Ginny Stibolt, a naturalist with a master's degree in plant taxonomy, moved from Maryland to Green Cove Springs in northeast Florida.   Follow along and learn with Ginny as she tackles a wide range of Florida gardening and environmental subjects: native plants, butterfly gardening, plant mythology, stinkhorn fungi, rain gardens, rain barrels, and more. Ginny has written a book, "Sustainable Gardening for Florida," published by University Press of Florida.

Read Ginny's gardening articles
Ginny is a blogger for the Florida Native Plant Society, Native Plants & Wildlife Gardens, and for The Lawn Reform Coalition
Have a Florida gardening question or an idea for a future column?
    Contact Ginny

Ginny talks ecosystem gardening in her post over on the Florida Native Plant Society blog as part of the Blog Action Day on Oct. 16, 2011: the topic was Food.

"More and more people are growing at least some of their own food. The reasons for this resurgence include food safety issues, lack of money for fresh vegetables, educating the children that carrots grow in the ground (not on the supermarket shelves), and simply the desire to replace an unused and expensive-to-maintain lawn with something more productive.

Native plants play an important role in sustainable edible gardens. Sometimes native plants are the crops, but more often they play a supporting role. An edible garden with all its non-native plants, both the carefully-bred cultivars and ancient heirloom species, does not exist in isolation; it is part of the larger ecosystem—the surrounding landscape and neighborhood. (Read More...)

A black swallowtail caterpillar on the parsley. If you wish to support the butterflies and have your parsley, too; plant a bug garden for the caterpillers. >>

Ginny's Gardening Articles

(The date is when originally published.)

Ecosystem Gardening: Blog Action Day on Food(10/16/11)
Dotted Horsemint: An Appreciation(10/11/11)
One Native Plant = Three Habitat Benefits(10/4/11)
Shoreline Habitat in the Intracoastal Waterway(9/19/11)
The St. John's-worts: Under-rated Landscape Plants(9/2/11)
Sunshine Mimosa, a lawn Alternative for Florida
A Poison is a Poison is a Poison(8/4/11)
Cheer for the Predators in Ecosystem Gardening(7/4/11)
A Review: The Trees of Florida 2nd ed. by Gil Nelson(6/27/11)
Wide Row Planting and Trench Composting in the Vegetable Garden(3/21/11)
Florida Native Plant Society's 2011 conference(3/19/11)
A Less than Ideal Potted Tree? Even Natives Can Have Problems(3/18/11)
Unseasonable Offerings by Bonnie Plants(3/3/11) Why do stores sell the wrong plants? Ginny's guest rant on gardenrant.com.
Florida's Palms(2/28/11)
Disney Wilderness Preserve: A Nature conservancy Property(2/24/11)
Australian Pines: One of Florida's Least Wanted(2/13/11)
Pokeweed: a Bird-friendly Native(2/4/11)
St. Augustine Grass: Native or Not?(1/19/11)
Can the Birds Count on You?(12/24/10) We count birds, but...
Removing Invasives in Mandarin: a team effort(10/26/10)
Florida's Marvelous Mangroves(10/22/10)
Water Science for Gardeners(10/15/10)
We All Live in a Watershed(10/15/10)
Gardenfests not popular? I Beg to differ(9/16/10)
Invasive vs. Aggressive(8/22/10)
A tour of an Urb Farm in Jacksonville(8/13/10) Lots of innovative ideas in use at this urban garden.
An Appreciation of Scarlet Hibiscus(7/23/11)
The Science Behind Southern Grasses, Including Turf(7/12/10) Don't follow Yankee advice when managing a southern lawn.
Rescuing Roadside Rain Lilies(6/28/10) A road-widening project would have buried a nice population of rain lilies.
The Calla Lilies are Blooming Again(6/11/10) Tulips don't work well in Florida, but many wonderful bulbs thrive here.
Hurricane-scaping(5/19/10) Ideas that you can use to reduce storm damage to your properties.
White-Topped Sedge(5/14/11)
A Native Herb amongst the Mediterraneans(4/23/10)
Signs of Spring in Northestern Florida, Finally!(4/5/10) Check out Ginny's spring herb garden and more.
Queen Palms Don't Rule in Florida(2/27/10) These palms are widely sold, but why?
Frigid Florida: What's a Gardener to do?(1/9/10)
Green Gators: There's More to University of Florida Gators than Just Football...(12/2/09)
The (Almost) Ghost Orchids of Clay County(10/6/09) Read how residents saved orchids from their county's "improvements."
Introducing the Lawn Reform Coalition(9/14/09)
Trees & Shrubs: the "Bones" of Your Landscape(8/31/09) Learn the best practices in woody plant care.
Public (Garden) Education(7/14/09) Gardeners can learn lessons from public gardens, parks, zoos, etc.
Rain gardening in the South: a Review(6/23/09) With all the rain we've had this year, this book is appropriate reading.
Give Peace (Lilies) a Chance(6/7/09) Peace lilies, those popular house & office plants have a secret life.
A Plant by Any Common Name...(5/6/09) Why do we need those hard-to-pronounce scientific names anyway?
Three More Rain Barrels(3/31/09) Ginny now has seven rain barrels, but these last three are elevated!
Florida Blueberries(2/23/09) Blueberries for Florida are different than those famous Jersey berries.
Longleaf Pines(1/20/09) Longleaf pines are important trees for habitat. Read about Ginny's introduction to them in her yard.
Grow more veggies in 2009: Kids can help(1/1/09) Read for some ideas how to have a more bountiful year.
Recycled Christmas Wreath(12/18/08) Using greens from the wild areas in her yard, Ginny reused last year's wreath frame.
The Royal Herb: Sweet Basil(12/8/08) Ginny's basil is a staple in her herb garden.
Red Bays are Dying(10/29/08) A sad story of how a beetle in shipping crates brought into Georgia in 2002 is killing these trees.
Invite Birds to Your Yard(10/6/08) Some guidelines to a bird-friendly yard and habitat.
Edible Flowers(9/12/08) See how Ginny has used edible flowers over the years.
Rain Garden Expansion(8/25/08) See how Ginny expanded a rain garden and installed a blind drain under a path.
From Stump to Butterfly Haven(7/8/08) This transformation created great habitat.
Tale of Two Parsleys(6/11/08) The best laid gardens still surprise us, sometimes.
Planning for Microclimates(5/14/08) Read this article to see the various ways Ginny has planned for her microclimates.
The Lawn Less Mown(4/26/08) Ginny found treasures in her lawn after a winter of no mowing.
A New Bed... and Standing Stormwater(4/4/08) Ginny expanded her veggie bed, but ran into a problem with standing water.
Rain Barrels Revisited(3/19/08) Everything you wanted to know about rain barrels.
Pot Bound!(2/28/08) Ever end up with pot bound plants?
Sweet Treat Carrots(2/2/08) Ginny's carrots live up to their name: Burpee's Sweet Treat.
Follow the Yellow Mulch Road(1/21/08) Tree trimmings is the most sustainable mulch.
Cutting Edges(1/6/08) Ginny makes an annual tour around her lawn to keep the grass from escaping.
Poinsettias are NOT Poisonous(11/27/07) Ginny busts this myth and covers more about this popular holiday plant.
Just Say No to Poisons(11/7/07) Ginny's rant on a business opportunity to install an automatic misting system.
Palmettos in the Landscape(10/30/.07) Nothing says tropical like a palm or palmetto--get the skinny on palms.
No Need to Beg for Beggarticks(10/4/07) All the rain this fall in northeast Florida has encouraged Ginny's weeds, but one is also a butterfly magnet.
Jewels of Summer(8/15/07) In this hot, fairly dry summer, Ginny's zinnias have shown like jewels in her meadows.
The Skinny on Onions(7/28/07) When Ginny planted her onion sets last fall, there was alot she didn't know. How did her onions grow?
A Scented Garden(3/4/07)--Herbs have been in cultivation for 5000 years. Ginny's Rosemary has grown a lot in just two years.
Gardening To Do List-2007(1/10/07)--Killing off aliens and other exciting items on Ginny's list for the year.
Winter Solstice Poem(12/14/06)--A bit of holiday fluff.
Fall Roundup in the Landscape(11/20/06)--See what's worked and what hasn't in Ginny's gardens.
Pulsating Purple in the Fall Meadow(11/3/06)--The color purple provided by an assortment of berries is appreciated by birds and humans alike.
An Interview with Gil Nelson, Noted Nature Author and Photographer(9/28/06)--Ginny's interview with Gil Nelson.
There's Gold in Our Meadows (9/18/06)--After a long dry summer Ginny's GOLDenrod shines in her meadows, but don't blame it for your allergies. A more likely culprit is Ambrosia!
Sensational Sunflowers (8/8/06)--Ginny has been experiementing with various types of sunflowers and provides some background info. How did these North American natives become Russia's national flower?
Managing a Natural Meadow (7/11/06)--After two years of not mowing in several areas of Ginny's lot, how does her meadow grow?
Tomatoes are for Summer (6/19/06)--Ginny's growing three types of tomatoes this summer. Ginny compares her experience so far with Burpee's sales hype.
Pond Pleasures(5/30/06)--A natural pond graces Ginny's front yard. It's a continuing sources of pleasure, but there's some upkeep required to keep it in balance.
Hidden Ginger Lilies and Other Intriguing Monocots(4/29/06)--Ginny found some unusual pink flowers in her garden and it's taken her a while to figure out what they are.
Spring Garden Dectective (4/13/06)--Ah, springtime in the garden, but what's a weed and what is not.
Creating Backyard Habitat (3/9/06)--Celebrate Earth Day and National Wildlife week in April and get your backyard certified!
Composting for Your Garden (1/30/06)--Every gardener needs to compost for better soil: whether you have sandy soil or clay soil, compost is the answer. Plus it's the right thing to do.
A Gardener's Resolutions for 2006 (1/4/06)--Ginny has a gardening to-do list for 2006. What are your gardening resolutions?
Seasonal Notes: Preparing Christmas greens and other winter house & garden ideas (12/8/05)-- Wait! Before you bring in boughs of holly, magnolia, or other greens for your mantle or a cut Christmas tree, prepare for a longer lasting display.
Reducing the Lawn in your Landscape (10/22/05) -- Less lawn in your landscape saves money, saves time, and helps the environment.  
Florida Natives for your Landscape (9/28/05) -- presents a case for using natives in your garden to increase regional diversity. 
Instant Landscaping? (8/24/05) -- It's accomplished in 2 days, but is it the best choice for your landscape?
Vicious, Vigorous, and Vibrant Vines (8/9/05) -- a look at some of north Florida's most typical vines.
Troublesome Spot? Convert to Containers (7/11/05) -- some ideas for container gardens.
Ooh la la, French drains (6/23/05) -- working around French drains in your gardens.
Homesick for a Real Mid-Atlantic Spring (5/13/05) -- Spring in northern Florida pales in comparison to the Mid-Atlantic's season.
I Covet My Neighbors' Ebony Spleenworts! (4/25/05) -- a look at some common ferns in northern Florida.
Rain Lilies for My Rain Gardens (4/6/05) -- Rain gardens are designed to handle stormwater runoff from gutters, French drains, driveways and other impervious surfaces.
Rain Barrels (3/18/05) -- Rain barrels capture rain water from downspouts and provide a source of untreated water for your plants.
Pee-yew! Those Smelly Stinkhorn Fungi (1/20/05) -- It's great to find surprises in your garden, but not these obnoxious winter fungi.
Myths and legends of Mistletoe and Magnolias (12/11/04) & Holly, Ivy, Poinsettias and more. (12/21/04) -- Winter festoons of plants in our houses pre-dates Christianity. These two articles examine the myths, stories, and traditions of holidays & plants.
My Magnificent but Messy Magnolias (11/15/04) -- The grand Southern Magnolias (Magnolia grandiflora) seem to typify southern elegance for most people, but there's a problem...
Hey! My Sago's not a Palm. (10/23/04) -- While sagos look like short palm trees, they're Cycads.
What's Been Eating My Bushy Seedboxes? (9/28/04) -- Bushy Seed Boxes (Ludwigia spp.) volunteer on Ginny's property, but she noticed that the leaves had been eaten...

Ginny Stibolt would like to hear from readers who have suggestions and questions. After all, there are more than a few transplanted gardeners here in northeast Florida trying to figure out what works and what doesn't in planting zone 8/9. Now Ginny is working on a book, "Sustainable Gardening for Florida" to be published by University Press of Florida.

Top of Page