Is It Worth Hiring Someone to Maintain My Native Yard?
If you’re considering a native plant landscape (or mostly native) in Florida, you may have heard that native gardens are “low maintenance.” While it’s true that natives require less fertilizer, pesticides, and irrigation than traditional landscapes, there’s an important caveat: maintenance is still a crucial element, especially in the first 1–2 years.
Why the First Years Are the Hardest
New landscapes, native or not, often face the same challenge: weeds.
Newly installed plants need space, water, and nutrients to establish.
Unfortunately, weeds also thrive under the same conditions, and can often outpace your young plants if not managed early.
For homeowners, the first one to two years of upkeep, primarily weeding and pruning, can feel overwhelming, especially if too much time passes.
Most landscape failures aren’t due to the plants themselves (although we always expect a couple plant failures) they’re due to increased volume of weed growth in those first seasons. This weed growth quickly erodes aesthetics and the investment in the landscape.
Herbicides: Helpful, But Not a Complete Solution
It’s tempting to rely on chemical weed control or assume it eliminates weeds once and for all, but here’s what you need to know:
Post-emergent herbicides work only on living weeds at the time of application. They don’t prevent new weeds from sprouting.
Pre-emergent herbicides reduce seed germination, but even under ideal conditions, they don’t catch every weed seed. And they don’t prevent weeds emerging from starch reserves like Torpedo Grass and Nutsedge.
The bottom line: no herbicide will eliminate the need for hands-on maintenance in the early years of a landscape.
A landscape left unattended, even with herbicides, is at high risk of being overrun by weeds, leading to poor aesthetics and stressed plants. Why Weed Control in Florida.
Pruning and Weed Control Are Key to Long-Term Success
A well-maintained native yard early on sets the stage for years of beauty with minimal upkeep.
Pruning ensures plants grow in their desired form, whether that’s a formal look or a more natural aesthetic.
Weeding keeps the landscape aesthetics looking fresh and cared for. Weeds can quickly muddle the landscape and give the appearance of desolation.
Landscapes that receive proper attention in the first two years look better and establish faster, making maintenance easier in the future.
Do You Need to Hire a Professional?
For many homeowners, hiring a landscape professional is worth it for these reasons:
Expertise: Professionals know which weeds to target and when to prune for the best long-term results.
Time-Saving: Managing weeds and pruning young landscapes can be labor-intensive. Professionals handle it efficiently. Waiting too long to start a maintenance program can incur greater cost for maintenance and in some cases, requires an initial clean up to get things back to a manageable level.
Maximized Aesthetic Impact: A yard maintained immediately after installation consistently looks healthier, fuller, and more visually appealing.
Even in a native yard, early maintenance is the difference between a struggling garden and a thriving one. After the first two years, many homeowners find that their native garden settles into a lower-maintenance rhythm, but those first seasons are critical.
Key Takeaways
Native landscapes are lower maintenance overall, but weeding and pruning are essential early on.
First-year maintenance directly affects long-term landscape health and aesthetics.
Herbicides help, but hands-on care cannot be replaced during the establishment period.
Hiring a professional can save time, reduce stress, and ensure your native yard is off on the right start.
Investing in maintenance at the beginning of your landscape journey sets your yard up for success and allows you to enjoy the natural beauty of Florida’s native plants for years to come. Tools to Help with Maintenance
Amongst many other treatments, activities, and connections, gardening has been shown (1) to have a number of mental health benefits. Anecdotally, I always find that working with my hands and caring for a living thing to be relaxing and to improve my mood. Four of the top ways that gardening can improve mental well-being are:
Stress reduction (2): Gardening can be a relaxing and meditative activity that helps to reduce stress and anxiety. The act of tending to plants and watching them grow can provide a sense of accomplishment and purpose, and the physical activity of gardening can also help to release endorphins and reduce tension.
Social connections: Gardening can be a social activity that allows you to connect with others who share a similar interest. Whether you garden alone, with a group of friends, or in a community garden, the act of working together and sharing the fruits of your labor can foster a sense of community and belonging.
Creativity: Gardening allows you to express your creativity by designing and cultivating your own outdoor space. From choosing plants and planning layouts to experimenting with different techniques and styles, gardening offers endless opportunities to be creative and try new things!
Nature connection: Gardening can help you connect with nature and the outdoors, which has been shown(3) to have several mental health benefits. Research has shown that spending time in nature can have cognitive benefits, improve mood, reduce stress and anxiety, and increase feelings of happiness and well-being.
Overall, gardening is a healthy and enjoyable activity that can have a positive impact on your mental health. Whether you have a large backyard or just a small balcony, there are plenty of ways to get started and enjoy the benefits of gardening.
To attract birds to your yard, think about creating a habitat with food, shelter, and water to meet the needs of both nesting and migratory birds. Building an ecosystem rich with plant and animal life will attract a variety of birds throughout the year. Migration occurs in spring and fall. Birds need calorie dense foods, like seeds and berries, during their stops to fuel the long distance flights from their summer nesting sites to their winter habitats. Nesting birds are those that breed and raise their young locally. Growing babies need huge amounts of protein in the form of insects. Birds can make hundreds of trips back to the nest per day to feed their growing nestlings.
Food
To feed migratory birds, use plants that provide seeds, nuts, or berries. Birds migrate north through Florida late April to early May. Fall migration stretches from August through October. Having a variety of plants that flower and fruit throughout the year ensures migrating birds will find something to eat in your yard. Any flowering plant that attracts pollinators will help support nesting birds. Parent birds will bring the insects found on your plants back to the nest. Be sure to leave some of the “dead” flowers so that seeds can develop to feed birds later in the season. Oaks are a key group of plants for both migratory and nesting birds. They support nearly 1,000 species of moth and butterfly caterpillars. Those Oak Rollers that hang down and get in your hair? They help make up the base of the food chain that supports birds. Leave the leaf litter below your oak because that is where the caterpillars pupate.
Shelter
In order to feel safe, birds need to be able to retreat from open spaces where they may be foraging or drinking. Providing layers of low groundcovers, grasses, shrubs, and trees will give birds a wide variety of places to hide from predators. Vary the density of plants to add interest to your landscape while supporting the nesting preferences of different types of birds.
Water
Provide at least 2 sources of water in your garden for birds to drink and bathe. Bird baths should be shallow with a textured surface. Add fresh water frequently so the birds know they have a reliable source in your yard. Once they are in the habit of using your baths, birds will often wait nearby for a bath when you get the hose out!
Golden Beach Creeper should be a favorite addition to any Central or South Florida coastal landscape. Naturally occurring in the dune systems or just behind, they are well adapted to dry, sandy soils and small amounts of shade.
The beautiful tube shaped flowers will attract virtually all pollinators. The bees can be heard buzzing through the foliage from several feet away, letting you know the flowers are hard at work.
The yellow to orange fruit will appear after the blooms that are a delicacy to small birds. Because of the dense and arching growth habit, birds enjoy hopping through the dense growth to feed and take shelter. Plant under small trees to reap the benefits of a truly bird friendly planting.
PLEASE NOTE, the Beach Creeper can take some time to fill in, so have the expectation of patience when planting these in the garden.
Soil: Somewhat moist to very long, very dry periods. Lime rock and sandy soils. Adaptable to a wide pH range.
Size: 2-3 feet tall by 2-3 feet wide
Flower: Tubular white, orange, pink, red blooms
Fruit: Yellow
Salt tolerance: Tolerant of occasional saltwater inundation, moderate tolerance for salt spray.
Landscape form: Spreading shrub or tall groundcover
Phenology: Evergreen, long lived perennial
Wildlife Factor: The fruit provides an excellent source of food for birds. Flowers attract butterflies and other pollinators.
Ecotype: Coastal areas of central and south Florida to include the dune system
Availability: Readily available in most native plant retail nurseries
Landscape Use
The Beach Creeper will be one of your most versatile plants in sunny or mostly sunny landscapes. Although registered as a shrub, it acts similarly to a groundcover which makes it suitable to fill in and connect portions of the landscape in beautiful waves and shapes.
Plant in masses along the forward most layer of the landscape or group below a Palm Tree for the most interesting looks to provide dramatic differences in scale.
Because Beach Creeper will tolerate heavy pruning, shaping and forming will allow it to fit the most formal and manicured of landscapes without sacrificing its wildlife and environmental benefits. It would make a great substitute for non-native species such as boxwood, indian hawthorn, and natal plum.
Establishment and Care
When planted in the right soil and lighting conditions, the Beach Creeper will establish quickly. Usually after 2-3 months of a routine watering schedule, the Beach Creeper will thrive on natural rain events. After about a year, they will even thrive through long droughts.
Beach Creeper will not require pruning to perform or look its best. However, it will tolerate very hard and frequent pruning for more formal landscapes.
Fertilizer is usually not necessary, especially a year after planting.
Welcome to Wilcox Nursery and Landscape’s plant toughness scale where we will grade retail plants on a scale of 1-10 on their establishment success in the landscape.
A grade of 1 will be the toughest plants to establish and a grade of 10 will be the easiest plants to establish in the landscape. Here we go!
1- Experienced gardener recommended. These plants require optimal conditions, and close monitoring of water and nutrient needs as well as integrated pest management. You’ll need an outstanding gardeners ego and challenging expectations to grow this plant.
2- You’ll basically need to be a pro to grow this one. These plants will need your five senses to be sure they are thriving. Monitor closely and do your research for the best outcome.
3- This one will be a challenge. If you are up for giving your gardening skills a challenge, this is the plant for you. Do your research and make sure the site conditions are optimal.
4- Please consult with a nursery specialist or grower regularly on this plant. You’ll want some advise as time passes, especially in the beginning. Pay close attention to watering needs and adjust accordingly.
5- This plant may pose its trials and tribulations, but chances of success are equally as high. If in the right location, you should expect to monitor this plant every few days.
6- You will need some experience determining watering and nutrient needs, as well as some experience identifying common landscape pests for this one. Be sure to keep some neem oil and copper fungicide on hand and know you also may need to address watering concerns by hand.
7- This plant will work for most! When planted in the right location, this one is sure to thrive!
8- This plant has good roots! Planting this one can be relatively challenge free in most locations, but too wet or too dry and the plant could be doomed.
9- This plant will work for most! If you’re looking for a plant that won’t demand much, then pick this one!
10- This is one tough plant! Try planting this when nothing else seems to work, or for those lacking a green thumb!
And there you have it! Challenge your skills by judging a plant species at the nursery based on this scale!
