Bradenton FL:Important Websites
National Arbor Day Foundation
The mission of the National Arbor Day Foundation is to inspire people to plant, nurture, and celebrate trees. The FOundation envisions a world where trees and forests are abundant, healthy, and sustainable, and highly valued by all people. Its goals include:
1) Building an organization of dedicated members who lead the way, and help individual citizens plant and care for trees to enrich the environment.
2) Enhancing the extent, health, and care, of the urban and community forests where we live.
3) Advancing rural land conservation and forest stewardship through the planting and care of trees. 4) Helping protect and improve the global environment by promoting rain forest preservation, urban and community forestry, and tree planting throughout the world.
5) Educating and inspiring young people and adults to understand, plant, and care for trees to build a better future.
6) Expanding the awareness of the need for tree planting and care by increasing publicity about Arbor Day and the number of people who celebrate Arbor Day.
7) Managing Arbor Day Farm to support Foundation conferences and education programs, and to serve as a model of environmental stewardship.
International Society of Arboriculture
The International Society of Arboriculture is a professional organization dedicated to continuing education for arborists, to tree care research, and to serving tree care consumers around the world. The Florida chapter of the ISA shares this same dedication, with a further commitment to serving the needs particular to Florida's professional arborists and tree care consumers.
The International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) created this site to provide the general public with quality arboriculture, or tree care, related information. ISA’s mission is to educate and help the public acquire an understanding of the importance and value of proper tree care. ISA focuses on networking and communicating with others from throughout the world to collaborate and obtain the latest researched, quality information on arboriculture-related news, techniques, and technology. This webpage is an excellent source to attain information on specific topics, to answer questions, and to locate an ISA Certified Arborist near you.
This site was created to provide information, research, and networking for people working in urban and community forestry. For the researcher, the arborist, the community group leader, the volunteer - our purpose is to inform, educate, and inspire. Its mission statement is to raise awareness and raise support for healthy urban forests.
Keep Manatee Beautiful, Inc.
Keep Manatee Beautiful is inspiring a sense of community involvement through its commitment to making Manatee County a cleaner and more beautiful environment. The organization was established in Spring 1991 as an affiliate of Keep America Beautiful. Mission statement: Keep Manatee Beautiful is dedicated to litter prevention, beautification and environmental improvement. Email keep@manateebeautiful.com for more information.
Keep America Beautiful, Inc.
Keep America Beautiful, Inc., founded in 1953, is the nation's largest volunteer-based community action organization dedicated to litter and graffiti prevention, beautification, waste minimization and community improvement. Keep America Beautiful involves millions of volunteers each year in hands-on community improvement activities, where they learn how to take personal responsibility for improving their local community environments and their quality of life. We teach young people how to care for, preserve, and protect our environment.
Manatee County Extension Service
The extension service is an educational program within county government which brings the resources to solve local problems, provide educational opportunities, promote economic enhancement and development and improve the quality of life for all citizens. The Extension Service is a partnership involving the United States Department of Agriculture, the University of Florida as Florida's land-grant university, and Manatee County government. A land-grant university has a special mission to serve every citizen in every corner of every state.
National Register of Big Trees
"Let every tree lover, every forester, every lumberman rally…to fight for the preservation of our biggest tree specimens." Joseph Stearns, Forester, 1940. American Forests' National Register of Big Trees is the result of this rallying cry. Since 1940, American Forests has documented the largest known specimens of every native and naturalized tree in the United States. The largest tree of its species in the country is the National Champion. National champion trees capture our imagination for their size and strength, however, there's more to a champion than just its size—they are symbols of all the good work trees do for the quality of the environment and our quality of life. Big trees provide more cooling shade and more places for wildlife to perch and nest. They sequester more carbon dioxide, trap more pollutants, and purify more water.
University of Florida Master Gardner Program
Countless homeowners contact their county Extension offices for answers to their gardening questions. But with so many inquries, how can county Extension agents keep up? The answer lies in a specialized volunteer training program--the Florida Master Gardener Program. The Florida Master Gardener Program recruits individuals who are interested in gardening and enjoy sharing what they learn with others. Participants complete a 50-hour (or longer) training course sponsored by the University of Florida. In return for their training, these new Master Gardeners serve 75 volunteer hours within the first year of their certification, per the statewide program bylaws (PDF 57KB). Certified Master Gardeners educate Floridians and provide research-based information about gardening--America's most popular pastime.
Model Language for water conservation ordinance This document is developed to help local governments develop a green building ordinance.
Model language using Florida-friendly landscaping(developer/HOA deed restrictions)
The purpose of these regulations is to establish minimum standards for the development, installation, and maintenance of landscape areas without inhibiting creative landscape design, construction and management
University of Florida’s invasive species List
This document is a result of a joint project between Florida Yards & Neighborhoods and the Conservation Clinic at the University of Florida’s Levin College of Law. It contains a practical framework of model conservation restrictive covenants, which developers or associations may selectively insert in the governing documents of their community associations. The model language offered is intended to be used by developers as guiding principles in the writing process of their own restrictive covenants.
Non-native species listed as invasive and not recommended for this area.
Assessment of non-native plants in Florida’s natural areas.
Identify the Florida-friendly plants, including Florida’s native plants, that will work in your yard or landscape design. The database contains nearly 380 trees, palms, shrubs, flowers, groundcovers, grasses and vines that are recommended by University of Florida/IFAS horticulture experts. The plants included in the database are available at nurseries throughout Florida.
