Newcomer's Gardening Guide

Gulf Coast Gardening for Newcomers

Weather

• USDA Plant Hardiness Zone is 8
• Average yearly rainfall is 62 inches
• First killing frost is usually in mid November
• Last killing frost is usually in mid March
• Average number of chilling hours is 500 to 650

Web Sites of interest

• http://www.edis.ifas.ufl.edu
• http://hort.ifas.ufl.edu
• http://built4u.com/
• http://www.ifas.ufl.edu/~miltonweb/
  

Local Media

• Weekly horticulture column in the Northwest Florida Daily News each Sunday.
• Weekly radio program on horticulture topics on WAAZ 104.7 each Monday and Friday at 5:00 a.m. and 12:00 noon after the local news and weather.
• Weekly horticulture column in the Pensacola News Journal Home Finder each Saturday.
• Weekly horticulture column in the Destin Log each Saturday.
• Weekly horticulture column in the Bay Beacon Express each Wednesday.
• Horticulture column in the Crestview News Leader every Wednesday.
• Horticulture article in bi-monthly issue of Pensacola Today.
  

Soil Sample Kits available at:

• Extension Office in Crestview
• Niceville Garden Center and Western Feed & Seed in Niceville
• The Rabbit Patch in Destin

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