Coming to the End of a Year in Flowers

2016 had several milestones for the world of trees, plants, and flowers.  Swedish botanists discovered seeds from the oldest flowering plants known to science: Cretaceous flower seeds dating back 110 million to 125 million years.  Another team of plant researchers discovered a fascinating way that blue leafed plants use their color to achieve photosynthesis in low light conditions.

A study by American health scientists proved that women who have the most vegetation around their homes have on average a 12 percent lower death rate than those that have little vegetation. The most striking differences were seen with 41 percent lower death rate from kidney disease, a 34 percent lower death rate from respiratory disease, and a 13 percent lower death rate from cancer.

GreenFlex Landscaping completed its series of Flowers of the Month for each of the twelve months this year.  We invite you to revisit these beautiful North Florida landscaping plants, many unique to our special region of Palm Coast, Ormond Beach, Daytona, and St. Augustine.  As the new year of 2017 dawns soon, we will get to enjoy each of these upcoming highlights again:

January: Camellia

February: Bogainvillea

March: Azalea

April: Soap Aloe

May: Gardenia

June: Passionflower

July: Crepe Myrtle

August: Firebush

September: Blanketflower

October: Hibiscus

November: Chrysanthemum

December: Christmas Cactus

Do you love flowers as much as we do?  

🦚Article by Connie Helena, author of The Green Orchid 🦚

Flower of September: Blanketflower Covers the Dunes with Wheels of Fire

We have selected the blanketflower, Gaillardia, as our Flower of September. You will see it blooming everywhere in North Florida, especially the colorful dunes of our beaches, well into the fall months. This native wildflower is also called firewheel, Indian blanket, Indian blanketflower, or sundance.

There is an abundance of subspecies of this flower but the one that grows the best in Flagler Beach, St. Augustine, Palm Coast, Daytona, and Ormond is Gaillardia pulchella.   This flower grows either as a short-lived perennial, annual flowering plant, or sometimes year round.  Blanketflower is a relative of the sunflower family.

Gaillardia pulchella is a hardy plant that will grow in almost any soil but it tends to appreciate soil that is sandy and well-drained. It thrives in our region in summer and fall because of its high drought tolerance and predilection for a dry, hot climate and full sun. It spreads beautifully (like a blanket) and you will see expansive patches of its bright fiery colors.

Blanketflower is loved by honeybees, butterflies, and caterpillars - in fact some species of caterpillar will eat only Gaillardia.  Blanketflower produces plentiful seeds for replanting and self-seeding, and the seed heads are very popular with wild birds.  If deer are damaging your landscaping, you will be pleased to note that blanketflower is deer-resistant!

🦚Article by Connie Helena, author of The Green Orchid 🦚

Flower of August: The Attraction of Firebush

This native plant blooms for months, attracting both birds and butterflies, and is practically bullet-proof once established. - University of Florida

The most common discussion in North Florida in August is typically regarding how HOT it is.  Our temperatures climb to the maximum and the sun demonstrates its power at midday.  Fragile flowers such as gardenia will not tolerate the extreme heat and vegetable gardens are taking a break until fall.  The agave (century plants) are blooming with their towering stalks of flowers, but one of our favorite summer plants is busy attracting birds and butterflies: the fiery firebush (also known as scarlet bush or hummingbird bush).

Firebush, Hamelia patens, is our ideal choice for August's Flower of the Month with its drought and heat tolerance, Florida friendly character, and ability to integrate beautifully into almost any landscape design for North Florida.  The flower shown in the photo is the dwarf variety of firebush, which is not native and is slightly lighter in color than the regular variety.  Native firebush grows very large in full sun and has shown tolerance to salt spray in beach landscaping designs.

The time to plant firebush is NOW so contact your North Florida landscaper to incorporate it into your landscape design.  It thrives in almost any type of soil and is mostly disease and pest resistant.  It will begin its red orange blooms in spring then continue all the way until the first cold freeze.  Firebush is considered a perennial or semi-woody shrub and the best thing about it is the wildlife it attracts: hummingbirds and butterflies such as the gulf fritillary and the magical zebra longwing. Its berries will attract other birds as well.

🦚Article by Connie Helena, author of The Green Orchid 🦚

Arbor Day is the time to celebrate our trees

Begun all the way back in 1872 as a designated day for everyone to plant a tree, Arbor Day is commemorated in special ways all over the United States.  

The Arbor Day Foundations suggests many different species of trees for our Agricultural Zone 9 climate including certain magnolias, crepe myrtles, dogwoods, cypress, maples, and oaks.  Some palm trees are also a favorite for our area, especially the Florida state tree, the native Sabal Palm. Professional landscapers will advise you as to the best trees for your landscape design, and will provide professional and dependable maintenance of your lawn and plantings.

Without a doubt, perfectly beautiful and thriving trees make the supreme focal points for a landscape design.  Find out more about the benefits of trees in your landscaping and other information here:

Landscape Design: Planting Trees has a Host of Benefits

A Few More Important Facts About Trees in Landscape Design

Amazing Facts About the Live Oak Tree

The Official Flora of Florida

Hurricane Preparedness Includes Your Landscaping

Florida Holly is Not So Festive After All

Crape or Crepe? This Myrtle Tree is Florida Friendly

🦚Article by Connie Helena, author of The Green Orchid 🦚

Florida Landscape Design in Agricultural Zone Nine

To say that Northeast Florida has a unique climate that creates landscaping challenges would be a bit of an understatement.  Our lovely little bit of USDA Zone 9 is quite possibly one of the most challenging and unusual climates in the world.  Just the fact that this area has wavered for decades back and forth between Zones 9a and 9b shows you that even the agricultural experts have a hard time keeping up with it.  GreenFlex Landscaping will design, install, and maintain your dream landscaping using our knowledge and experience in this zone.

You may think that dealing with the Florida heat is the challenge for landscaping in our area, but in actuality dealing with the occasional and erratic cold of our brief winter is the factor that can change an easygoing landscaping project into a complex plan of science, nature, and art.  A professional landscaper knows what you are dealing with, and even modifies your landscape design based on how close your property is to the ocean as well. 

In a nutshell the approach to landscaping in North Florida is a well thought out plantings that are tolerant to both the regular extreme heat of summer, but also the extreme cold as we experience freezes a few nights each year.  Delicate and tropical plants can be placed in protected spots and a comprehensive landscape design plan will be provided before any work is done.  We live in a part of the country that is unlike any other, and part of it is our plants, trees, and flowers.

Do not be daunted by the customized needs of this area's climate, soil, and rainfall (which ranges from extreme droughts to overabundant floods).

🦚Article by Connie Helena, author of The Green Orchid 🦚

Landscape Design: Planting Trees has a Host of Benefits

Landscapers are not just landscape designers, but experienced consultants and "fixers" as well.  This is because we have seen the undesirable long term effects of having planted the wrong tree in the wrong location.  We have seen overgrown branches covering windows or disturbing utility lines, or trees with roots that damage a driveway.

Keep in mind, studies have reported that homeowners get a 100 percent or more return on the money they put into landscaping if it is done correctly.  If you have a completely bare lot, it will take many years for your plants to mature, so begin your landscaping immediately.

We begin by viewing your entire site plan comprehensively before planting anything. Then we will provide a landscape design that visualizes the size and shape of all its elements once the trees and shrubs mature.  This ensures that your investment in professional landscaping gives you the full return, as opposed to negating the value of your property.

🦚Article by Connie Helena, author of The Green Orchid 🦚