Good Plants for South Florida

James on Instagram asks about good plants for South Florida:   “Hey Mr Good, I’ve been watching a lot of your YouTube videos and I really enjoy watching them and learn a lot. I live in south Florida and I was wondering if you had and spare tips or type of plants I should get and experiment with. I want to go to collage for horticulture and before I finish high school I would like to have a good amount of experience and you seem to be a very smart man. So let me know if you have any READ MORE

Florida Edible Wild Mushrooms

Seven years ago now I was on a serious mushroom-hunting kick and I posted my video on Florida edible wild mushrooms: August and September are good times to go hunting for mushrooms. And don’t forget to bring along some good mushroom hunting guides. I spent a lot of time reading and researching before I ate my first wild mushroom. Get to know the really easy ones first, then branch out from there. I still stay away from most gilled mushrooms. Except for this one, that is: It’s hard to misidentify a bright blue mushroom!

Low-Maintenance Landscape Plants for South Florida: Look for Edibles First!

I’ve been doing some research on plants as I work at my new landscaping job. The University of Florida is a good source for information on plants that work in warm climates. This publication on low-maintenance landscape plants for South Florida is better than I expected it would be, as it also contains a few fruit trees and a smattering of other edible species. If you’re going to be putting in landscaping, why not make your landscaping pay you back for your hard work? The front landscaping at my old place looked like normal landscaping, but most of it READ MORE

Growing Pigeon Peas in North Florida

Deborah recently commented on my pigeon pea survival profile page about her success in growing pigeon peas in North Florida: “I planted pigeon peas here in N. Florida (Gainesville) a few years ago. We had a mild winter that year, and both of them thrived and came back strong in the spring. They bloomed in late winter, early spring and gave me a great harvest. The next year, we were predicted to have a harsh winter, so I cut them back to about 2 feet and covered them with large pots stuffed full of leaves. Both survived and came READ MORE

Growing Seasons in Florida

What are the growing seasons in Florida? A transplanted Yankee writes: “We have purchased a house in central Florida,  and I was hoping you could give me a quick overview on the seasons in Florida.  I have read your books Totally Crazy Easy Florida Gardening and Create Your Own Florida Food Forest and am planning on starting a food forest.  But being from the north the seasons are confusing to me.” Good question. If you’re not used to Florida, it is confusing. You have to ignore what the seed packets say and learn to roll with the climate, otherwise you’re READ MORE

Growing Bananas or Plantains in Florida

Bananas and plantains are easy to grow in South Florida, moderately easy to grow in central Florida, and slower and harder to grow in North Florida due to freezing temperatures in winter. In the tropics, you can basically live on bananas and plantains. Ripe, they are sweet and delicious. Bananas are good off the stalk and ripe plantains are good fried, baked or roasted in a fire. If you pick bananas or plantains green, they can be peeled and boiled, added to stews, boiled and mashed into a porridge with sugar and spices or sliced and fried in oil. READ MORE