Eco-Friendly Plants for Florida Landscaping

Landscaping can be a challenge, especially if your not familiar with native plants for your area. Planting native plants has several advantages. Most importantly they are Eco-friendly because they are native. You will find that landscaping with native plants makes the yard work easier, and your helping preserve, and protect the environment at the same time. Florida has lots of sun, sandy soil, and long periods without rain. That is why it takes so much work to keep non native plants looking healthy. Native plants are custom to the environment. They flourish is poor soil, and need very little water to stay healthy. A common belief is that native plants are boring plants to use in landscaping. This is not true. In fact, there are plenty of beautiful native plants that have color, are not trees, and produce beautiful flowers. These are just a few of the most beautiful native plants to Florida that can be used in landscaping, and are guaranteed to make your yard look gorgeous.

FLOWERS:

Blazing Star - The Blazing Star is a wonderful flower. It has vibrant purple stalks of flowers, that can be used for floral arrangements. This flower is very hearty, and it's Christmas tree shape as dimension as well as color to your flowerbed. Butterflies also love Blazing Star, which only adds to it's beauty.

Black Eyed Susan - This fast growing flower blooms beautiful yellow flowers with black centers, hint the name Black Eyed Susan. The flower once bloomed looks like a Daisy, and it is a great coverage plant.

Aster - The Aster flower blooms with a purple and bluish flower that adds beauty, as well as coverage. This plants grows fast, and is very hearty. Butterflies also flock to this plant, which just adds to it.

Loloelia - What more color could you want? The Loloelia comes in a variety of colors which includes red, white, and blue. It's a magnificent flower to have, especially if you want to add color to your landscape.

Wild Petunia - Just like any Petunia, Wild Petunia is just as beautiful. It's flowers are purple, and there is plenty of them to enjoy.

Sunflower - Sunflowers not only grow large bright yellow flowers that are eye catching, they are also a food source for wild birds. Once the seeds dry inside the flowers, birds feast on them. Butterflies also love sunflowers. Sunflowers can grow in the sandy soil, need very little water, and love full sun.

Morning Glory - Morning Glory is a vine that needs a place to grow. You can plant this plant at the base of a fence or tree. Morning Glory flowers come in a variety of colors. These flowers open up in the early morning hours, and close during the day. This a a great plant to create height with in your landscaping design.

SHRUBS:

Azalea - This shrub is anything but boring. Azalea's are not only good as a shrub, or hedge, they also bloom some of the most beautiful large flowers. Azalea's can also grow from clippings, so all you need is a small piece to start your own plant. They grow rather fast, and add color as well as texture to your landscape design.

Fetter bush - The shrub produces a precious purple flower that will compliment any other plant in your yard. It is also very easy to grow, and eye catching.

Hibiscus - Hibiscus plants come is a variety of colors and can be used many ways. If you want your hibiscus to be a shrub, keep trimming the tops of them. If you'd like it to look more like a small tree for height, keep the sides trim, and the bottom branches removed. This will allow the plant to grow upward. Hibiscus also have beautiful large flowers.

Blueberry Bush - The Blueberry bush produces small white flowers which are enjoyable in itself. However, you'll also have blueberries to enjoy most of the year. If you don't like blueberries the birds sure do.

Sweet pepper bush - Sweet pepper bush is a great coverage shrub with a huge advantage to bird lovers. Humming birds love this plant, and it's a great way to see one up close.

This was only a handful of native Florida plants, and as you can see there is plenty of shapes, sizes, and colors to choose from. Planting native plants is also great for anyone new at landscaping, or has a black thumb. Really, all you need to do is plant them, and nature will do the rest of the work for you. No matter what you decide to plant there is only one thing you need to avoid at all cost. Avoid planting nuisance plants. The over planting of non native nuisance plants have taken it's toll on Florida's environment, and is rapidly killing out native plants.