Garden Checklist (for all Southern states except Florida and Texas)
Texas Garden Checklist

Pentas
Also called Egyptian star clusters, pentas thrive in Florida's summers. The tubular, star-shaped flowers in red, lavender, pink, or white are attractive to butterflies and hummingbirds. New Look Hybrids, reaching 12 to 14 inches, are popular dwarf ones. Butterfly Hybrids grow about 18 inches. There are many types of taller pentas, even a new variegated form called 'Stars and Stripes.' Plant pentas in full sun to light shade anytime during the hot months. Fertilize them periodically with an all-purpose product such as Sta-Green 9 Month Indoor/Outdoor Plant Food 18-6-12 or Osmocote Outdoor & Indoor 19-6-12. Water several times a week.

Entire State

• Centipede grass--Give your centipede lawn a late-summer feeding if it looks a little thin or tired. Use a fertilizer such as Sta-Green Centipede Lawn Fertilizer 15-0-15 (or any other product formulated specifically for centipede). Apply according to label directions, or use no more than 6 pounds of fertilizer per 1,000 square feet of lawn.
• Late-summer color--Plant bold flowers or foliage plants that can take heat and humidity. Angelonias, gingers, crinums, melampodiums, torenias, Brazilian plume flowers (jacobinias), coleus, Persian shields, calatheas, shrimp plants, and sweet potato vines are good choices. You can still sow zinnias directly into the ground for use as cut flowers.

North

• Flowers--Cut back annuals now to stimulate new blooms for a big fall show. Reduce stems by one-third on plants that have become overgrown and leggy. Good candidates for trimming include narrow-leaf zinnias, impatiens, and salvias. Fertilize with an all-purpose product such as Osmocote Outdoor & Indoor 19-6-12 or Schultz Multicote All Purpose Outdoor Indoor 18-6-12.

Central and South

• Tomatoes--Plant your fall crop now so they will have the 90 days they need to ripen before cold weather arrives. Tomatoes that can set fruit in the warm days of fall include 'Sun Leaper,' 'Florida 91,' 'Sun Chaser,' 'Solar Set,' and 'Heatwave.' Mulch around the plants to conserve valuable moisture, reduce the soil temperature, and keep roots cool.

South

• Crotons--Plant them in partial shade to full sun. Their colorful foliage adds to the tropical look of the Florida landscape. There are hundreds of types available. Because different ones have different growth rates, it is better to use just one kind en masse as a hedge or an accent planting. Water them every other day for the first month. Then water whenever the leaves begin to droop.