Limiting the contact of our backyard poultry with wild birds can help reduce the risk of illness in our backyard flock. Picture credit: Jonael Bosques, UF/IFAS Extension.Wintertime is upon us. With it comes massive bird migrations that can carry viral diseases which may end up affecting our backyard chickens, ducks, quail, and other feathered creatures…
Do you have that difficult to buy for person on your Christmas shopping list? I have an idea, especially if that person enjoys gardening. The University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Extension Bookstore offers a wealth of books, CDs, DVDs, identification decks and manuals. These resources include gardening, lawn and…
Plants and turf in Central Florida landscapes go dormant in the fall. Flowers, bark, and foliage makes a fall-to-winter garden showier when the temperature cools! There are some native and non-native plants which may add some interest to Central Florida landscapes or gardens!
Garbaria
Garberia has lavendar composite flowers from late summer to fall.…
Healthy lawns are things that when green and healthy, we can perhaps not give it too much attention. But, with a bit of green or brown, the lawn is suddenly very important. We want it green and full. Does that healthy lawn affect the environment negatively? Lawns can sometimes take a bad rap. In fact,…
The holidays are fast approaching, and we all know what that means: parties, celebrations, gatherings, and more, where food is always in abundance. Take if from me; I love sweets and indulging in all the foods that a holiday celebration has to offer. However, I have to remember that I can’t eat ALL of the…
It turned out better than they planned. Instead of quietly spreading nutrition messages from household to household, community advocates amplified their voices through megaphones to reach the masses gathered at markets in Rwanda. “Gabura Amata Mubyeyi,” they said, which translated from Kinyarwanda means “Parents, Give Milk.” The advocates also shared other messages targeted at pregnant…
If you’re like me, the holiday season is a looooong stretch of eating, and sometimes indulging on foods I normally don’t eat during the year. It starts with Thanksgiving. Usually ends with a family gathering on New Year’s Day. And, is sprinkled between with parties and office celebrations.
That can add up to a lot of…
Based on the number of EDDMapS records for the panhandle – yes… we can. And if these records are accurate – yes… we should. I have seen the impact this plant can make. It has invaded Texas and Louisiana and has caused enough problems for the USDA to list it as one of America’s…
Recap of December First Friday with Florida First Detector
On December 2nd, we covered the basics of invasive snails and slugs. Snails and slugs are a type of mollusk called a gastropod. Slugs are different than snails in that they typically lack a visible shell. For slug identification, we look at characteristics like the body…
There are a lot of cool and interesting creatures that live on the barrier islands of Northwest Florida. The conditions out there require they make changes and adaptations different from what they would do in a more upland or wetland environment. Some creatures are unique to these beach and dune systems and found nowhere else. …
Historically, nothing said spring had arrived any better than a flowering dogwood tree. It remains a favored tree in southern landscapes. Sometimes you may see an occasional dogwood in bloom in the local pine forests. However, it is very rare to see one in bloom in the north Florida landscape. While Dogwood Anthracnose, a fungal…
Chickens have been domesticated for thousands of years across Asia, Europe, and now the Americas. As a result of selective breeding for desirable characteristics, such as for egg or meat production, they are not as robust as their wild ancestors. Modern chickens are generally more susceptible to environmental stress and diseases. So, keeping chickens healthy,…
