Thursday, May 30, 2013

Fertilizer Ban Starts June 1

Remember that May 31 is the last day you can fertilize with nitrogen or phosphorus products in Pinellas County, unless you are fertilizing a food crop (veggies and fruit trees) as these are exempt.

Don't just pump iron on turf as this can lead to other deficiencies, such as manganese (Mn) deficiency by competition.  Manganese deficient turf has been correlated to increased take-all root rot severity.  Use a micronutrient complex.  Micronutrients in the sulfate form or those that are chelated are best to use.  Oxides only work well in acidic soils (in Pinellas County most of our soils are alkaline).

Palms should be fertilized 4 times a year.  During the fertilizer black out (June 1 - Sept. 30) use a 0-0-16-6Mg product on palms and landscape/turf within 50 feet of palms.

For specific questions about the fertilizer ordianance call the Pinellas County Watershed Division at 464-4425.  For a list of products that comply with the no nitrogen or phosphorus requirements see this link:  http://www.pinellascounty.org/environment/pdfs/master-product-list-Pinellas-County.pdf

Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Hurricane Prep Week

This week is Hurricane Preparedness Week. Hurricane season runs from June 1 - November 30th. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) indicates this could be an extremely active season. Now is the time for homeowners to prepare.

A new publication, "Florida Homeowners Handbook to Prepare for Natural Hazards" has been developed and is free for download from our Solutions for Your Life website: http://solutionsforyourlife.ufl.edu/disaster_prep/
There is also other great information about preparing for natural hazards on this site. It may be a good link for you to bookmark.

Wednesday, May 1, 2013

Pest Management University Website

Check out this website for information about pest control:  http://pmu.ifas.ufl.edu/news  Also, see their newsletters for upcoming class and pest information. 

Here is a link to their archived newsletters:  http://pmu.ifas.ufl.edu/pmu-news/pest-management-news-feed 

Want to sign up for their newsletters?  Go to this link and email them:  http://pmu.ifas.ufl.edu/pmu-news/learn-how-to-stay-informed-pmu-news