My Quest for Authentic Florida Foliage

Authenticity is a cultural buzzword right now. Collectively, we’re burned out trying to be people we’re not, celebrating things that don’t mean anything real to us. I’ve really tried to embrace authenticity in my home; more specifically, I’m really trying to embrace it in my landscaping by celebrating and encouraging the growth of authentic Florida foliage.

When I moved into our cottage nine years ago, we already had a good deal of authentic Florida foliage in our yard. For the much of the first eight years I lived here, I was so bent out of shape trying to envision a pristine, manicured yard that I didn’t fully take time to appreciate the touch of wild these native Florida plants add to my landscape.

Last summer, when I got serious about trying to work out our landscaping, I honed in on the idea of what makes a yard authentically Old Florida. Immediately, I thought of strangely curved oak trees, overgrowth, swaying Spanish moss, and lack of definition. I knew that by choosing to anchor my yard with plants that have a storied history in Florida, I would be naturally celebrating what is true of my house and my property rather than trying to make it something that it’s not.

Azaleas

My azalea is my favorite plant on the property. It’s sprawling, out-of-control nature inspires a touch of recklessness in me, not an easy feat for this consummate rule-follower. Something comes alive in me when it blooms each winter; for three weeks, it adds a touch of magic to our backyard. I’ve seen people manicure the heck out of these plants, but I don’t. Azaleas, by nature, seem ill-suited for confinement. Instead, I let mine grow wild. And it rewards me each year for simply letting it be what it’s designed to be.

The name of my design studio was inspired by this very plant. When I gaze out the large floor-to-ceiling windows in my studio, it’s the focal point. Looking at its imperfect, larger-than-life elegance inspires me to passionately pursue my dreams and create spaces that echo those sentiments.

When I got married, my dad knew I adored my azalea, so he planted “endless” azaleas around the stump where we got married in our yard. I’m rewarded with azaleas that bloom multiple times a year in a different coral color. They’re simply stunning.

Azaleas require little else than soil that meets the right acidity levels and a certain amount of shade. Honestly, I add nothing to the soil. I’m of the opinion that plants meant to grow here will grow; I don’t intend to manufacture false habitats on my property. In all reality, I don’t have time for it. And it’s simply not authentic. That being said, azaleas won’t work for everyone. They’re a bit more expensive, I think, as a “test” plant, so if you’re considering adding to your landscape, it might be wise to take a soil sample to a local agricultural office for a pH level test. In Florida, your local University of Florida IFAS office can do that for you.

I don’t do any azalea pruning. However, I do periodically clear off the vines that tend to grow on it. Historically, the vines have choked out the azalea, and in years where I haven’t been as conscious of keeping it vine-free, it hasn’t bloomed as well. Because it surrounds a live oak, I do have small oak trees that have shot up through the plant. It used to infuriate me, and I would cut them back. But it’s a losing battle; they always return. I think it adds a bit of imperfection to the plant that is more charming than obnoxious.

Camellias

Also in our backyard, we have three camellias. Our largest camellia, a standard pink camellia japonica, was estimated to be more than 40 years old. It’s currently suffering from spider mites, so we’re working to eradicate them to bring her back to former glory.

The previous owner also planted two to anchor the corner of the flower beds surrounding the back of our house. The western facing camellia is also a pink camellia japonica; the eastern facing one is a camellia japonica, but it’s a variegated variety that contains pink and white blooms. It throws off the symmetry of the flower bed ever so slightly when they’re in bloom, but for the rest of the 48 weeks of the year when they’re simply glossy evergreen leaves, no one can tell.

Much like azaleas, camellias simply require a certain soil acidity level and shade. They’re pretty hardy plants that require little care, other than eradicating pests, like spider mites, when they take up residence. I will continue to let the large camellia run free, but I do plan on lightly pruning the camellias on the corners of my house simply because I intend to complete that flower bed this spring.

Gardenias

Last summer, I decided I was going to be bold and try gardenias in the flower beds of my front entryway. Gardenias are notoriously temperamental, requiring just the right conditions to thrive. Since gardenias typically thrive in the same places azaleas do, so I figured I had a pretty good chance of success as long as I didn’t kill them.

I have to insert here that, in regard to planting something that everyone says is especially hard to encourage to thrive, I’m a bit like my grandmother. She insisted on growing gardenias (pretty successfully, too, I might add) despite living on a saltwater river that frequently flooded. Though the conditions could work against her, she persisted in growing them because she loved them. I figured if the dogged determination of my grandmother was within me, I could make gardenias work as well.

In the nine months it’s been since I planted them, I haven’t done anything to them except water frequently, and they’ve grown massive. I’m waiting for their first bloom. The gardenia that gets the most amount of sun (and seemed to struggle the most with the cold weather of winter) actually has the most blooms. My other plants, though they seem “healthier” and “fuller” looking, have fewer. I’m not well-versed enough in caring for a gardenia quite yet, so I’m anxious to study how they bloom so that I can learn how to better care for them.

I will prune them after they finish blooming; they’ve gotten just a touch too tall for the space they’re located. I may extend the plant bed outward this spring and throw in some more manicured-looking annuals to provide some color and contrast through the fall and winter, as my plant bed was just a touch too “green” and wild (for an entryway) during the winter months.

Orange Trees

We have several orange trees on our property as well. In the late 19th Century, this area was a rather prolific citrus production area. The tree in our backyard shot up after a tornado took out a large oak tree that had been blocking sunlight. It hasn’t produced as much fruit in recent years, so we’re researching how to nurse it back to health.

It’s currently covered in the most incredible orange blossoms. The aroma of orange blossoms is simply intoxicating. With the number of blossoms on the tree, we’re hopeful we’ll have a big harvest this year.

Future Planting

This upcoming planting season, I plan to add some hibiscus in an area currently overrun by ornamental ginger. I have a flower bed at the back of the house that exists completely in the shade; my plan is to try to a few oak leaf hydrangeas in that bed. I don’t really know what to do with hydrangeas in the winter when they get twiggy, but I need something that grows tall and busy in that location.

When choosing what to plant in your yards, go for what lends authenticity. Perhaps laboring over fancy, ultra-manicured yards isn’t all that bad. But I prefer to surround myself with plants that have a storied history in Florida and don’t require near-constant attention and extraordinary measures to keep them alive and healthy.