During today’s sustainable living show (11/08/2021) we talked to Georgea Snyder who is a part of the Sustainable Living Project in Tampa. We also talked to Davis Byrkit who is an office manager and community content manager at Wilcox Nursery and Landscape in Largo.
Wilcox Nursery and Landscape has been around for 70 years and specializes in plants that are native to Florida. Byrkit touches on why it’s so important to implement native plants into landscaping and how it is sustainable.
“Wilcox Nursery is a Florida native plant nursery so that’s kind of our specialty,” said Byrkit. “Keeping and promoting those types of plants to the public as opposed to some of the traditional exotic types of plants … we promote sustainable landscapes using native plants to bring in pollinators and wildlife to help give them an area of support.”
Since the surrounding Tampa Bay area has lost much of its habitat to development in recent years, it is exceedingly important to remember the types of plants that are native to the area. The natural flora in the area provides homes for all different types of animal species and these animals help ecosystems to function as they properly should.
Later in the show we talked to Georgea Snyder about the Sustainable Living Project Located in Tampa.
The Sustainable Living Project is an urban farm and education center where people can be immersed in the world of sustainability. The organization implements innovative and traditional technologies that help reduce our impact on the environment.
The site is located on a 1 acre plot that houses 34 grow beds (10 of which are dedicated to Veteran volunteers), 3 sheds, a water catchment patio with solar panels, a greenhouse with aquaponics, a chicken coop, bee hives and a 10 stall compost station.
“Our mission is to use sustainable living practices on our urban farm and at our education center as a model to serve, educate and build our community,” said Snyder. “We offer volunteer opportunities, classes and workshops or just as somewhere to reconnect with the environment.”
As well as providing an environment to help educate people on how to grow food and learn more about sustainable practices, Snyder says the project was created to help provide fresher food to people in the local community who may not have access to fresh fruits and vegetables.
“The project was started in an effort to change what was going into our food banks,” said Snyder. “A lot of processed foods or fresh fruits and vegetables are not in the best shape. So the idea was if we can start to grow it within the city where we have hungry people, we could start to change some of that.”
Snyder emphasized that the Sustainable Living project is a very welcoming environment and they encourage people to come in, learn and have some fun in the process.
You can become a volunteer, attend classes and workshops to learn more about growing food, turning compost, mowing and garden upkeep at the Sustainable Living Project.
