HI, Nancy!
There is a loose knit group of us avid gardeners in Jacksonville - just up the road a few minutes from St. Augustine. We all met right here in this forum and have had several swaps and a great day trip to a local day lily "farm". Our zone is 9 - couldn't say if that's 9A or 9B. Stay in touch here, we have lots of knowledgable gardeners and we probably will be having another swap before the cold weather sets in. You won't want to miss that! St. Augustine is a most creative city in addition to it's history. I think you'll enjoy it a lot! cora

Hi Nancy,

I live in Palm Coast just south of SA by about 20 miles. I actually go there to shop at Target. (for now anyway - we're getting our own next month!) Lovely city and of course people garden here! Come on up some weekend and we'll get together. Feel free to email me if I can answer any specific questions for you. Sometimes it works thru "my page" sometimes not. Email me at tonkawatts at yahoo dot com. You do know that the jobs will not pay what you get in south Florida right? But it all works out in the end. Housing is much cheaper here.

Oh - and I am in zone 9a.

Betsy

Nancy, St. Augustine is a beautiful historical, coastal town with so much going on! Great beaches, shops, and Art. It is very quaint. On my visit there I recall some absolutely stunning cottage gardens, it is like a different place in time. The restaurants are fab! Had some of the best eats when we were there. The night comes alive with horse drawn carriages and the haunted tours that are loads of fun. Visiting the historical fort is very interesting too. I would count it a place I would love to live!

Count me in too~~~~

I'm on the Southside, right off of Phillips and Race Track Road. I work in Ponte Vedra and we drive to SA all the time :) only 20 minutes for us!

We just moved here about 8 months ago. So far the only growing i'm doing is a few roses, but they aren't so happy - all though blooming their fool heads off even leaf less from the BS.

Here is a link that might be useful: My Floriday Flowers

I live in St. Augustine and I have lived here for 34 years. I live east of US 1. Gardening can be quite different from one part of town to the other. I grow many tropicals but I live 3 blocks from the Intracoastal Waterway. If you live on the island or near the intracoastal you can do most 9B plants. I have a huge avocado tree in my yard that I have been growing for 20 years and sensitive palms. I also grow lots of plumeria. I have friends that live 5 minutes from me by car west of US 1 and they get frost almost every year. I rarely do get frost in the winter. The further inland you go the colder it get. If you have other questions, let me know. My temperatures tend to be more like Daytona than Jacksonville in the winter. St. Augustine is an awesome city and a great place to garden.

I lived in St. Augustine for a couple years. Of all the places that I've lived, including Charleston, SC, St. Augustine is my most favorite city. It has all sorts of things to keep you busy and happy. There fishing, eating, learning, shopping and fishing!

Thank you for all of your wonderful responses. I agree Cindee. I won an award in Jacksonville in June and we decided to spend a couple of days in St. Augustine. We fell in love. It felt like a different world than S. Florida. People were nice, the pace slower, etc.
rdean, it's funny. We have seriously considered Charleston too. But we have really narrowed our sites on St. Augustine.
Lou, it's funny that you have so much warmer temps than nearby. But the same thing happens here I guess. Further west gets colder. We only live a mile from the ocean.
Grasshoppersilks, my passion is roses, so it's nice to hear that you are growing them there even if they aren't doing well. It is a tough time of year for them. The rose you have pictured looks great.
Cora and Betsy, I will definitely get in touch. Already I feel it is the right move. You are all so nice. Thanks so much. How much of a hike is it to Jax for work at rush hour? How far is Daytona?
Nancy

Having lived south of Jax (Orange Park) for 9 yrs. and doing the hr. down to St. Aug every 3-4 wks., I'd move there in a heartbeat! (We're looking at St. John's Co. for property for retirement in the next few yrs. -- almost bought 2 + 1/2 acres 20 mins. from old town St. Aug last year!) I'm a transplanted FL MG and I WANT to live in/near St. Aug (even though all four adult kids & 4 young gk's are here in the Houston area.) Oh, if you can move there, GO! It is one of the most special places on the planet. . . .

I live in Jacksonville and work in St Augustine and the commute takes only 30 minutes. I love it there and have considered moving if I can find a affordable place down there. So far I have not found anything. There are some great nursuries down there as well. (I visit them after work sometimes and spend waaay to much!)
Linda