PAGE TWO 
FLORIDA NURSERY GARDEN NEWS 
MAY 1954 
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FLORIDA NURSERY GARDEN NEWS 
Published by 
FLORIDA NURSERY AND LANDSCAPE CO. 
N. 14th St. S. Orange Ave. 
Phone 158 Ph. Ma-28345 
LEESBURG FLORIDA OCALA 
“The Home of Millions of Plants” 
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“Protect Your Investment!” 
The plants and planting around your home represent a 
considerable investment on your part. PROTECT YOUR 
INVESTMENT with proper maintenance. 
Pruning, spraying and fertilizing are all important to the 
health of your plants and to their good appearance. No 
matter how fine your landscaping is, unless your plants are 
properly cared for, they will not look their best and you 
may even lose some of your plants. 
Our service department is prepared to give professional 
services to keep your plants looking their very best all year 
‘round. Experienced personnel, familiar with soil condi- 
tions and plant needs, combined with the proper equip- 
ment, enabling them to do a thorough job, guarantee maxi- 
mum results along these lines. 
A telephone call to our office, or a post card, will bring 
a qualified representative to check with you, make recom- 
mendations and to give you an estimate. No obligation, of 
course, 
P.S. The very safest way to assure proper and adequate 
maintenance is to have us put your property on a regular 
maintenance schedule. Then we will fertilize, prune and 
spray regularly as needed throughout the year. 
P gu & 
SOIL ANALYSIS 
If you are having any trouble which you feel may be 
caused by soil conditions, drop us a card and we will be 
glad to tell you how you may obtain an analysis of your 
soil without cost. 
Q. 
A. 
Questions You’ve Asked About 
FLORIDA GARDENING! 
What is generally considered to be the best lawn grass 
for Central Florida? 
Lawn grasses usually recommended for Central Florida 
are the Centipede and the Saint Augustine. The Centi- 
pede will require less mowing and is a finer bladed 
grass. However, it is hard to keep green, as lack of 
moisture or cold weather will turn it brown. St. Augus- 
tine grass remains green the year round, will grow in 
shaded locations and, although it requires more mow- 
ing, it can be kept smooth and attractive. We do 
recommend the St. Augustine grass (Bitter Blue Stem 
variety ONLY) more generally for our area. Be sure it 
is weed free. 
How often should I fertilize my hibiscus, and how much 
should I feed them? 
Hibiscus should be given at least three applications 
each year of a good 4-7-5 or 6-6-6 fertilizer with high 
organic content — the first in early spring, another in 
midsummer, and the last in early fall. The amount of 
fertilizer should vary with the plants, the fertility of 
the soil, and the quantity of organic matter in the soil, © 
but may range from one ounce for a small plant to four 
pounds for a large plant per application. It may be 
broadcast and watered in well, or in punch bar holes, 
so that it will reach the roots sooner. 
I have noticed that the edges of the leaves of my shrub- 
bery have turned brown and the discoloration seems 
to spread. through the leaf and then the leaf turns crisp 
and falls off. Can you tell me the probable cause of 
this? 
The condition which you describe sounds very much 
like a fertilizer burn. If you have fertilized recently 
this is probably the cause. To correct this condition 
we would suggest that you flood your shrubbery and 
the area to which the fertilizer has been applied to 
wash away this over-dose for prevention of further 
damage to your plants. This condition could be caused 
by too acid soil. If the condition persists you should 
have your soil analized. If acidity is your trouble, it 
may be corrected by the use of lime products such as 
dolomite. : 
One of my hibiscus plants sets many buds but they all 
fall off just before they open. Can you tell me the 
cause of this? 
Plants that are unhealthy because of insect or root knot 
or a deficiency of one or more of the plant food ele- 
ments may drop flower buds prematurely. Injury to 
unopened flowers by aphid or thrip may also cause 
bud drop. Another cause is poorly drained location or 
subjecting them to excessive drought, or severe fluctua- 
tion of moisture. 
