African Violets: a traditional "cure" for the winter blues

Cheerful little African Violets can certainly chase away the February blues.  Shipra Panda from The Heart of Jacksonville African Violet Society has information on how to care for them.  They are having a show and sale on 3/28-29.  

See this document for resources and show information:  African Violet

Looking Ahead to the New Year Presentation Cancelled

 

As 2024 draws to a close, we hope you have a special holiday and are looking forward to a bright and busy New Year.

We regret to say that the January presentation had to be cancelled.  We look forward to offering it sometime in the future.  In the meantime, a speaker from the Heart of Jacksonville African Violet Society will be providing an introduction to African Violets at the Bartram Trail Library on Wednesday, February 19, at 10AM.  All interested persons are invited to attend.

Here's a suggestion for your January calendar to help you plan to enliven your landscape and garden.   Master Gardener, Shirley Barber, will be presenting her favorite garden flowers, "Besties in the Garden,"  Shirley has been designing and maintaining the All-America Selections flowering landscape for over a decade at the St. Johns County Extension Gardens.  We think her ability to choose some of the most beautiful and easy-care flowers is amazing.  If Monet was alive today, he would gladly fly to America to see and paint the gardens she has produced.  Save yourself the air fare and come to the Bartram Trail Library on January 15 at 10AM (Manatee Room).  The presentation is free and open to the public.  For additional events sponsored by our club see our calendar page.

January 15, 10AM Bartram Trail Branch library, presentation by Master Gardener, Shirley Barber, "Besties in the Garden."  Get some inspiration for  brightening your landscape this spring.

All American Selections Display Garden Designed by Shirley Barber at the St. Johns County Extension Center

Citrus Greening - Description, Identification, Management

 

Citrus greening, a serious disease spread by the Asian Citrus Psyllid, appeared in Florida in 1998.  This fatal disease, Huanglongbing disease (HLB), has spread across the world.  As of today there is no prevention or cure.  Useful informational links for this presentation are here - Citrus Greening Information Links, Citrus Greening Vector  and a recipe for Gluten Free Banana Orange Bread.

St. Johns County Assistant Horticulturalist, Sarah Thomlinson, spoke with our club about the disease as it manifests itself in northeast Florida.

Here is her presentation:

And here is her handout.

We had a hands-on activity trying to diagnose the causes of the decline in the citrus grove just outside of our garden at Alpine Groves using a hand-held magnifying glass.  I was sure every plant was infected with citrus greening, but actually the plants were suffering from a variety of issues:  nutrient deficiency, sooty mold, canker, brown spot, etc.  Of the 5 samples, only two had citrus greening.  We misdiagnosed almost all the plants.  Sarah, whose specialty is citrus greening, was able to identify the real maladies.  Mostly the citrus had not been maintained properly with a fertilization schedule, and appropriate pesticides and maintenance practices.  If you suspect your citrus has a problem, get in touch with your appropriate UF/IFAS Extension service to get a proper diagnosis and treatment regime. 

Sarah diagnosing a citrus

nominal rust damage on orange

Nutrient deficiency

As for Citrus Greening, there are several improvements being made, including new citrus cultivars for our area that are tolerant.  New maintenance practices have been developed for the homeowner and professional agriculturalist.  See the presentation above for ideas.

The bottom line: do your research on new varieties that are citrus greening resistant and follow the proper maintenance routine to help them stay healthy.

catching some rays on a citrus tree

Lights Out Northeast Florida Shows Birds the Way

 

The night of September 21 is projected to be busy with over 400 million night-migrating songbirds in flight.  We had an extremely interesting and relevant presentation by Elizabeth Filippelli, Conservation Director for Duval Audubon, and for Lights Out Northeast Florida, a joint effort between the Duval and St. John's Regional Audubon Societies and the Jacksonville Zoo and Garden.  

Here is her presentation:  Lights Out NE Florida. I had prepared a handout to give attendees some background on the role that darkness plays in enabling night-migrating songbirds to successfully navigate their spring and fall migrations using the stars to orient themselves.  We are more than halfway through the fall migration, a particularly dangerous journey because many of the migrants were just hatched in the spring and don't know the route.  

Darkness is not only essential for successful bird migration, but all species evolved to live in a regular diurnal cycle of light and dark.  Human- created artificial light has detrimental effects on plants and animals.    See the handout, Songbird Migration Resources.  The central point of Elizabeth's presentation, however, was that we can something about it.  From reducing and modifying nocturnal lighting to minimizing one of the greatest hazards to flying birds:  reflective windows.  Both residents and businesses have a stake in making bird-safe changes to nocturnal lighting and to windows.  Over 40% of residences (three stories or less) are responsible for collision deaths.  And over 60% of collisions prove fatal to birds; many deaths occur days after impact because brain swelling kills the bird long after the accident.  After listening to Elizabeth, I collected a post-presentation resource, Reducing Bird Fatalities. 

Presenter Elizabeth Filippeli holding two books she found interesting.  Ornitherapy and Blue Mind