Edible Landscapes

Gail Hansen
Other Contacts: Keighly Graves

Although design basics for edible ornamental landscapes are essentially the same as strictly ornamental landscapes, a few details ensure the success of the edible landscape. Gardens with plants that change considerably with the seasons rely more on an organized yet interesting layout, appealing support structures, functional pathways, and colorful containers and planters to provide interest and beauty when the plants are not taking center stage. There are twelve important ideas to consider when creating a successful edible ornamental garden.

Tina McIntyre, Rachel Gutner, Tiare Saracino, Esen A. Momol, andEsen Momol
Other Contacts: Claire Lewis

Maintaining an edible landscape using the nine Florida-Friendly Landscaping™ principles provides a practical approach to food production for homeowners and landscaping consultants. Integrating practical pest management strategies, addressing nutrient deficiencies, proper pruning techniques, timely harvesting, and mulching are all practices that contribute to a healthy landscape. This publication provides homeowners with key Florida-Friendly Landscaping™ concepts and tips to enhance the health and fertility of soils while protecting the environment. Healthy soils result in improved production yields, beautiful landscapes, and a more resilient environment.

Tina McIntyre, Rachel Gutner, Tiare Saracino, Jacqlyn Rivas, Jacqlyn Rivas, Esen A. Momol, andEsen Momol

Mulching is the practice of spreading material around the base of a plant to protect the plant, conserving moisture or suppressing weeds. This is a guide for homeowners and professionals to reference best practices on mulching and discusses mulch sources, application techniques, and management practices. It will clarify the mulch needs of fruit trees, shrubs, herbs, and vegetables to promote plant health.

Tiare Saracino, Lynn Barber, Claire Lewis, Tina McIntyre, Tom Wichman, Gail Hansen, Jennifer W. Marvin, Terra Freeman, Joseph Sewards, Joseph Sewards, Wendy Wilber, Jacqlyn Rivas, Jacqlyn Rivas, Esen A. Momol, andEsen Momol

Maintaining edible landscapes in a way that protects the environment is an important concern for protecting Florida’s water quality. The objective of this new 7-page publication of the UF/IFAS Environmental Horticulture Department is to introduce the framework of the Florida-Friendly Landscaping™ principles and apply the principles to guide decisions about Best Management Practices (BMPs) for care of edible landscapes.

Sydney Park Brown

A UF/IFAS numbered Fact Sheet.

Michael G. Andreu, Melissa H. Friedman, and Robert J. Northrop

Many people find kumquat trees attractive and useful yard specimens. Their dark green leaves and contrasting bright orange fruits give them ornamental quality, and their relatively small size makes them easy to care for once they’re established. Because kumquats generally require less care than other citrus trees, they may be a good choice for gardeners with less time or experience, but who still desire an attractive and tasty citrus tree. If space is an issue, kumquats also do well in containers as long as they receive proper sunlight and watering.

Jacqlyn Rivas, Jacqlyn Rivas, Tiare Saracino, Luke B. Harlow, Lynn Barber, Jennifer W. Marvin, Esen A. Momol, Esen Momol, Tina McIntyre, andTerra Freeman

This publication is written for Florida gardeners, homesteaders and other horticulturalists interested in planting and establishing edible landscapes and improving those landscapes by conserving water. This publication will provide guidance for choosing the ideal irrigation system for edible cropping systems as well as general tips for conserving water in edible landscapes.

Terra Freeman, Tiare Saracino, Yilin Zhuang, Esen A. Momol, andEsen Momol

Reclaimed water plays a significant role in water conservation, a goal of every Florida-Friendly Landscape. However, using reclaimed water on plants harvested and consumed from the home landscape must be approached with caution for vegetables, fruit trees, herbs, and other edible crops due to the risk of contamination from pathogens and salts. Before using reclaimed water in your Florida-Friendly edible garden, it is important to have a clear understanding of what it is and how it can be safely used. The target audience for this publication is Florida residents who irrigate landscapes, including edibles, with reclaimed water.

Tina McIntyre, Rachel Gutner, Hamutahl Cohen, Hamutahl Cohen, Tiare Saracino, Esen A. Momol, andEsen Momol

This new 8-page publication of the UF/IFAS Environmental Horticulture Department defines different types of pests that a home gardener might encounter and encourages diversifying landscapes as a solution to pest problems. It focuses on what is called “the triangle” of IPM, a guide to managing pests using multiple methods, and provides examples of Integrated Pest Management tools that can be applied in the home context to address these pests. Several links to resources relevant to edible Florida-Friendly landscapes are included.

Hamutahl Cohen, Tina McIntyre, Hamutahl Cohen, Rachel Gutner, Tiare Saracino, Esen A. Momol, andEsen Momol
Other Contacts: Claire Lewis

Considering wildlife in your edible landscape can be a complex challenge. Although wild animals can cause crop damage, this may not be a conflict that has to be addressed. This publication provides a useful decision tree that helps users make choices regarding the species in their managed area. Our goal is to help the gardener become more accepting of wildlife among edible crops and coexist in a shared environment.

Amanda S. Marek, Mark T. Bailey, andGail Hansen

Well-designed edible ornamental landscapes, also called foodscapes, provide landowners with aesthetically pleasing, multipurpose gardens that provide food, color, and cover year-round. Not only can these landscapes provide a source of healthy, locally grown food in urbanized communities, they can also promote energy and water conservation, improve food security, and provide wildlife habitat. By converting conventional yards into sustainable, edible ornamental landscapes that utilize the principles of Florida-Friendly Landscaping™, we may quell some of the health and environmental impacts of rising population growth and urbanization. The purpose of this publication is to guide Floridians on how to design, install, and maintain their edible ornamental landscape using reliable plants suitable for north-central Florida and the best management practices of Florida-Friendly Landscaping™.

Rachel Gutner, Tina McIntyre, Tiare Saracino, Hamutahl Cohen, Hamutahl Cohen, Esen A. Momol, andEsen Momol
Other Contacts: Claire Lewis

Maintaining an edible landscape using the nine Florida-Friendly Landscaping™ (FFL) principles provides a practical approach to food production in the home environment. Integrating pest management strategies, addressing nutrient deficiencies, proper pruning techniques, timely harvesting, and mulching are all practices that contribute to having a healthy edible landscape. The audience for this publication is Floridian homeowners attempting to grow edibles, such as vegetables, fruits and herbs.