Authors: Esen Momol, Gail Hansen, Don Rainey, Claire Lewis, John Bossart,
The state of Florida conducts a landscaping-based water quality and conservation program whose principles offer many avenues for water resources and biodiversity protection within built environments, both of which are emerging challenges in the continually developing Atlanta-Raleigh urban corridor. Florida’s current population of 20 million residents within 7.1 million households not only depletes available water resources and pollutes both surface and ground waters, but also leads to extensive changes in land use and land cover that have negative implications for biodiversity. To address these challenges, which will become even more acute as its population grows to nearly 26 million over the next 25 years, Florida has enacted a statewide program called Florida-Friendly Landscaping™ (FFL). FFL provides educational outreach for science-based landscape design principles, maintenance and Best Management Practices (BMPs). Residential homeowners and commercial landscape workers use these principles and BMPs to create and maintain quality landscapes through appropriate landscape design, which reduces nonpoint source pollution through reduced water, fertilizer and pesticide use. FFL emphasizes landscape designs that call for appropriate plant selection (“right plant – right place”), functional turf use and proper irrigation system design and operation. Appropriate plant selection is the key to FFL’s success in that it promotes biodiversity while using less water, fertilizer and pesticides. An FFL-published plant guide facilitates landscape design and provides recommendations for plants appropriate to each of Florida’s diverse plant hardiness zones. The plant guide includes numerous ornamental and native species, especially those with value to wildlife, particularly birds and pollinating insects such as butterflies. The FFL plant recommendations recognize that turf grass is an appropriate landscaping choice when used in functional areas. FFL promotes environmentally friendly landscape designs that consist of trees, turf grasses, shrubbery, groundcovers, and mulch. When paired with an irrigation system that meets FFL specifications, an established FFL landscape requires only one-quarter the irrigation water as a traditional Florida landscape. Not only does this conserve water, but also reduces potential runoff or leaching of nutrients. UF/IFAS recommendations for proper fertilization rates also reduce potential nutrient losses. Integrated pest management (IPM) strategies that protect beneficial insects and pollinators further promote biodiversity. The University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) administers the FFL program in partnership with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.