Beautiful pond!

Okay, "You can't grow Diffenbachia outdoors in Florida. It won't take the heat"

#1. Hammering a nail into the trunk of a citrus tree will make the tree produce fruits. I've heard this from several folks.
#2 Spanish moss kills trees.
Felix

You shouldn't give up on the gardenia and rip it's ugliness out because someday you will find the magic combination of care and coddling and it will bloom.

That was a myth. At least in my yard.

Tampaart,
Fawnridge,

Not knowing too much about Florida gardening myths, I am afraid I can't play the game. I just like to say, to both of you.
WOW! You have dream places!!!

Silvia

Bananas in zone 9 that form fruit in the fall will not ripen.

We're enjoying our first bunch now, which formed back in September, then stopped growing during the cool months, and finally plumped up in March

John

Excellent folks, keep 'em coming!

I was told by a "certain renowned expert" from the University of Miami (UM) that under no circumstance could I successfully grow mangoes in Tampa! Ha! Seven trees, five varieties later who is the expert now?

{{gwi:844514}}

absolutely anything that involves the phrase "requires full sun"... (unless it ends with "to kill you plant most effectively.)

Hang a dead snake on a fence to bring rain. That one's from Texas, which may be why it doesn't work here. Yes, I've tried!

"You can't grow olives in Florida". This is an olive farm in Citra (near Ocala) where I bought my 9 trees from last year. I live near DeLand, Central FL.

Mine more often involve old wive's tales about animals and birds...like you can't put a baby bird back in the nest because the parents will smell the human scent and will abandon it. (Wrong. Birds have no sense of smell for the most part and don't care if you've touched the baby. They're just happy to have it back safely.)

And coral snakes have rear fangs and have to chew to inject venom. Wrong. They have short, fixed fangs in the front of their mouths and even a slight scratch from one can cause serious problems.

My grandmother was told she couldn't possibly grow a bird of paradise in Jacksonville, but she planted it any way (from a floral arrangement), and it grew for years and years in her backyard, until it was maybe fifteen feet around and taller than my head. She had a special tent made to cover it in the winter, and sometimes it would have 50 or more "birds" on it. Of course, she was surely an exception, as that isn't likely to happen for many Jacksonville residents. But it just goes to show that no one has ALL the answers.

This is an interesting thread. Can't wait to see more posts.

Marcia

Hi
One of the most totally wrong that i got from a neighbor 30 years ago. "You can't have a water garden in florida . You'll be up to your elbows in snakes , alligators,mosquitoes before you get back into the house "lol Funny but these are the one things that have NOT been a problem. Raccoons ,herons,dogs cats even kids he didn't mention at all.
remember my aunt warning me about the evils of Florida.
"Nobody lives there but criminals and perverts" There may be a bit of truth in that one lol gary

From a friend in Minnasota; in the spring, beat your fruit trees with a baseball bat to ensure fruiting.
I finally figured out that one needen't beat the tree - simply shake the limbs to cause pollen to fly and pollenate the flowers. MY suggestion: rent a beehive. cora

"Spanish moss and airplants kill trees."

I'm so sick of seeing that piece of ignorance over and over and over again that I can't even bear to discuss it....
Avalon

" Better cut down all your palmetto trees because that's where we get palmetto bugs and I certainly don't want them in my house . Well , it has the same name , doesn't it ? "

Actual phone call I took from a client in Deltona .

I have three -
1. Don't grow bromeliads, mosquitoes breed in them.
2. The only way to get Crape Myrtles to bloom is to cut them back HARD every year.
3. You can't grow roses in Florida.

nova

Here is an opposite posting that really puts newbies in a state off shear panic.

1. In the 1950's we rarely ever killed spiders in our house, in fact my Mom would love to see the daddy long legs cause they ate the most bugs.

2. We always allowed a few geckos to live inside as well, since very few if any people had air conditioners and everyone had a screen door so to let the breezes in we were always fighting those flying palmetto bugs (with gecko assistance), who, by the way lived mainly in the coconut palms all around everyone's home.

3. Way back then everyone knew and grew key lime trees, papayas, coconuts, mangoes and my favorite mulberries...

*Apples are impossible to grow in any part of FLorida
~Apples are not impossible to grow in Florida, and many varieties have been known to grow as far south as Zone 10, around Ft. Lauderdale. Same thing with Weeping Willow.

"No one who lives in Florida is actually from Florida..."

Okay, that 'may' be partially true. I wasn't born here, but in my heart I am a Florida Native! :-)

LOL! saintpfla, My MIL was born and raised in Punta Gorda. When she moved from Jacksonville to Hollywood, she went immediately to get her voters'registration changed. The registrar took one look at MIL's old registration and burst out laughing. Mil drew herself up and demanded to know what was so funny. The registrar replied that she had worked that precinct for 30 years and that MIL was the FIRST native Floridian she'd ever registered. I'm glad she didn't object when her son married a yankee! cora

grits will kill fire ants

Here is a link that might be useful: grits

"No one who lives in Florida is actually from Florida..."

I hear that a lot too! I'm a native Floridian (5th generation) and people are always surprised to hear that, not sure why though. Interesting posts here, I've heard a few of these in my lifetime. It's nice to know that most have no basis of truth to them at all. :)

I didn't know you could grow olives in Florida - does anyone know if they will grow in Zone 10? Beautiful garden pics too!

Louise