My home in Fort Lauderdale has never had a working sprinkler system since we bought it almost four years ago. With fresh water being such a scarce resource in Florida, and water restrictions constantly in effect, I spent a long time researching the best way to go about landscaping. The lawn, if you could call it that, was mainly composed of weeds and I refused to dump weed killers and fertilizers on it which would end up in our canals and ocean. Also, after the hurricanes, most of our trees were destroyed, and the Ft Lauderdale tree canopy suffered so we wanted to help by planting more trees.

I attended Native Plant Society meetings and went to the Broward County Extension office and found out about having a “Florida Friendly Yard”, which conserves and protects our precious water resources and provides valuable wildlife habitat. Today, we have almost no grass left. It turns out that grass is like a sponge, absorbing large quantities of water but producing few environmental benefits.

My mother and I have planted a variety of Florida native plants, which once established, thrive with only the rains we receive naturally. I also got rid of some invasive plant species that were growing in the yard I didn’t even know were invasive! There are now ornamental grasses that provide hiding places and shelter for birds, native trees that provide fruit and berries for wildlife, native shrubs that butterflies love, and paths through the garden made of river rock that will allow water and nutrients through to the soil below.

Feel free to come over, stop by and look at the results of our “Florida Friendly Yard” experiment. You’re welcome to walk around and look at the different plants. Get your yard certified too! For more information you can visit FloridaYards.org and www.broward.org/naturescape.