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Hernando County
Cooperative Extension Service

1653 Blaise Drive

Brooksville, Florida 34601
(352) 754-4433

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Florida-Friendly Landscaping™ Program

Sylvia Durell, Coordinator
http://hernandocountyffl.blogspot.com/

Hernando County Utilities Department
21030 Cortez Blvd., Brooksville, FL 34601
Call (352) 540-6230 for an appointment or to schedule a presentation.

Florida-Friendly Landscaping (FFL) is a program of the University of Florida
and is funded by the Hernando County Utilities Department and
the Southwest Florida Water Management District.

About Florida-Friendly Landscaping: Including FFL in your landscape allows you to incorporate beauty and good design, while helping to protect Florida’s unique natural resources. Florida-friendly landscapes conserve water, reduce waste and pollution, create wildlife habitat and prevent erosion.

"Like" us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/HernandoFFLProgram for up-to-date announcements, educational information, photos and news about FFL.

I invite you to take a look at a brand-new video on FFL that was created by the Southwest Florida Water Management District (SWFWMD). SWFWMD provides funding to support FFL programs in nine counties in its 16-county area...including mine! Take a look: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htTJcBhgtVE

Any landscape can be Florida-friendly if it is designed and cared for according to the Nine science-based FFL principles:

Right Plant, Right Place
Plants selected to suit a specific site will require
minimal amounts of water, fertilizers and pesticides.

Water_Efficiently Water Efficiently
Irrigate only when your lawn needs water.
Efficient watering is the key to a healthy Florida
yard and conservation of limited resources.

Fertilize_Appropriatelyweb Fertilize Appropriately
Less is often best. Overuse of fertilizers can be
hazardous to your yard and the environment.

Mulch Mulch
Maintaining a 3-inch layer of mulch will help
retain soil moisture, prevent erosion and suppress weeds.

Attract_wildlife Attract Wildlife
Plants in your yard that provide food, water
and shelter will attract Florida’s diverse wildlife.

Manage_Yard_Pests Manage Yard Pests Responsibly
Unwise use of pesticides can harm people,
pets, beneficial organisms and the environment.

Recycleweb Recycle
Grass clippings and leaves provide nutrients to the soil
and reduce waste disposal when reused on the landscape.

Finished_barrel Reduce Stormwater Runoff
Water running off your landscape can carry pollutants
such as soil, debris, fertilizer, gasoline and pesticides
that can adversely impact water quality. Reduction
of this runoff will help prevent nonpoint-source pollution.

Protect_the_Waterfrontweb Protect the Waterfront
Waterfront property, whether on a river, stream, pond,
bay or beach, is very fragile and should be carefully
protected to maintain freshwater and marine ecosystems.

Educational Videos:
Rain barrel Workshop

Florida-Friendly Landscaping for Deed Restricted Communities.

Click on the logo below for in-depth information on Florida-Friendly Landscaping

Hundreds of educational publications are available from IFAS Electronic Digital Information Source. Click here.

skipweekcropped

Skip A Week of Irrigation in the cooler months
During cooler months in fall and winter, your lawn doesn’t need watering every week. It’s the best time to train your yard to need less water! Skipping a week of watering is as easy as “off” for residents with irrigation timers. Turn the timer to "off" for the week that you want to skip, and "on" for the week that you want to water. So only water your lawn every other week and only if it needs it. If everyone skipped one week of irrigation this season, it could save an estimated 1.9 billion gallons of water.

Too much irrigation:
• Makes your lawn less able to survive droughts
• Encourages pests and disease
• Wastes water
How much is enough?
• Grass doesn’t need as much water in the cooler months
• Apply 1/2" to 3/4" of water
• Water only every 10-14 days in the winter
Your lawn needs watering when:
• Grass blades are folded in half on at least one-third of your yard
• Grass blades appear blue-gray
• Your footprint remains on the lawn

So skip a week of watering — it just makes sense!