Amazing Facts About the Live Oak Tree

The majestic live oak tree (Quercus virginiana) is one of the world's most eye catching and fascinating species of tree and it is located throughout the southern United States including Sanford, Deltona, DeBary, Daytona Beach, Port Orange, Lake Helen, Orange City, DeLand, and Ormond Beach, Florida. If you have one of these incredible species in your landscape design already, you most likely have an appreciation for its visual impact as well as its maintenance challenges.

Including new live oak saplings in a landscape design is making investments for the long term: they may not look as enticing in the beginning as they most certainly will in a few decades. A Volusia or Seminole County, Florida tree service will assist you with caring for aged live oaks.  Landscape designers will discuss all the things you need to know about incorporating potentially beautiful live oaks into your design, or designing around their already established presence. Keep in mind these facts regarding this native tree:

-There are other species of live oak, but the southern live oak is the most well known and was the first to be given that name. Live oaks indicate the evergreen types of oak tree (the ones that do not lose their leaves in the fall, as opposed to deciduous).

-Live oak is a huge, sprawling tree that reaches heights of 65 feet to 85 feet at maturity and has been known to live 500 years or longer.

-Live oak is the southern symbol of strength and the state tree of Georgia.

-Live oak trees require very little watering when first planted and when it reaches four to five feet tall, supplemental watering is no longer necessary.

-Live oaks are one of the heaviest native American hardwoods, weighing 55 pounds per cubic foot when air dry. Its strong, dense wood explains why these trees have outlasted so many Florida hurricanes.

-Live oaks support many types of epiphytic (air) plants, including Spanish moss (Tillandsia usneoides) and resurrection fern (Polypodium polypodioides). These plants do not harm the tree in any way and add to its beauty.

-The large amount of acorns produced by the live oak are food for wild turkeys, wood ducks, jays (including the threatened Florida scrub jay), quails, whitetail deer, raccoons, squirrels, yellow-bellied sapsuckers, and black bears among others.

-Bulow Creek State Park in Ormond Beach is one of the largest remaining stands of southern live oak forests in Florida. Within its boundaries is the Fairchild Oak, one of the largest and oldest live oak trees in the South.

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

St. Augustine Florida Landscaping - Historic and Beautiful

The oldest city in the United States is the seaside town of St. Augustine, Florida. This gently sprawling village on the northeastern coast of the Sunshine State combines both colonial British and Spanish elements in its historic architecture and narrow cobble stoned streets. Today's St. Augustine is an artsy destination with amazing tourist attractions such as the Castillo de San Marcos, the Fountain of Youth, the Pirate Museum, St. Augustine Alligator Farm, and the original Ripley's Believe It or Not Museum.

Landscaping and lawns vary in St. Augustine throughout the city limits as most areas in Florida tend to do. The closer to the ocean, the more salt tolerance and soil conditions become an issue with landscape design and lawn care. St. Augustine does experience the occasional frost during winter months, although tropical varieties of plants typically thrive if placed properly in the landscape design plan with sufficient irrigation. Because they enjoy a mild climate, residents of St. Augustine lean towards outdoor entertaining so hardscaping, patios, pavers, firepits, and pool landscape design are very popular.

Be sure to tour all the major sections of St. Augustine including St. Augustine Beach, Crescent Beach, Vilano Beach, Downtown, Uptown, Lincolnville, Westside, the Shores, the South, Davis Shores, Treasure/Butler Beach, and Ponte Vedra. 

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

Most Popular Stones for Hardscaping Design

A landscaper implements hardscaping into its professionally designed landscape plans using a variety of stone. Natural stone is categorized into two categories based on how it is cut: "fully dressed" stone is cut into very precise shapes and "semi-dressed" stone is loosely shaped with a uniform thickness.

Look for these stone types in professional hardscaping design:

Bluestone - is a specific type of sandstone that stands out because of its bluish-grey color. Bluestone is often the focal point of a rock garden, or can be used to create stone stairs, walls, or patios.

Fieldstone - this is a perfect stone for decorative walls or raised garden beds. Similar to flagstone except rounder and useful for freestanding hardscaped elements. It comes in a variety of colors and can add a level of whimsy to a landscape design.

Flagstone - an easily-installed, slab-like, durable stone made of sedimentary rock such as limestone or sandstone, and ideal for many areas of landscape design. Flagstone makes beautiful, elegant pavers but should always be tested to see how slippery they get when wet.

Slate - these rocks started out as shale that gradually metamorphosed over time. It comes in grey, green, or blue color. Slate cracks into thin slabs of rock, making it ideal for pavers and tiles. Because it is naturally water resistant it is often used with water features.

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

Facts About Commercial Landscape Design and Maintenance

Landscapers specialize in both residential and commercial landscape design with an emphasis on Florida friendliness, elegant water features, expert hardscaping, outdoor low wattage lighting, and successful lawn maintenance. We take into consideration important components of a commercial landscape design that you may not realize:

1) Seasonal color changes - The flowers in bloom are different with each season. It is of paramount importance that a property have an eye catching amount of color no matter what time of year. Professional commercial landscapers have a well tuned knowledge of the flowers that thrive with each new season and will ensure they are planted at the right time and encouraged to their peak of beauty.

2) Handicapped accessibility - It is not just indoor spaces that must follow the guidelines of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Gardens and hardscaped areas of the landscape plan must be designed with disabled visitors and residents in mind. The most attentive property owners want a space that is inviting and comfortable for customers and dwellers of all ages and abilities. A landscaper determines a site plan that follows these restrictions with no effect on the gratifying overall result.

3) Ongoing maintenance - It is a rare business owner or property manager who cares for their own landscaping. We keep the lawns green, the trees trimmed, the mulch fresh, the flowers lively, and your property looking its absolute best throughout the unexpected climate shifts that can feel like a rollercoaster in our part of north and central Florida. A landscaper knows the best plants for your soil, light, and water conditions and once planted the upkeep such as pruning and fertilizing will be on a schedule for maximum success.

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

Fire Pits Add Cozy Heat to Florida Evenings

A professionally designed landscape for your home will incorporate hardscaping elements such as natural stone, pavers, walls, or stone paths and beds. This aspect of design offsets the soft organic plants and flowing edges of trees so that the eye moves pleasingly through the composition.

Seamless hardscape design in Florida is also of paramount importance when pools, hot tubs, and decorative water features are integrated into the landscape plan. These additions should never look like a sloppy afterthought or the whole design suffers. Outdoor living can be taken to the next level by having a professional landscape designer build a fire pit and enhance its appearance with stone or brick.

As the temperatures fall during our mild Florida winter, the appeal of sitting around a bonfire becomes stronger. The options available for fueling the fire pit make it possible to build a wood burning fire, or simply hit a switch and enjoy the convenience of gas powered flames. There is also the possibility of popping a grate on top when you would like to grill food right over the fire pit!

A fire pit can be the focal point of your entire patio design - contact a landscaper to discuss your ideas for a warm, inviting fire pit built permanently by our licensed, insured professionals. Then surround it with comfortable seating of your choice, either custom made of a similar hardscape material or other outdoor furniture, and invite your guests outside to enjoy a beautiful star-filled Florida night around the fire.

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

What is a serenity garden?

A serenity garden is a space that is specially designated in your home or business landscape to be a place of contemplation, peace, and solace. It is often a hidden area or courtyard with plants, hardscaping, and water features such as a fountain or waterfall. Serenity gardens are sometimes located at an entry point or between two separate sections of a structure. It is a beautiful way to divide and unite interior and exterior space at the same time.

Serenity gardens can also incorporate elements of zen gardens such as arches and feng shui. The principle purpose of a serenity garden is to instill calm, enhance relaxation, and encourage meditation. For some people this garden has a memorial or religious theme. For others it is the place to escape and get away from it all.

A serenity garden should be placed away from ringing telephones, car pollution, and other distractions and unpleasantries. There should be a comfortable sitting area such as a bench that receives equal parts sun and shade, or whichever your individual preference. Perhaps a rocking chair would suit you as you let your stress fade away.

Nature is an obvious element of a serenity garden: besides personally preferred plants, consider a bird feeder or house, or a koi pond. Wind chimes or a rhythmic bamboo water spout add a gentle, soothing sound effect. Statues can be placed in ideal locations for inspiration and reflection. Stones and boulders are a reminder of the solid, eternal state of the universe.

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

American Beautyberry is a Florida Jewel

The American Beautyberry (callicarpa americana) lives up to its name: it is an outstanding shrub of the verbena family that loves northeast Florida so much it grows wild or cultivated with equal ease. Also known simply as beautyberry or French mulberry, this native plant is known for its characteristically eye-catching clusters of purple berries in the summer and fall months.

American Beautyberry responds well to transplanting and will propagate from seed or soft-wood cuttings in soil. Birds are known to eat the berries when there is not much else to eat in the colder months, but it is not their first choice for food. This is good thing so that the beautiful berries remain in the garden. Beautyberry leaves are a known food source for some caterpillars so they make a welcome addition to the a butterfly garden.

Currently in the Palm Coast, Ormond Beach, and St. Augustine area of Florida our beautyberry bushes are just getting their leaves back after a cold season. Soon we will have the tiny lavender flowers that will lead to the lovely magenta berries. Landscapers welcomes your questions regarding hardy species such as American beautyberry for Flagler, St. Johns, and Volusia landscape design - and of course we are also topmost experts when it comes to more sensitive and exotic varieties of plants.

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