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On Your Own Turf

Lawns have become the standard for neat, attractive yards, but a green expanse comes at a high cost to the environment. It requires large amounts of water, fertilizer and pesticides, as well as labor for maintenance, and is of practically no use to wildlife. You can create a wildlife-friendly yard by letting a part of your lawn go wild. If you simply quit mowing small sections, all kinds of vegetation may sprout, as it did in Gulf Islands biologist Riley Hoggard's backyard near Pensacola. Now he enjoys live oaks, pines, bays and even willows, as well as interesting wildflowers.

Native plants such as these, wild or planted, will create a backyard haven for wildlife, especially birds. If you are among the 75 percent of Florida's population who live within five miles of the coast, think about re-establishing a coastal hammock in your yard. A diversity of flowering plants and fruiting trees, such as coral bean, pigeon plum, live oak, firebush, loblolly and sea grape, are important sources of food and shelter. Consult a native nursery near you, or reference our list of Native Plants for Back Yard Florida Habitats from Planting a Refuge for Wildlife.

Keep turf to a minimum. Use grass that is drought-tolerant. Mow at the highest recommended height, and often enough so that you need remove only 1/3 of the blade, which decomposes readily, returning nutrients to the yard without creating a thatch layer. Water less frequently but more thoroughly, to promote deeper root growth.

For more information on reducing turf, contact your local county extension service. Their phone number is listed in the 'county' section of the blue pages. Or you may visit the home page of the University of Florida's Institute of Food and Agricultural Services, http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/.