Yesterday I took a look at some of the success we ’ve had inThe Great South Florida Food Forest Project … today we ’ll look at some of the failures and problem .
One thing about Florida moxie , particularly down south : it eats organic affair and drinks water like there ’s no tomorrow .
That imply that without unconstipated applications of young mulch , along with regular irrigation , some plant will contend or die .
This food forest is low onnitrogen fixersand chop - and - fall plants ( you ’ll detect a lot more info on species and way to ensure your solid food forest pull round in myCreate Your Own Florida Food Forestbook ) . Since I do n’t inhabit on site , I ca n’t stay on top of the care ask to make everything really happy . I ’ve institute pigeon peas before , only to incur out later that none of them germinated . I ’ve also planted a few nitrogen fixer and had them disappear into the weeds . Many of the modest perennial vegetables also kvetch the pail over the last yr .
Here ’s a leaning of the plants I added that are now deceased : RIP : CinnamonEdible - flick hibiscus ( 2)NaranjillaOkinawa spinachSaltbushSea purslaneStrawberry Psidium guajava ( 2 )
Other plants , like theJabuticaba , the fig , the canistel , the papayas and the Monstera are hanging on but not expand .
A ripe acerola cherry
Even the sixth Street mulberry tree , though it is n’t tiny , is n’t as big as I would have ask after two age growth .
It ’s setting a few yield at least :
Unfortunately , it ’s not even as improbable as me . Yes , it originate as a 12″ tree diagram … but commonly mulberries grow about 6′ a class . Maybe this year will send it skywards .
A ripe acerola cherry
My parents ( who own this food forest ) call for me what I would urge for observe thing felicitous and growing .
My answer :
1 . Add lots more mulch.2 . sum more pee during dry patches.3 . Add more nitrogen and rankness .
Dad put a bunch of cony manure around the bases of all the trees this workweek after I leave and watered them all really well . Many of the plants and trees wait a bit white-livered and stressed . The original layers of organic matter we laid down have mostly disappeared into the ground and been covered by a mess of weeds . There are also problem withSri Lanka weevilschewing up destiny of the leave-taking . We ’re cash in one’s chips to have to figure out how to control those or get the trees to outpace them .
A ripe acerola cherry
Many of the trees and plant are also draped in strands of silk , though I did n’t see any spiders , touch or caterpillars . Who knows ?
Another problem in this food forest is the lack of good understory plants . There are no sweet potatoes or other comestible groundcover so the weeds have taken over , along with a eldritch salmagundi of cosmetic landscape plants that wandered in along with some of of lode of yard debris from the neighbors .
Check these interlopers out .
First up , wandering Jew :
And some doorbell - flowered weeds I ca n’t name , plus a caladium :
A spiral ginger :
Rosary peas ( more on thosehere ):
A ripe acerola cherry
And fern are everywhere :
It ’s interesting to see what bug out up when you do n’t mow .
I conceive the manure and extra water will get things go again – but I unquestionably need to get down plan in more nitrogen - influence peddler and comestible groundcover along with a more robust vine layer . TheAfrican yamsI implant seem to have mostly evaporate this twelvemonth .
A ripe acerola cherry
Tomorrow I ’ll have more picture and updates .
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