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Where flowers and fish coexist

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By MONICA BRANDIES

Tribune correspondent

Published: July 8, 2009

Julia Stack has been the horticulturist at the Florida Aquarium in Tampa from the beginning, planning and planting before the aquarium opened in 1995. She is still planning and planting and her tropical gardens include more than 5,000 plants, 90 percent of them natives.

Born in Norfolk, Va., she received her bachelor's of environmental design in landscape architecture from North Carolina State University. In 2003, she earned a graduate certificate in environmental science and policy from the University of South Florida. Like most of us, she is also learning everyday from hard work and experience.

"I put on a pedometer one day and found I walk about seven miles a day on this job," she said. She didn't mention that the walking is the easiest part.

Her water-saving savvy is an inspiration to home gardeners and landscapers as well, for hardly a drop of rainwater or condensation is wasted here.

She planned, installed, and maintains the 11.4-acre exterior area as an exhibit and stormwater model and research station for the Southwest Florida Water Management District. There are signs with both pictures and words to explain all the important points of stormwater runoff all along the walk from the parking lot to the entrance.

The purification of stormwater runoff can make a life and death difference for the fish and manatees in the Bay.

A great deal of water condenses on the aquarium dome, and Stack climbs to the highest deck, where a 600-gallon tub collects the runoff even when there is no rain. Plumbing takes the water down to each of the individual baskets of ferns and begonias than hang along the ticket area.

"The rain barrels in the rooftop butterfly garden are collecting condensation from A/C units on the south side of the building to water the butterfly garden on that level and the plants in Explore-A-Shore below," she said.

With continual restrictions for water usage in our recent droughts, all of the sprinkler heads on the outdoor gardens were replaced with low-flow watering. The parking area gardens are now maintained by rainfall alone. This is possible by the use of native plants that will survive and thrive in these conditions.

Maintenance is one of her biggest challenges. It isn't easy to work around the visitors and all the animal activity. "But everyone works together to see that all of the life here, including birds, butterflies, fish, people and plants, is protected and enhanced as much as possible," she said.

Neither her enthusiasm nor her energy is diminished. She keeps thinking up new garden ideas and new ways to save both water and plants and to serve the visitors.

Local master gardeners are in awe. Lucy Hoyt volunteers every Wednesday as a gallery host and her knowledge is appreciated by staff and visitors alike. Another master gardener, Beth Alence, said she learned about native plants here.

Today's pick

The golden dewdrop, Duranta species, has lovely clusters of small lavender flowers that attract butterflies followed by golden berries that feed the birds.

The berries, however, are poisonous to people.

The flowers come in flushes, mostly during the warm months with a total of about three months of bloom a year.

This is an evergreen shrub that prefers to grow about 8 feet tall and 6 feet wide, but it will take heavy pruning.

It is also very striking grown as a small tree wherever freezing is not a problem. Mine have never been damaged by frost. They need full sun to bloom well. It has few pest problems and can be started from seeds or cuttings.

There are at least two species and several cultivars available at nurseries. One is the Variegated Duranta repens with white-edged leaves. It grows more slowly and needs less trimming. Another popular choice is the Gold Mound Duranta that has yellow green small leaves and stays low, between 1 and 3 feet tall and wide. It grows slowly the first year or two, faster after that. It does bloom, but rarely. It can be used as an edging, and understory evergreen, or a ground cover and will take light shade to full sun.

Now's the time to ...

•Warn you about the great increase in the price of fertilizer.

I went into shock the last time I bought some. It has come down a bit since then, but it is still very high, so use it carefully.

I don't fertilize any ornamental that is growing well. I do fertilizer edible plants, with the possible exception of herbs, for maximum production.

•I am using up all those bits of fertilizer that have hidden in my storage area. I am also using mulch and worm castings from my worm bins more. That is all free.

•If you know a source of animal manure, tap it now, but let it compost for several months before you put it around your plants. In the meantime, you can mix some of the manure in water, dilute it to the strength of weak tea and water it around the roots. I'd avoid cat and dog poop around edibles but it is fine for ornamentals.

•It is all right to fertilize herbs very lightly if they are not growing well, but overdoing will decrease the flavor. Also be aware that some herbs are going to sulk or die during our summer months, especially parsley, sage, some mints, lavender, lemon balm, thyme and the scented geraniums. Fertilizer won't help and may hurt. Save it for fall for herbs.

Monica Brandies can be reached at monicabrandies @yahoo.com.

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