09/30/2026
🌳🥑 Let’s Make Bay County a Fruit-Tree County
Today my son and I planted another fruit tree.
This time, we’re planting a Bacon avocado right here in the Cove area of Panama City, Bay County, Florida. 🥑🌱
And honestly… I think we need to start something.
Let’s get Bay County planting fruit trees.
Think about it.
You can plant a tree one time, take care of it, and years from now that same tree can still be standing there producing food.
My son and I have planted many fruit trees together. We’ve watched them grow, and we’ve actually been able to walk outside and eat fruit from trees that we planted with our own hands.
There is something special about that.
It’s more than gardening.
It’s teaching our kids where food comes from.
It’s getting outside.
It’s putting our hands in the dirt.
It’s creating something instead of always buying something.
And it’s planting something that can potentially outlive us.
Imagine if families all across Bay County, Florida started planting just one fruit tree every year.
Panama City.
Panama City Beach.
Callaway.
Lynn Haven.
Southport.
Youngstown.
Springfield.
And all the communities in between.
Imagine thousands of homes with oranges, satsumas, figs, blueberries, peaches, mulberries, loquats, pears, persimmons, bananas, and other fruit-producing plants growing in their yards.
Instead of walking outside and seeing nothing but grass…
we could walk outside and find food.
🌳 Food for our families.
🌱 Shade for our homes.
🥭 Fruit for our kids.
🐝 Habitat for pollinators.
❤️ Memories with our children.
👨👦 And something we can pass down.
UF/IFAS notes that many types of fruit can be grown successfully in Florida home landscapes, but choosing varieties suited to your local climate is important.
And yes, we’re experimenting with an avocado here in Bay County. Avocados need the right variety and location, especially because cold temperatures can be a challenge farther north in Florida. UF/IFAS specifically recommends paying attention to cold tolerance, drainage, and site selection when growing avocados in Florida.
But that’s part of the fun.
Learn. Plant. Grow. Try again.
I don’t think every yard needs to become a farm.
I just think we should start looking at our yards differently.
That empty corner?
Maybe that’s a fig tree.
That sunny spot?
Maybe that’s a peach tree.
That fence line?
Maybe blueberries.
And that little patch of ground your kids want to dig in?
Let them dig.
Plant something with them.
Because one day they may be grown, and that tree will still be there.
And they might bring their own kids over and say…
“My dad and I planted this tree.”
That’s the kind of legacy I’m interested in.
So here’s my challenge to Bay County, Florida:
🌳 Plant one fruit tree.
Then post a picture and tag somebody else in Bay County to plant one too.
Let’s see how many fruit trees we can get growing around our community.
Let’s grow food.
Let’s grow families.
Let’s grow memories.
Let’s grow Bay County.
🥑🌳❤️
