The coming of February brings several activities in the Florida Garden: planting, fertilizing, and PRUNING. Actually, this pruning will be the third wave so far this winter. The first was for plants that collapse down to the garden surface after the first hard frost. These include the elephant ears, coleus, and many gingers including the edible gingers. The mushy stems and leaves have recycled as green waste. The second round are the fruit trees such as peaches, plums, and persimmons, which need pruning for management of the height of the tree, a vase shape for better air circulation, and control of the number of buds that would create a fruit. Also, as budding of plums and peaches starts in late January, earlier pruning saves the trees’ energy that otherwise would be used on fruit that would be thinned. The third wave is a couple weeks away, and this entails removing the branches and leaves of shrubs badly damaged by frost, but left on to protect the new shoots coming from the roots or lower stems. The Florida Garden has had five or six frosts this year, including some down below 25 degrees F., so we will wait until we see the buds emerging. The plants involved are the Pentas, Firebush, Firespike, Lantanas, Mexican Heathers, and some of the subtropical plants. One more round of pruning will include the large flowering and citrus trees, to reduce their encroachment on neighboring plants, and for the citrus, so we can reach next year’s crop. Spring will reward us with buds and flowers. It has already begun.
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