At the end of last year, we asked for your feedback , and you delivered! One of the top requests was for us to share more tips, tricks, and personal experiences from our lives. Based on your awesome suggestions, we’re excited to announce the launch of a new blog on the Arborist Institute website and our Facebook page!
Our blog will cover a wide range of topics related to forestry, landscaping, and urban planning, plus a few misadventures along the way (because when has anything involving plants ever gone exactly according to plan?).
In our first series of blog posts, we’ll follow Terra as she bravely battles the challenge of growing grass on a steep slope at her home. (Think “extreme gardening” without the fancy TV contract.) For our first attempt, we’re testing a mix of Pennington Kentucky 31 Tall Fescue Grass Seed (20 lb) (https://amzn.to/4kAgyeF) and EZ Straw (https://amzn.to/3H83kHv) to help hold the seed in place. Fingers crossed — and maybe toes too.
Meanwhile, I (Steven) will be sharing the ongoing saga of transforming our subdivision property from “default suburban lawn” to a thriving native Florida landscape. When we first moved in, the yard was…let’s just say, minimalist, perfect for a sterile, cookie-cutter neighborhood aesthetic. But since then, we’ve added a native butterfly garden and planted four new trees this year. Progress!
Next up on our to-do list:
- We’re planting a mix of larger shade trees, ornamental trees, and very large grasses (often referred to as palms) around our yard to establish shade for future plantings. With Florida’s long, hot days, most plants don’t survive the establishment phase without some form of shade—they simply get cooked. Our planting list includes white crape myrtles (Lagerstroemia indica), American elm (Ulmus americana), sycamore (Platanus occidentalis), and foxtail palm (Wodyetia bifurcata), in addition to an already established magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora).
- Reducing food waste through composting, starting a home garden, and keeping our young trees alive long enough to someday provide some real shade (and not just “aspirational shade”). We’ll be testing out two composting methods: the open ventilated barrel (https://amzn.to/3ShJ1de) and the tumbling compost bin(https://amzn.to/4muKNFs). Wish us luck — and maybe a breeze that doesn’t blow the compost across the street.
We hope you’ll enjoy joining us on this adventure! Got ideas, tips, products we should try, or just want to share your own gardening glory (or horror) stories? We’d love to hear from you!