "vomitoria" comes from an incorrect belief by Europeans that the plant caused vomiting in certain ceremonies.

The plant was traditionally used by Native Americans to make an infusion containing caffeine. It and another plant in the Rubiaceae family, Galium aparine, are the only known plants indigenous to North America that produce caffeine. The plant is also widely used for landscaping in its native range.

You can buy the tea and the plants from Yaupon Brothers American Tea Co. in New Smyrna Beach, Florida, USA: https://www.yauponbrothers.com

Yaupon Brothers offer an Yaupon cultivar called "Schilling's Dwarf." Living up to its name, it grows to 4 feet tall, and 4 feet wide. Trimmings can be used to to make your own yaupon tea. All Schillings Yaupon trees offered by Yaupon Brothers are male, meaning that they do not develop berries. They do have cheery flowers in the spring which attract a wide range of pollinators.

These little Yaupon trees will thrive anywhere in the southeast USA. They are hardy to USDA zone 7, and tolerate temperatures down to 10 F for short time periods.

Schilling's dwarf holly grows in sun or light shade in soils from dry to wet, withstands drought when established and is highly salt-tolerant, making it suited to seaside plantings. Schilling's dwarf is a selection of the native yaupon holly, which grows naturally without irrigation on the dunes along the Atlantic Ocean. Growth rate is slow to moderate. Plant 4-5 feet apart for mass planting. Be sure to set plants several feet back from a walk, driveway or lawn area, because plants grow wider than tall and often require pruning to control their lateral growth. Be sure to leave the bottom of the plant much wider than the top so that lower foliage is left on the plant. If you attempt to shear vertically, the lower branches will be shaded and often lose foliage. This will give the shrub an unsightly, dark, leafless bottom.

Schilling's dwarf trees are shipped from Plant Click, from Raleigh, NC.

https://www.yauponbrothers.com/collections/shop-now/products/live-yaupon-tree-1-gal

They have an active YouTube channel:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1hGFk-WriknjdCK0iqF0MQ/videos?

From Rob Greenfield:

References:

https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2015/08/04/429071993/heres-the-buzz-on-americas-forgotten-native-tea-plant
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ilex_vomitoria
https://www.yauponbrothers.com/pages/about-yaupon-turbo
https://marblebotanics.com/blog/2018/10/7/make-your-own-yaupon
https://marblebotanics.com/blog/2018/7/19/yaupon-intro
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_drink

Plants for South Florida garden conditions by Three Amigos Growers in Davie, FL

The Three Amigos Growers is a nursery in Davie, FL which offers plants adapted to the South Florida garden conditions. Here is a list:

https://www.treeamigosgrowers.com/plants/

Among them:

Vegetable Plants

- Collards. These can be perennial in South Florida, I have Georgia collards growing strong for 3 years now.

- Eggplant Dancer, Ping Tung, Millionaire. Will have to check them out. Have in mind that eggplants hate the nematodes in Florida soil. Containers may be a better option.

- Kale Garlic. Not sure about this one.

- Mustard Greens, Mustard Red. Easy to grow but you have to cook them, raw, they have a bite.

- Peppers Crimson King, Mini Chocolate, Padron. Not sure about these.

- Lettuce, Salanova. Not sure about this one.

- Longevity Spinach.

- Sorrel, French. Tried to grow it but it did not do well for me. May try again.

- Tomato, Everglades, Super Sweet 100. Everglades tomato grows excellent in South Florida, it self-seeds and becomes perennial. Highly recommended. Have in mind it's a small tomato though - the size of a large blueberry.

Culinary Herb Plants

- Dill, Fennel. Not sure how well these will do in summer.

- Garlic Chives, Leeks. Excellent choice! Great for edible edging plant.

- Mint, Mojito. Not sure about this one.

- Parsley. It does not grow well during the summer heat.

- Scallions. Perennial in South Florida.

- Thyme Lemon. Vietnamese Coriander. Not sure about this one.

Medicinal Herb Plants

- Calendula. Not sure about this one.

- Chamomile. It has trouble during the summer.

- Marshmallow, Mother Wort. Not sure about this one.

- Plantain, Plantain Turkish. Tried it but did not grow well for me.

- Skullcap Barbara. Spilanthes – Lemon Drops. Not sure about this one.

- Stinging Nettle. Tried it but did not grow well for me from seed.

- Tulsi, Kapoor. Krishna. Not sure about this one.

- Valerian Root. Not sure about this one.

Fruit Trees and Plants

- Achote (Annatto). Not sure about this one.

- Guava. Excellent choice for South Florida.

- Lulo/Naranjilla. Can be very thorny, I hear.

- Mulberry, Ever-bearing. Fruit is too small on most varieties.

- Passionfruit, Sweet cup yellow. Not sure about this one.

- Passionfruit, Purple. Excellent choice.

Map:

Sherbet Berry, Grewia asiatica (phalsa or falsa)

Grewia asiatica (phalsa or falsa) was first found in India.

It is a shrub or small tree growing to 8 m tall. The leaves are broadly rounded, 5–18 cm long and broad. The flowers are produced in cymes of several together, the individual flowers about 2 cm diameter, yellow. The fruit is an edible drupe 5–12 mm diameter, purple to black when ripe.

It is extensively cultivated for its sweet and sour acidic fruit, which are sold in the market during summer months under the name falsa. The sherbet or squash is prepared from the fruit pulp by mixing it with sugar and used as an astringent, stomachic and cooling agent.

The root is used by Santhal tribals for rheumatisms. The stem bark is said to be used in refining sugar, for making ropes and its infusion is used as a demulcent/sore throat reliever.

It has become naturalised and locally invasive in Australia and the Philippines.

Sherbert berry, and tropical cherries from EatYourYardJax YouTube channel:

"Fedge", edible hedge

Planted closely together, the sherbet berries create a good-looking short hedge, that is in flower and fruit most of the summer. But remember: the Sherbet Berry will lose its leaves from a light frost and is deciduous even in mild winter climates (Zone 9) for 4-6 weeks.

Sherbet Berry is a vigorous, fast grower. While the trees are drought tolerant, you’ll need to give it consistent water for good fruit quality.

Sherbet Berry, Grewia asiatica (phalsa or falsa) is available here:

https://wellspringgardens.com/products/sherbet-berry-grewia-asiatica

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Sherbet-Berry-Grewia-asiatic-Phalsa-Falsa-4-Pot/198922456

Videos:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDC3XkKDsOU

References:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grewia_asiatica
https://justfruitsandexotics.com/2017/04/08/sherbet-berrycheck/
http://tropicalfruitforum.com/index.php?topic=19678.0

When sapodilla is ready to pick at Three Sisters Farm in Homestead, Florida

John from Growing Your Greens shows you when sapodilla is ready to pick at Three Sisters Farm in Homestead, Florida, at 23:31 min: https://youtu.be/87QpLjUNzeE?t=1405

and black sapote at 19:30min https://youtu.be/87QpLjUNzeE?t=1170

The farm is just across the street from Fruit and Spice Park in Homestead:

References:

https://www.threesistersfarm.com/
Picking Sapodilla or Chikoo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZD4crGKBOX8

Homegarden Cuisine for the Subtropics (Florida)

Bixa orellana, Achiote/Annato, one of the fastest growing shrubs/trees

Bixa orellana is in the competition for one of the fastest growing trees in South Florida with moringa and strawberry tree.

Achiote (Bixa orellana) is a shrub native to a region between northern South America and Mexico. Nowadays, Bixa orellana is grown in many countries worldwide.

Coloring agent

The tree is best known as the source of annatto, a natural orange-red condiment (also called achiote or bijol) obtained from the waxy arils that cover its seeds.

Food

The ground seeds are widely used in traditional dishes in Central and South America, Mexico, and the Caribbean, such as cochinita pibil, chicken in achiote and caldo de olla. Annatto and its extracts are also used as an industrial food coloring to add yellow or orange color to many products such as butter, cheese, margarine, ice creams, meats, and condiments. Seeds were originally used to make red body paint and lipstick, as well as a spice. For this reason, the Bixa orellana is sometimes called the lipstick tree.

Bixa orellana is a perennial, tall shrub that can reach 6–10 m (20–33 ft) high.

Bixa orellana grows easily in subtropical to tropical climates. It can be propagated from seed and cuttings.

From Sulcata Grove Instagram post:

"Bixa orellana, known as Achiote and Annatto. This may be the fastest growing tree on our property. We grew ours from seed and it flowered and produced the next year. Hummingbirds seem to love the large clumps of pink flowers. Once the pods are mature, the seeds and surrounding pulp can be soaked in a small amount of oil to color and lightly flavor foods or in coloring cosmetics. Alternatively, the seeds can be crushed and made into a powder. Each year, we cut the trees to the ground and they explode with growth again. The trees do amazingly well here in Sarasota, but do require a lot of pruning if you have limited space. Craig recently pruned this particular tree which is growing in with our chickens. Rather than cutting to the ground, he took out all of the bottom branches, leaving the canopy to help give cover for our sweet chickens when they are out foraging. The wood is soft and a beautiful shade of yellow near the bark."

References:

https://www.instagram.com/p/B7ToAJKAGnU
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bixa_orellana
eBay seeds: https://www.ebay.com/itm/221235896166

Grow and Forage 100% of Your Food in Central Florida: Rob Greenfield

An excellent presentation by Rob Greenfield who tried to grow 100% of his food over 12 months in Orlando. The links at his resource page are also very helpful:

http://robgreenfield.tv/grow/

References:

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/dec/19/i-didnt-buy-any-food-for-a-year-and-im-healthier-than-ive-ever-been

Robert Is Here, the famous fruit stand in Homestead, Florida

From Great Big Story:

"Robert Moehling has a passion for fruit. Weird tropical fruit. Ever tried canistel? How about mamey sapote or guanabana? Robert is happy to introduce these fresh delights to you. He sells all kinds of exotic, tropical fruit at Robert Is Here, his fruit stand in Homestead, Florida. Most of the fruit he sells is grown right on his family farm."

Most new mango varieties come from this nursery: Zill High Performance Plants

From Pete Kanaris GreenDreamsFL: "Have you ever wondered where the tropical fruit nurseries & groves get their wholesale stock? Zill High Performance Plants is #1 in the country when it comes to new & top-notch Mango cultivars! As mentioned in the video, they do not sell to the public & they do not ship. You must have a business/resale license to contact Zill High Performance Plants. (wholesale / bulk orders only)".

4,500 trees is not a big order for Zill, said Pete. Not so sure about that. Nevertheless, the place is impressive, as it the hype about the new varieties. Past performance have shown that some of these newer varieties may be plagued by low productivity and diseases that have not been fully evaluated at the time of the launch. The 4,500-order was for Jubilee farm near Tampa, video is here.

Food forest plants in South Florida: a complete list of all plants

Food forest plants in South Florida - 7 layers (click here to enlarge the image).

The list is open for edit. Please feel free to add your own comments and suggestions below:

Food forest plants in South Florida: a complete list of all plants

What is a Food Forest? Geoff Lawton: "Forests are ecosystems with a diversity of plants, animals, and fungi. They were designed by nature to have perfect balance. A food forest is a version of this in which the different, balanced components produce food. When we understand how nature creates its ecosystem, we can model that with productive species to produce food sustainably, with minimum inputs for maximum outputs.

Forests have layers. At the top is the (1) canopy layer followed by (2) understory trees, (3) bushes and shrubs, and down to (4) herbaceous layers. Under the ground, there are (5) root yields, and at the surface, there are (6) groundcovers. There are also vertical layers of (7) climbers. These layers work to occupy all the space. In designing a food forest, we use those layers to work for our benefit.

For designed food forests, the plants change from climate to climate. In the subtropics, tamarillo functions as an understory, and also within this layer are productive trees, such as feijoa, guava, and citrus. Taro, coco yam, and cassava are root yields. There are also large herbs, like bananas. The food forest would also include large support species—ice cream bean, tipuana tipu, casuarina—that support the forest by cycling nutrients, as well as understory support trees, a la acacia, leucaena, cassia, and albizzia. Most of these support species will eventually give way to large, productive species: rose apples, mulberries, jackfruit, bunya pine, pecan, and mango. The system remains very stable when all the layers are occupied."

Florida fruit trees: AG Farms in Homestead

AG Farms in Homestead, Florida. In this video, Arturo talks about his business and shows some of his tropical fruit plants:

Arturo sells at the same price point retail and bulk. Typically, retail prices are higher.

AG Farms
Address: 23040 SW 187th Ave, Miami, FL 33170
Phone: (305) 242-1001

Easy Florida Gardening

From David The Good: The Goodstream, Episode 005: My Florida Gardening Secret:

David's books:

Totally Crazy Easy Florida Gardening audio and ebook together: https://gumroad.com/l/easy-florida-gardening

Totally Crazy Easy Florida Gardening in paperback: https://amzn.to/2UFkkHH

Lara Farms in Redland, Florida is the place to buy mamey fruit trees

Julian Lara is the second generation owner of Lara Farms in Redland, Florida. Truly Tropical YouTube channel visited his nursery and farm to talk about the tropical fruits he grows and tropical fruit trees he sells.

Lara Farms
18660 SW 200th St, Miami, FL 33187
(305) 253-2750

It's Mamey Sapote Season at Lara Farms in April:

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