October 2011 / November 2011 | Great Expectations

- For the Virtual Magazine Click Here | October 2011 / November 2011 article in Home Magazine.

- Jon George shares seasonal portraits of garden design tailored for our North Florida climate in each issue of the Landscape Calendar written for local magazine Home - Living in the Heart of Florida.  Check out each issue to learn secrets of how he and his staff create colorful landscapes any month of the year. You may contact his staff for questions at cottagegardensinc@yahoo.com.

October 2011 / November 2011 article

Nothing calms the spirit or excites the senses quite like seeing butterflies dancing right outside the kitchen window or a hummingbird hovering over a flower. Fall in North Florida brings an abundance of opportunities to get outdoors and enjoy nature. Welcoming birds and butterflies to your yard can become a daily ritual given a few simple steps.

Go organic! For many years, we gardeners were taught to tame nature with a slew of chemicals. Come to find out, all those broad-use pesticides kill all the good and bad bugs together, leaving a beautiful but sterile landscape to look at. Alternative techniques focus on attracting beneficial insects and birds to combat garden pests that help restore the natural balance more gradually.

Leave it to the Birds! Instead of clearing your property entirely of native trees and scrub, leave a buffer of wild vegetation. This encourages nesting sites for birds and beneficial insects alike. I notice twice the number of butterflies in our clients' gardens that have a meadow or wooded area nearby to find refuge in. A wildlife garden does not have to look entirely wild. This butterfly border in High Springs, for example (garden picture at top right), is set out entirely like an English border.

Plant Food! Nectar rich plants attract butterflies and hummingbirds without having to clean out
feeders. Many people tell me that they have never seen a hummingbird in Florida until they create
a garden space and are surprised by the extra visitors. Some plants, like the native passion vine, are expected to be eaten by caterpillars but later grow back quickly from the roots. It's fun to find out
which plants will attract what species of animal.

- Jon George shares seasonal portraits of garden design tailored for our North Florida climate in each issue of the Landscape Calendar written for local magazine Home - Living in the Heart of Florida.  Check out each issue to learn secrets of how he and his staff create colorful landscapes any month of the year. You may contact his staff for questions at cottagegardensinc@yahoo.com.