Weekend Gardening: It’s Easy To Attract Hummingbirds
September 3, 2017
by UF/IFAS Extension Service
Few sights are more thrilling in the garden than rapidly moving hummingbirds darting among colorful flowers. Hummingbirds, also known as hummers, are always a wonder to see, and it’s easy to attract them to your garden.
In Florida, we see three different types of hummingbirds, but the most common is the ruby-throated. This feathered jewel is only about three inches long and weighs as little as a single penny.
For their size, hummingbirds have among the largest appetites in the bird world. They feed every 10 or 15 minutes from dawn until dusk. During this period, they eat more than half their weight in food and 8 times their weight in water.
If you’re fascinated by hummingbirds, you probably hang out a feeder or two in the summer to provide them with sugar water. Artificial feeders will attract hummingbirds.
However, feeders should not be the sole source of food provided. The sugar solution may appeal to the hummingbirds’ sweet tooth, but it provides little nourishment. Nectar is much more vital to the hummingbird than just water and sugar. By planting certain flowers and shrubs, home gardeners can provide food and habitat for hummingbirds.
Typical hummingbird flowers are red, have a tubular shape and have no strong scent. But there are several notable exceptions to this general rule. Many plants with red flowers don’t contain very much nectar. Roses, petunias, geraniums and zinnias have brilliant colors but little nectar.
Plants that produce an abundance of flowers over an extended period of time and those that require little care are good choices. Native plants can “fill the bill” where nectar-seekers are concerned and should be used whenever possible.
Perennials that are recommended as nectar sources include butterfly milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa), red basil (Calamintha coccinea), shrimp plant (Justicia brandegeana), cigar plant (Cuphea ignea), firespike (Odontonema stricta), red star hibiscus (Hibiscus coccineus), and obedient plant (Physostegia spp.).
It’s also important to plant a mixture of nectar producing trees, vines and shrubs that have overlapping blooming seasons. This will insure that a continuous source of nectar will be available to hummingbirds throughout the growing season. Some of the species recommended include red buckeye, bottlebrush, firebush (Hamelia patens), wild azalea, trumpet vine, and coral honeysuckle.
Contrary to popular belief, hummingbirds are not strictly nectar feeders. Insects and other invertebrates are the primary source of protein for adult hummingbirds and their young. An adult female can consume up to 2,000 insects per day. Small invertebrates including mosquitoes, gnats, small bees, fruit flies, spiders, caterpillars, aphids, and insects eggs make up the hummingbirds diet. So keep your plants free of pesticides. Pesticides destroy the insect food base vital to hummingbirds and their offspring, and may also contaminate the nectar they drink.
And if you do use artificial feeders, remember that the sugar solutions must be kept fresh. Florida’s hot weather can cause rapid bacterial growth in these feeders and birds that drink contaminated water could die. To avoid this, change the solution every 3 to 5 days. Clean the feeders with hot water and white vinegar. Do not use soap or chlorine bleach.
Century Changes September Council Meetings, Sets Budget Hearings
September 3, 2017
The Century Town Council has changed their meeting scheduled for September to accommodate the Labor Day holiday and budget hearings for the upcoming fiscal year.
The September council meeting schedule will be as follows:
- Monday September 4 — Canceled – Labor Day
- Monday September 11 — 6:50 pm First budget reading
- Monday September 11 — 7:00 pm Council Meeting
- Monday September 18 — 6:50 pm Second budget reading, public hearing
- Monday September 18 — 7:00 pm Council Meeting
All meetings are open to the public and are held at 7995 North Century Boulevard.
NorthEscambia.com file photo, click to enlarge.
Florida Gov’t Weekly Roundup: Scott, Democrats Claim Victories
September 3, 2017
The historic flooding in Texas this week mesmerized people throughout the nation, including Florida Gov. Rick Scott, who dispatched hundreds of search and rescue personnel to the storm-ravaged region.
While the impacts of Hurricane Harvey rightfully garnered most of the attention, the Sunshine State was awash in news.
Scott emerged the victor in a controversial battle over a Central Florida prosecutor and the death penalty. A critical mayor’s race in St. Petersburg injected Democrats with enthusiasm. And the fallout at the Florida Highway Patrol over speeding ticket quotas netted two more victims.
On a more somber note, hundreds of attendees said farewell to Panhandle strawberry farmer and former state Sen. Greg Evers, who captured the hearts of Republicans and Democrats alike during his 15-year tenure in the Legislature.
“This plainspoken man with a Southern drawl was equally at home in work clothes rolling around in the dirt trying to repair a broken tractor or in a suit and highly polished cowboy boots debating on the floor of Florida House or the Senate trying to do the right thing for Florida citizens,” Marion Hammer, a Florida lobbyist for the National Rifle Association and a close friend of Evers, said during a eulogy at his funeral on Tuesday.
COURT BACKS SCOTT IN DEATH PENALTY DISPUTE
With a 5-2 ruling Thursday, the Florida Supreme Court delivered a major victory to Scott in a battle with 9th Judicial Circuit State Attorney Aramis Ayala.
Siding with Scott, the court’s majority decided that the governor did not exceed his authority by stripping the Orange-Osceola prosecutor of death penalty cases.
Scott removed Ayala from handling capital cases earlier this year, shortly after she announced her office would not pursue the death penalty for defendants.
Ayala — the state’s first black elected state attorney — filed a lawsuit against Scott, accusing the governor of usurping her authority by reassigning the cases, including a high-profile case involving accused cop-killer Markeith Loyd.
Scott handed that case and more than two dozen others — including cases involving the recent shooting deaths of two Kissimmee police officers — to Ocala-area State Attorney Brad King, a veteran prosecutor and outspoken defender of the death penalty.
Florida law gives the governor “broad discretion in determining `good and sufficient reason’ for assigning a state attorney to another circuit,” Justice Alan Lawson wrote in a nine-page opinion joined by Chief Justice Jorge Labarga and justices Charles Canady and Ricky Polston. Justice R. Fred Lewis concurred with the result, though he did not sign on to the majority opinion.
Scott’s executive orders reassigning the cases in Ayala’s circuit to King “fall well `within the bounds’ of the governor’s `broad authority,’ ” Lawson wrote.
In a statement issued after the ruling, Ayala said she respects the Supreme Court decision and appreciates the “clarification” from the court. Ayala said she is setting up a “death penalty review panel” to evaluate future first-degree murder cases.
“With implementation of this panel, it is my expectation that going forward all first-degree murder cases that occur in my jurisdiction will remain in my office and be evaluated and prosecuted accordingly,” she said.
But Scott doesn’t appear to be caving, at least for now. His spokesman said the governor won’t stop reassigning capital cases “until State Attorney Ayala fully recants her statement that she will not seek the death penalty in any case.”
TRUMP ALBATROSS IN ST. PETE?
While President Donald Trump may be a boon to conservative candidates, the link with the president likely served as a dead weight for Republican Rick Baker in his bid to oust incumbent St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman.
The battle of the Ricks resulted in a virtual tie Tuesday, even though Kriseman trailed Baker — a former mayor who remained immensely popular — in money and polls throughout the campaign. Both candidates received about 48 percent of the vote, forcing a November runoff because neither topped 50 percent.
Democratic and Republican strategists blamed Baker’s slide on Trump.
Baker’s campaign tried to link Kriseman to a variety of divisive local issues, including a kerfuffle over the replacement of an iconic waterfront pier, a massive sewage link and a pricey new police station.
While those topics may have resonated for many voters, Democratic and Republican political consultants maintained that what likely hurt Baker the most was the Kriseman team’s success in tying Baker to Trump.
Strategists cautioned against overstating the broader significance of Kriseman’s Tuesday comeback in the nonpartisan race.
“But it should be a warning sign. It should be an alert signal. It should cause Republicans to ask themselves, how could a guy who was so beloved in this community (Baker) not be able to turn that on again,” Republican strategist Rick Wilson said.
Kriseman’s success could be a model for progressives and Democrats going into next year’s elections, Progress Florida Executive Director Mark Ferullo said.
“It’s going to validate that strategy going into 2018, to make Trump an anvil to hang around the neck of our opponents,” said Ferullo, whose organization endorsed Kriseman.
NOT A GOLDEN TICKET FOR THESE GUYS
Fallout continued this week in a controversy about whether Florida Highway Patrol troopers received quotas for writing traffic tickets.
The agency has maintained there are no quotas, but the controversy has now led to the departure or suspension of three high-ranking agency officials.
A three-day suspension without pay of Chief Mark Brown from his $118,000-a-year position as the North Florida operations regional commander was announced this week as the FHP said it had completed a review of the quota issue and is enacting new guidelines.
In a letter Wednesday to Brown outlining the suspension, FHP Director Gene Spaulding noted Brown sent an email to subordinate commanders on July 28 “encouraging 2 citations per hour” from troopers working the Statewide Overtime Action Response program aimed at curbing speeders.
“Following a review, it was discovered that other supervisors under your command forwarded similar directives and, as we had previously discussed, it is not appropriate to request that a trooper write a specific number of citations,” Spaulding wrote.
In addition to Brown’s suspension, an FHP release noted that an early retirement request from Lt. Col. Michael Thomas — submitted Monday — was accepted.
Thomas, the second-highest ranking officer in the FHP and a 30-year veteran, had acknowledged he wrote an email in May encouraging troopers to write at least two tickets per hour as part of the statewide program to curb speeding. The email said, in part, “so we can encourage our members to maintain our 2.0 citations per hour ratio, as we attempt to provide a safer driving environment for Floridians.”
Thomas’ resignation followed the resignation of Maj. Mark Welch, a troop commander who oversaw eight counties near Tallahassee and had served the state for more than 35 years. Welch announced his retirement after acknowledging he also sent a July 28 memo to troopers that they interpreted as a mandate for a ticket quota.
STORY OF THE WEEK: Siding with Gov. Rick Scott, the Florida Supreme Court decided that the governor did not exceed his authority by removing State Attorney Aramis Ayala from death penalty cases.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK: “If they can win here and they win the Frank Artiles seat, the Florida Democrats are going to be a totally new party.” Barry Edwards, a Democratic strategist and radio-show host, on a virtual tie between St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman and opponent Rick Baker in Tuesday’s mayoral election.
by Dara Kam, The News Service of Florida
Mostly Sunny, Slight Chance Of Rain Today
September 3, 2017
Sunday: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms after 1pm. Mostly sunny, with a high near 89. Calm wind becoming northeast around 5 mph.
Sunday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 68. Southeast wind around 5 mph becoming calm.
Labor Day: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly sunny, with a high near 89. Calm wind becoming southeast around 5 mph in the afternoon.
Monday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms after 1am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 71. South wind around 5 mph becoming calm.
Tuesday: A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 87. Calm wind becoming south around 5 mph in the afternoon.
Tuesday Night: A 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 71. South wind around 5 mph becoming calm in the evening.
Wednesday: Showers and thunderstorms likely. Cloudy, with a high near 80. Light west wind increasing to 5 to 10 mph in the morning. Chance of precipitation is 60%.
Wednesday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 61. North wind 5 to 10 mph.
Thursday: Sunny, with a high near 82.
Thursday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 58.
Friday: Sunny, with a high near 82.
Friday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 62.
Saturday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 85.
Road Construction Remains On Hold Through Monday
September 3, 2017
To promote safety and reduce congestion over the Labor Day weekend, the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) has suspending normal road construction activities on all major roads in Northwest Florida. There will be no work on state roads requiring lane restrictions from Friday through Monday. Work on projects requiring lane closures will resume Tuesday, September 5. All major roads will be open to normal traffic.
If an emergency situation occurs during holiday weekend that requires a lane closure, repairs will continue until that lane is reopened to the traveling public and all safety issues related to the traveling public have been addressed.
Motorists are reminded to use caution while traveling through work zones around barricades and equipment on current projects. Travelers can access Florida’s 511 service from cell phones, landlines, and at www.FL511.com to receive updates on travel in the area.
UWF Gets Late Stops To Preserve 20-16 Season-Opening Road Win
September 3, 2017
On a night when the UWF offense wasn’t as prolific as it had been a year ago, the defense came up huge with multiple ‘bend but don’t break’ stops and two turnovers to secure the season-opening 20-16 road win over Missouri S&T at Allgood-Bailey Stadium Saturday.
The Argonauts got a huge break at the start of the fourth quarter when S&T kick returner Rod Chapman fumbled a punt that gave UWF the ball at the 19-yard line. Three plays later Mike Beaudry connected with sophomore Gage Krull inside the five before Krull carried a defender into the end zone that gave the Argos a 20-13 lead.
The Miners got four first downs on the ensuing drive but were stood up inside the 10 and had to settle for a 25-yard Ben Styron field goal – his third of the game.
Both teams traded 3-and-out possessions before the Miners made a push across midfield into UWF territory. Sitting at the 44, Tyler Swart went for a home run ball but graduate transfer Josh Marshall went up and intercepted it at the eight.
The Miners got the ball back again 59 seconds later and drove to the 8-yard line with less than a minute to play. Deshawn Jones found a seam up the middle and was hit at the three, where he launched towards the goal line but saw the ball slip out of his hands inside the one when sophomore Martes Wheeler hit him, allowing sophomore Trent Archie to recover it for the Argos and clinch the victory.
UWF (1-0) finished with 265 yards of total offense. Beaudry, a redshirt sophomore who missed last season while rehabbing a foot injury, was 20-of-31 for 192 yards and a pair of touchdown passes in his first college game. Sophomore Grey Jackson was 5-of-8 for 32 yards.
The Argonauts rushed for just 41 yards, with sophomore Chris Schwarz gaining 34 on 19 carries. He had 10 yards on five trips with a 1-yard score late in the first quarter that put the Argonauts ahead 6-0.
On defense, UWF sacked S&T’s Tyler Swart five times and limited the rushing attack to 65 yards. Wheeler led the defense with nine tackles and junior Marvin Conley added eight.
Missouri S&T (0-1) had 422 yards with 357 through the air, but committed three turnovers in its final five possessions.
The Miners held their only lead at 7-6 following a 65-yard Swart touchdown pass early in the second quarter. The Argos regained the lead with six seconds to play in the half when Beaudry found Rodney Coates in the end zone on a 25-yard pass that ended a drive that covered 75 yards on seven plays in 1:45.
UWF will return home for three-consecutive games at Blue Wahoos Stadium, beginning next Saturday, Sept. 9 against No. 24 Midwestern State (1-0).
Three Consecutive Life Sentences For Child Sexual Abuse
September 3, 2017
An Escambia County man has been sentenced to three consecutive life sentences for child sexual abuse.
Brian Lee Brown was convicted of capital sexual battery on a victim under 12 years of age and three counts of lewd or lascivious battery on a victim 12 to 15 years of age. Circuit Judge John Miller sentenced Miller to three three consecutive life sentences for each sexual battery county and three 15 year sentences consecutive to each other for the lewd or lascivious battery counts.
In September 2016, a child disclosed that he was sexually abused by Brown over a seven year period.
Wahoos Win Over Jacksonville
September 3, 2017
In his sixth start since spending a month on the disabled list for shoulder tightness, Pensacola Blue Wahoos starting pitcher Austin Ross finally looks 100 percent healthy.
The 29-year-old Ross allowed one run in six innings to snap Pensacola’s two game losing streak with a, 3-1, victory Saturday over the second half Southern Division champion Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp at the Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville.
Ross improved to 9-0 with a 1.87 ERA, allowing just five hits, no walks and striking out six.
Ross loaded the bases with one out in the second inning but struck out the final two batters of the inning to escape that scoring threat and blanked Jacksonville the first five innings.
However, with two outs in the sixth inning Jumbo Shrimp right fielder John Norwood his 16th double of the year. Jacksonville third baseman David Vidal followed with a single to center to drive in Norwood to trail Pensacola, 3-1. On the play, Blue Wahoos catcher Joe Hudson threw Vidal out trying to take second base on the throw home.
The Blue Wahoos scored all its runs in the third inning benefitting from two Jacksonville errors to go ahead, 3-0. Pensacola shortstop Blake Trahan reached second on a throwing error by Jacksonville’s Vidal. Trahan scored the first run when Jumbo Shrimp first baseman Justin Bour committed an error on a grounder by Pensacola third baseman Arismendy Alcantara. Pensacola went up, 2-0, when second baseman Shed Long doubled to drive in Ross. Guerrero then grounded out to third, allowing Alcantara to score for a 3-0 Pensacola lead.
Long was 3-for-3 in the game with the double, walk and RBI to lead the Blue Wahoos. He is 5-for-11 in the first three games of the five-game series against Jacksonville with two RBIs and a run scored.
Pensacola reliever Zack Weiss entered the game in the seventh inning and threw two scoreless innings, striking out four. Weiss has now thrown 6.2 shutout innings and has not allowed a hit, while striking out four over his last four appearances.
Blue Wahoos closer Tanner Rainey picked up his third save in his last three appearances. Like Weiss, the flame throwing Rainey has not allowed a run or hit in his last five appearances, getting 12 strikeouts in 5.2 innings.
Jacksonville starter Trevor Richards, picked up the loss to fall to 5-7 on the year, but also pitched a good game. The 24-year-old righty worked six innings, allowing three unearned runs, five hits, walked none and struck out seven.
Jacksonville leads the series, 2-1.
Because Pensacola won the first half, its Southern League record fourth in a row, the two teams meet again Sept. 6 at Blue Wahoos Stadium in a best of five series in the Southern Division playoffs.
Only the Tennessee Smokies have also won four straight halves between 2009 and 2011.
George W. Phillips
September 3, 2017
George W. “Bill” Phillips was born in Springfield, MO on September 13, 1929, to Wade and Thelma Phillips. He was preceded in death by his parents and brothers, Herbert, Wade, Jr., and Harry.
He leaves his loving wife of 42 years, Sandra of Pensacola; daughter, Nancy of Seattle, WA; and sons, Duane (Leah) of San Diego, CA and Gerald of Biloxi MS. He also leaves three grandchildren, Chloe, Gavin, and Riley whom he loved dearly; along with many nieces and nephews, including an Aspect Exchange student Svetlana originally from Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan who now lives in London, UK.
In 1947, he joined the U.S. Navy and served 21 years in the data processing field. In September 1954, he was part of the first contingent of Navy programmers assigned to the newly formed National Security Agency where he worked as a Programmer/Methods Analyst in the Cryptology Branch. His most memorable and rewarding assignment was serving Fleet Air Reconnaissance Squadron One (VQ-1) September 1959 to March 1963. He was responsible for the setup and operation of the first Ground Data Reduction Center (GDRC) in Navy Air Reconnaissance. In addition to his duties in the GDRC, he was assigned as a flight crew member on WV-2Qs and earned his Aircrewman wings from VQ1. He retired from Commander Naval Air Forces Pacific (COMNAVAIRPAC) as a Chief Data Processing Technician (DPC).
Upon his retirement from the Navy, he served the next 21 years as a Federal Civil Servant. He worked for Army Aviation Systems Command as a Computer Specialist. His primary assignment was Project Officer for installations, operations and programming an IBM 360 Systems aboard the USNS Corpus Christi Bay stationed at Vung Tau, Vietnam. He served two 3-month tours in Vietnam in 1969 and 1970. From 1971 to 1980 he served as Director, Data Automation Division, Vandenberg Air Force Base, Lompoc, CA. For his service, he was awarded the Air Force Meritorious Civilian Service Award. He retired from Federal Civil Service at NETPMSA, Saufley Field, Pensacola FL in February 1989.
Funeral services will be held at 10 a.m. on Friday, September 8, 2017 at Faith Chapel Funeral Home North with Father Pat, Nativity of Our Lord Catholic Church officiating.
Interment will follow at Barrancas National Cemetery at NAS Pensacola, Florida.
Many thanks to Sacred Heart Hospital’s Intensive Care Unit doctors and nurses for their care and support.
In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to the Navy Marine Corps Relief Society. Contributions can be mailed to: Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society, Attn: Development, 875 N. Randolph St. Ste 225, Arlington, VA 22203 or the charity of your choice.
Faith Chapel Funeral Home North is entrusted with the arrangements.
More Charges Filed Against Cantonment Man That Crashed Into Sacred Heart ER
September 2, 2017
A Cantonment man is facing additional charges for crashing his Jeep into the Sacred Heart Hospital Emergency Room.
Pensacola Police said 25-year Kevin Pryor of Cantonment purposely drove his Jeep through the doors of the ER after a domestic violence incident in Cantonment. Pryor’s girlfriend, who was a passenger in the Jeep at the time, said the incident was purposeful.
She told police that Pryor said, “I’m going to go through the doors” before driving into the ER. Witness said Pryor exited the seat of the vehicle after the crash and began to act erratically and tried to run into another patient’s room.
Video surveillance showed that the crash slowed the vehicle, but Pryor purposefully accelerated further into the building, according to an arrest report. Damage to the building and two wheel chairs was estimated at $80,000.
Pryor’s girlfriend said the couple had smoked marijuana prior to the incident. Blood tests show Pryor had multiple controlled substances in his system, including cocaine, methamphetamine and marijuana, the arrest report states.
Pensacola Police charged Pryor with driving under influence with property damage and felony criminal mischief with property damage greater than $1,000. He was released from the Escambia County Jail on a $3,000 bond.
Pryor was previous arrested by the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office for a domestic violence incident in Cantonment. He was charged with battery by strangulation and released on a $5,000 bond before being re-arrested by Pensacola Police.
The victim told deputies that she and Pryor were involved in a verbal argument when he became agitated and grabbed her by her arm. Pryor then took her car keys and attempted to get the victim into a vehicle, according to an arrest report. She said she struggled on the ground with Pryor at which time he choked her until she lost consciousness.
She told deputies she agreed to get into the Jeep with Pryor to calm him down, and he drove from Cantonment to Sacred Heart Hospital and through the doors of the emergency room.
The victim, according to an arrest report, told deputies that she believed Pryor was possibly trying to harm himself and her by driving through the building.
Pictured: A Cantonment man crashed his Jeep into the Sacred Heart Emergency Room August 17 in what police said was a domestic violence incident. Photos courtesy WEAR 3 for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
