Rain Barrel Workshop

What:	A rain barrel workshop is scheduled on April 15 at 5:30 p.m. to provide Hernando County residents information on the use and care of rain barrels. At the end of the workshop, participants will be guided through the assembly of their 60-gallon barrel. Using rain barrels in a landscape is a great way to reduce dependence on irrigation and provide water to plant beds and vegetable gardens. Diverting potential runoff also helps protect area waterways from potential pollution. Cost for the class is $55 per person. Customers of Hernando County Utilities Department will receive a $25 credit on their water bill. Space is limited. Pre-registration requested to ensure availability of a rain barrel. One barrel per customer.
When:	Monday, April 15, 2013 5:30-6:30 p.m.
Where:	Hernando County Extension office 1653 Blaise Dr., Brooksville, FL 34601

Contact:      Sylvia Durell at (352) 540-6230 or via email at sdurell@co.hernando.fl.us to register or for more information.

Eighty people expected at our FFL Workshop!

We'll have a practically full house this Friday. The guests are coming to hear about how to add edible plants to their gardens, what might be wrong with their irrigation system and practical alternatives to turf. There will be door prizes and incentive prizes for completing a pretest and a posttest. No one will leave empty-handed or empty-headed, for that matter!

Register for the half-day FFL workshop now!

Start planting in February!

The Hernando County Master Gardeners' calendar says February is a good time to plant perennials. Here are some ideas: African Iris, Blue Salvia, Blackberry Lily, Coreopsis, Bush daisy, daylily, Gazania, Gerbera Daisy, Rudbeckia, Ruellia, Shasta Daisy, Stokes Aster and Yarrow. Want to see what they look like before you decide? Visit www.floridayards.org and search through the plant database for photos and planting and maintenance needs.

For more ideas, join me Monday, February 11 for my "Favorite Plants for Hernando County" presentation. I will showcase three dozen plants, trees and palms that have great survival records. It will be at 5:30 p.m. at the Extension Office.

For more good advice from the Master Gardeners, buy a 2013 Gardening Calendar. It is only $3 and is chock full of excellent information about planting and maintenance of your gardens and landscape.

Who designed the landscape for Highclere Castle?

Join us tomorrow at 10:30 a.m. at the Spring Hill Library for my presentation "Centuries of Gardening That Led to Florida-Friendly Landscaping." You'll find out who designed the 

the landscape for Highclere Castle at which Downton Abbey is filmed.

http://www.highclerecastle.co.uk/

New FFL Facebook page

Please visit our new Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/HernandoFFLProgram. I would love for you to "Like" our page. I plan to post about all the Florida-Friendly Landscaping programs and presentations that are available to you in Hernando County. I want to keep up on how residents who have attended our rain barrel classes are saving water by using their rain barrels. In addition, there will be features on what's happening at local gardens where you can visit to see FFL in action and tips on what to do monthly in your gardens and landscape.

Save the Date!

March 8, 2013
Florida-Friendly Landscaping™ Workshop
8 a.m. to Noon

The workshop will feature presentations on edible landscaping, practical alternatives to turf, irrigation inefficiencies and how they create problems for a landscape and information on two local gardens where Florida-Friendly Landscaping can be seen. Contact me at HernandoFFL@co.hernando.fl.us to get on our mailing list. Registration required with small fee.