Rmplmnz

Ed, love your enthusiasm!....Hate to temper it..but Spring Hill is a little cold for bananas..

We typically experience less effects from the cold than our friends as far south as Ft. Meyers due to our proximity to the bay. Our micro climate can be 5 to 10 degrees higher than theirs and this is significant. Being near the bay..the higher water temperature helps with the air temperature.

Many of the members have been to our garden and toured through the West Indian Avocados (typically only grown in South Florida) and other cold sensitive tropical plants that survived the two brutal contiguous winters (2009-2010 & 2010 - 2011).

We are located on the Peninsula within "Hillsborough Bay" (the smaller peninsula, the larger one is Pinellas County including St. Petersburg):

http://www.keithmaps.com/images/FISHING_F115.jpg

http://geology.com/satellite/cities/...lite-image.jpg

http://eoimages.gsfc.nasa.gov/images...000306_lrg.jpg

Tampa Bay, the largest open-water estuary in Florida, extends approximately 35 miles inland from the Gulf of Mexico and is 5 to 10 miles wide along most of its length. Four segments make up the open-water section. Hillsborough Bay, the smallest of these segments, receives runoff from a large portion of the city of Tampa. The Hillsborough and Alafia Rivers drain into Hillsborough Bay, as do a number of smaller tributaries. Middle Tampa Bay receives runoff from the Little Manatee River and drainage from smaller tributaries along the Hillsborough and Pinellas County coastlines. Old Tampa Bay receives runoff from portions of Clearwater, St. Petersburg, and Tampa. Lower Tampa Bay, which has the largest volume of the four segments, connects the mouth of the bay to the Gulf of Mexico. The Manatee River, which receives runoff from the city of Bradenton, flows into the southern portion of this bay segment.

Tampa Bay Watershed - Hillsborough River, Alafia River, Manatee River - Florida's Water: Ours to Protect