The Garden in July – our EDIBLE YARD in North Florida.
The Garden in July – our EDIBLE YARD in North Florida.
There aren’t many ‘market’ vegetables that love the Florida summer heat and humidity. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t food to be grown! Every yard, at any time, can be an edible yard.
Okra, peanuts, sweet potatoes, moringa, cassava, chaya, longevity and okinawa spinaches, cow peas, butterbeans, galic chive, sugar cane and many more, aren’t adverse to the Florida summer environment.
All those listed and and then some, are tucked in throughout our garden and chicken yard in North Florida.
While winter is an amazing time to grow conventional vegetables – the Florida summer edible ‘jungle’ look is worth the vegetable set-back.
When we started out we had nothing but large pecan trees with grass underneath. Now, almost 6 years later, it’s an edible ‘jungle’ paradise with annual and perennial food and pollinator plants scattered throughout. I mention a lot of them in the video, but of course forgot to mention a whole lot as well. 🙂
To witness the return of an eco-system (albeit on a small scale) is mind blowing and immensely satisfying. So many birds! Skinks, toads, lizards, butterflies, but especially the enormous variety of insects we now have.
We still battle stink bugs (for lack of natural predators), and the occasional surge of army worms. But due to the increase of nesting birds, the army worms seem under control most of the time.
To see how I keep stink bugs and army worms from ruining tomatoes and peppers. Check out this video. The baggie method works against pickle worms on cucumbers as well.
Happy growing! 🙂
Beautiful garden
I love your garden <3 So beautiful!
Your property is amazing!!! 🤩❤
Wow Anita it’s crazy impressive what you’ve achieved through the years!😍
Omg I’m so jealous!! Gorgeous and so yummy!! I’m adding more edible trees every chance I get to my yard hopefully some day it can look like yours!! I’m in North Florida too so I wanted to see what could grow here and you gave me some great ideas! I just love loquats I ate them as a kid and enjoyed I have 3 growing all from seeds and two are at least 4 feet tall can’t wait till they produce!! Also I love how everything is growing so closely to each other my hubby is all weary about planting things too close but I’m like Hey if it grows it grows nature will do it’s thing! Lol Good luck with all ur plants😀
Aren’t caster beans poisonous?
Your farm is beautiful, thank you for the tour. I’d be interested in acquiring trimmings to root, I live outside lake city
What County are you in? I’m in Duval- I love your tour- very inspiring
Lovely!
What city in Florida do you live😊
It’s amazing! Just beautiful!!
What an inspiration! Love the natural form of your gardens. Lots of delicious and nutritious food for humans, critters, and cycling it back to the earth as well. That’s a beautiful symbiotic relationship you’ve built there. Kindred spirits. 😍
Very impressive 😍👍💕
You have done an amazing job Anita! We had similar garden in Bulgaria. Here we have deer and they eat everything. We have to fence an area for a garden. They even jumpe over the neighbor’s fence and ate his veggies💖