Groom and Bloom

Not long ago, Southwest Florida gardens ranged from stately Mediterranean to well-accessorized French County to prim-and-proper English Cottage themes-all created along the Gulfshore with a great deal of effort to overcome this subtropical habitat. However, two recent hurricane seasons and their aftermath have altered-literally-the landscapes of Southwest Florida, producing cost-efficient, time-saving practicality when it comes to designing the outdoors.

Although signature style is still important, costly designer gardens that are high maintenance and labor intensive are now making way for more natural, lower-maintenance and storm-tolerant gardening plans.

"Homeowners are looking to make a splash, so designer gardens will always exist, especially the Mediterranean style," says Lawrence Perillo, president of Naples-based Crawford Landscaping. "But people are also trying to find something unique, particularly for new homes, so they want landscaping that is different."

In either a condo or single-family home, you can create your own slice of paradise that reflects your personal taste and extends your living room from indoors to outdoors via your back yard or balcony. Today's trends allow for more functional outdoor spaces by incorporating shady outdoor spots, container gardens, native plants and butterfly-welcoming landscapes.

Shade Gardens

For many Southwest Florida homeowners, creating that cool area as a welcome respite from relentless sun is a necessity. While a shady spot might be functional on hot days, it is not the easiest place to maintain a garden. If you want to use this area for something besides a hammock, a landscape professional can suggest plant selection, care and maintenance to make the area thrive.

According to Blake Crawford, CEO of Crawford Landscaping, as new communities are built, shade issues become more prevalent-mainly the need for it.

"The question becomes, what will grow in a shade area that has its own environment and particularly in an area around the lanai?" he says. "The lanai question we get a lot."

"Shade is great for comfort and privacy," agrees John Sibley, owner of All Native Garden Center, Nursery & Landscapes. "But the types of plants that can grow and thrive in those kinds of conditions have to be considered and planned for."

While areas of shade are at a premium in Southwest Florida, Crawford suggests determining how you want to use the area and then take into account its size, soil quality, adequate water and proper drainage, existing structures and plantings and degrees of light.

plants for shade gardens

. For planting in and around lanais, try bromelia, a plant family whose most well-known member is the pineapple. They are typically inexpensive, easy to grow and offer long-lasting showy blooms.

. To create a plant canopy, try hardy sword ferns, with long, spreading fronds that can reach out several feet.

. Caladiums love shade and humidity and pay off with colorful foliage in shades of green, red, pink and white.

Container Gardening

If you are one of the many condominium dwellers in Southwest Florida, you can still enjoy a potted garden on your lanai or balcony, and possibly get better results than gardeners who plant in the ground.

Sibley says many homeowners find Florida's poor soil quality, pests and occasional severe weather difficult for in-ground gardens, but containers are easier to control, allow more versatility and require minimal maintenance. "Container gardening is very popular and has a lot of advantages," Sibley says.

In a pot, soil can be adapted and fertilized efficiently, and containers are more easily sprayed for pests. Their placement can also make working with the plants more comfortable for the gardener. In addition, containers can be moved and clustered throughout the yard or on the balcony into groups to create new landscapes and looks, rotated to showcase what's in bloom or brought inside during inclement weather.

plants for container gardens

. A ponytail palm, which is actually a lily, will do well in a window space facing north. This stringy, sturdy plant is good container filler.

. A natural for our environment, the bird of paradise is the most attractive member of the banana family. Grown in partial shade, the bright, unusual flowers will be larger than when grown in full sun. Use a container that allows good draining.

. Just about any herb like basil, rosemary, parsley and oregano thrives in a container.

. You can have fresh veggies on your sunny balcony. Especially suited for containers are tomatoes, peppers, green onions and squash.

Native Plants

Thanks to two disruptive hurricane seasons, rising costs and dwindling spare time, some gardeners and landscapers have decided the time has come to go native. Plants indigenous to Southwest Florida are generally hardy and drought-tolerant, disease- and pest-resistant and adapt to their region so that they perform better under local conditions. They can also generally withstand hurricane conditions pretty well.

"These plants [natives] originate from the environment, are more efficient and cost effective and are infinitely more sustainable in the Southwest Florida climate," says Phinney Masoner, enhancements supervisor with Crawford Landscape.

Achieving a native yard that is eco-friendly and preserves the natural beauty of the outdoors is one of the goals of the University of Florida, Lee County Extension Service. The Florida Yards & Neighborhoods program affords homeowners a new method of landscaping in the form of a "Florida-friendly yard" that is low cost, low-maintenance and makes good sense. The program incorporates the right plants in the right place, efficient watering, appropriate fertilizing, mulching, attracting wildlife, managing yard pests, recycling, reducing storm water runoff and protecting water ecosystems. All Native specializes in the Florida Yards & Neighborhoods program and will work with homeowners to achieve a natural landscape.

The use of native plant materials also fits county code regulations, according to Masoner. And natives have gained favored status with local governments that are now replanting after hurricanes Charley (2004) and Wilma (2005). Officials in Sanibel, taking a cue from Mother Nature, recently announced plans for the replanting of its showcase drive-Periwinkle Way-with native trees that are expected to better withstand hurricanes, provide shade in the form of canopy trees and restore habitats on the island.

plants for native gardens

. The oleander is a Southwest Florida favorite, growing along many roadsides, showing off its fragrant pink or white blooms, but it is toxic if eaten.

. Coco plum trees, with their red-purple edible fruit, prefer coastlines and can withstand sandy soil and salt.

. If you want fast and big results, consider a live oak tree, which can grow taller than 50 feet.

. Closer to the ground, try fakahatchee grass, which has medium-to-high drought resistance, but also likes sunny, wet conditions.

Butterfly Gardening

Not only beautiful, butterflies make themselves useful by pollinating the flowers in our gardens to supply the seeds and fruits we enjoy as well as stimulating their own mini-habitat. "Butterfly gardening is a very popular trend that doesn't require a lot of room to achieve," Sibley says.

In fact, creating the habitat to attract and sustain these fragile visitors can be done in a very small yard or on a balcony by using a trellis, he says. First, decide what types of butterflies you want to attract to your yard or balcony, then pick the plants to sustain those species.

Butterflies require plants rich in flower nectar that serve as their hosts where the female can lay her eggs. It is a good idea to grow plants in sun and shade and choose plants that flower at different times of the year to provide and maintain a continuous source of food.

plants for butterfly gardens

. Sulfur butterflies are drawn to the little yellow flowers found on the Bahama cassia shrub, which can grow to nine feet tall.

. The unusual flowers of the passion vine will bring Gulf fritillary butterflies-and can spread rapidly throughout your garden.

. A native to our subtropical locale, lantana will attract zebra longwing butterflies with a variety of color combinations found in its

flower clusters.

. You won't have a hard time growing plumbago, a popular flowering shrub along the Gulfshore. You can expect cloudless sulpher winged visitors when plumbago blooms its periwinkle flowers in spring, summer and fall.

Planning and planting are the determining success factors for shade, privacy, decoration or beauty. The types of plants and their vessel-ground or container-will ultimately determine cost and maintenance. And, as Sibley notes, getting started is the key. "If you don't plant for it you can't take advantage of it," he says.