Tampa Bay Water Blog

03Jun
Right Plant, Right Place: One of the Keys to an Award-Winning Landscape
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The Tampa Bay Community Water Wise Awards is a program that recognizes homeowners and businesses who are committed to conserving water and protecting the environment by using the most water-efficient landscaping practices in their beautiful landscapes.

Watch the five-part video series that highlights previous winners of the Tampa Bay Community Water Wise Awards and provides tips on how you can make your landscaping more water-efficient and Florida-friendly. Who knows, maybe this year will be your year!

Are you looking for answers to questions about landscape design and plant selection? It’s as simple as getting the right plant into the right place.

According to the Florida-Friendly Landscaping™ Program, achieving a healthy, low-maintenance home landscape starts with putting the right plant in the right place. Here’s how:

  • Select plants that match the landscape’s soil, light, water, and climatic conditions. This Florida-Friendly Plant Guide helps identify the Florida-friendly plants, including native plants that will work in your landscape design. The database contains a list of recommended trees, palms, shrubs, flowers, groundcover, grasses and vines developed by University of Florida/IFAS horticulture experts.
  • Buy quality plants that welcome wildlife. Landscaping to attract wildlife brings nature close by welcoming it into our yards. Planting certain trees, shrubs, and flowers can create an inviting atmosphere for songbirds, butterflies and other wildlife. Another advantage of landscaping for wildlife is creating habitat for animals that have been displaced by community growth and development where space is limited.
  • Consider plant size when you make your purchase, and aim for a diversity of trees, shrubs, groundcovers and flowers. Once these plants are established, they’ll require little – if any – supplemental water, fertilizer or pesticides, saving you time and money.
  • Attend a Florida Friendly Landscape workshop:

Feeling overwhelmed? “Just take a little piece at a time,” says 2011 winner Tom Ungaro. “It’s part of enjoying what you are doing, and then seeing the results that are very, very rewarding.”

For more information on how you can make your landscape Water Wise, or to learn more about the award program, visit awards.tampabaywaterwise.org.