Fossil Park Neighborhood

YARD OF THE MONTH

Feb 01, 2005

Our October/November Yard of the Month is the lovely home of Peggy Coker at 421 74th Avenue N. Peggy?’s daughter, Kathy, and Kathy?’s children, Daniel and Ashley, also live here. Peggy has lived at her home on 74th Avenue since 1972. She says she feels like a native Floridian, although she originally moved to Florida in 1952.
Her attractive lawn and garden always looks neat and well maintained. The St. Augustine grass was installed in the ?‘80?’s and still looks very healthy. The plants and grass are watered by a sprinkler system with shallow wells. She uses a lawn service for fertilizing and pest control. Her son-in-law does a great job on the lawn maintenance. Peggy does a lot of the gardening work with the help of the whole family, of course. Peggy finds gardening to be a very relaxing activity for herself.
Scalloped popcorn edging borders the planting areas and the garden lights come-on automatically at night (as long as the day wasn?’t too dark and overcast, Peggy said). Two Washingtonia Palms by the street were here when she moved in and are at least 50 foot tall. They are impossible to trim because of the height, so on windy days the dead fronds can blow-off anywhere.
A nicely trimmed Ligustrum tree is located near the west corner of the house which adds ?“visual?” width to the house and a good focal point. There are baskets of plants hanging from the tree as well as a few birdhouses. The birdhouses are for smaller birds and we don?’t seem to have many of them nesting in our neighborhoods. None of the birdhouses were ?“occupied?” at this time.
The Daylilies by the front porch bloom mostly yellow in the spring. Gerber Daisies are growing under the Pgymy Date Palm, where they have enough sun to do well. Small items of yard art and little figurines dot the garden area, with little cows, a bunny, a butterfly, and lots more set-around. A statuary fountain adds the sound of moving water between the Caladiums and Compact Firebush. Pittisporum encircle the Ligustrum tree, Gold Dust Crotons and a Copper-plant grow next to the house.
Peggy?’s Rose garden is on the east side of the house. Along the west side of the house, there is Hibiscus, Shrimp Plants, Mexican Petunias, and Azaleas.
The back yard is really a ?“gardener?’s garden ?“ area. The Redbud tree has at least a dozen hanging baskets dangling from its branches. The baskets are full of Orchids, Bromeliads, and Hoya?’s. There is even a Rain Lily in bloom hanging from the tree. A Parakeet/Orchid house is about 12ft. by 12ft. and is also full of more orchids, bromeliads, and air plants mounted on driftwood. The back wood fence is lined with potted plants of many varieties, including Amazon Lily. The big Oak tree casts enough shade for all these shade-loving plants. Crotons, Arbicolas, and many other tropical plants can be found in the back yard.
Thank you to Peggy and family for maintaining such a nice yard in our neighborhood. Congratulations on having the Yard of the Month and enjoy the gift certificate from Dolins Garden Center when it comes time to plant some more flowers in your yard.
Yard of the Month Committee