DIY 45 sqft Emergency Garden: Florida Native Plant Habitat

• Site Prep refers to replacing a lawn or bare ground within a designated 45 sqft area.

  Note: Replacing an area of lawn will greatly benefit from adding on the Corten steel border. Otherwise, keeping the lawn from re-invading the garden will require consistent deep edge cutting around the garden perimeter. 

• The planting design was developed by Evan Galbicka after closely observing and working with each species in multiple garden contexts over the last five years. The 100% Florida native plant selection uses evergreen, perennial and biennial species to provide wildlife food and habitat year-round, a range of flowers through all seasons, and foliage structure over Winter. Plants stay under four feet tall, and easily keep tidy with light pruning 2-4 times a year, making an attractive display in front of a home or business. All selected species reliably persist year-after-year in North Florida gardens, and many have special relationships with various pollinators that are threatened with extinction due to habitat loss.

• More about the Stars of the Show:

(1) Dwarf Sabal - Evergreen, slow-growing, long-lived, fragrant flowers are pollinated by bees to produce berries for bird forage. Birds also use the plant for nesting material.

(4) Andropogon - Perennial clump grass that stays small and tidy with silvery blue-green foliage. Fall flowering stems catch the autumn light and turn golden in Winter. Hollow stems provided hibernating bee habitat.

(6) Helinathus - Tidy evergreen basal foliage bears unique flowering stems in Summer and Fall. Stems provide Winter interest and bird forage.

(12) Coreopsis - A tidy mound of semi-evergreen foliage flowers in Spring and Fall.

(5) Pityopsis - Silver evergreen foliage with tiny yellow flowers in late Summer-Fall. Nectar feeds butterflies and bees.

(4) Silphium - Tidy erect stems flower Spring-Summer attracting pollinators all year long. Hollow stems provide hibernating bee habitat. Reseeds in addition to perennial habit and vegetative propagation.

(7) Liatris - Long stems full of small purple blue flowers attract bees and butterflies in late Summer-Fall. Rhizomatous bulbs support vegetative propagation.

(2) Echinaccea - Large pink flowers in Spring and Fall. Flower stems give visual structure through Winter.

From seed : Coreopsis, Monarda, Salvia, Asclepias

• A light Pine straw mulching after plants are in the ground, and seeds sown, helps preserve soil moisture while allowing seeds to germinate.

• The garden will need to be watered by the purchaser, either by hand or with a small sprinkler for a few weeks after planting to ensure garden establishment. Watering can be weened as plants establish and rain allows. Plants with adequate water during the Spring shouldn't require additional watering for the rest of the year and thereafter. 

• Garden stewardship services are available upon request at a reasonable rate and customizable frequency.

• Please note the product image shows all the species in flower at the same time, which does not occur in nature. However, there will be something in flower most times of year. Species list can change slightly due to availability.

Because plants are grown to order, refunds are not available.