One morning about 10 am I walked outside to feel the sun and the air warming up. We’d had about a week of cold weather and the predicted high was 75 degrees F.
Dune Sunflower AKA Beach Sunflower is a fast-growing ground cover native to central Florida. It is a highly salt-tolerant plant that thrives in sandy, well-drained soil in full sun. It can be found growing naturally on sand dunes and with native vines and grasses. Back 4 years ago, a friend gave me some Dune Sunflower seedlings which I planted around the yard. Under adequate growing conditions, it becomes a shrubby ground cover of about two to four feet tall. I didn’t realize how big the little seedling would get and it started taking over my yard. In the fall I removed the plants, but I still get little babies coming up. I remove most of them. The one I let stay grows into a huge mound of flowers. Today I’m sharing a little mini-bouquet of little Dune Sunflowers with greenery from the yard.
Warm weather is here which means everyone can enjoy the outdoors. Our lawns and gardens can provide “rooms” and places for families to gather and to have fun. After all, your garden is a part of your home isn’t it? Love the idea of a beautiful outdoor space but hate all the work involved? Let’s look at ways to look after your yard that aren’t going to take a huge amount of time or effort. Just remember if you live in a neighborhood with restrictions and guidelines for landscaping, check with the association for accepted lawns before you make radical changes.
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