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Boehmeria cylindrica
This species is in the Nettle Family and looks much like stinging nettle. However, it does not have stinging hairs.
Ground cover in moist sites in ca
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Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water.
Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray
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Considertions, Can become overly abundant. Plant with caution.
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Habitat, Cypress swamps, floodplain forests, wet thickets, stream banks, marshes, wet forests, marshy shores, ditches.
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Did You Know?, Interesting foliage
Larval host for several species of moths.
Larval host for red admiral (Vanessa atalanta) and eastern comma (Polygonia comma) butt
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Propagation, Propagate with cuttings.
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Did You Know?, Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt!
Ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam,
- Requires ample space and light
- Attractive dark green leaves
- Available single or multi-stalked
- Dense, full crown
- Not as popular as it once was
- Excellent edible fruit
Rudbeckia spp.
Multiple species are native to Florida. Most are attractive and many are easy to grow. This is a catch-all for species not listed individually. Ple
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Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water.
Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray
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Wildlife, Small seed-eating birds pick out the seeds from the mature flower heads.
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Habitat, Vary by species. Mostly sandhills, bogs, roadsides, ruderal.
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers
Attract butterflies, bees and wasps.
- Long emerald crownshaft
- Can be grown indoors
- Somewhat drought tolerant
- Colorful new leafs
- No longer recommended
Ilex ambigua
Plant as a small understory tree. Good as a general background plant that is appropriate to wildlife.
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Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water.
Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray
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Considertions, It's dioecious; so make sure you have at least one male plant in the vicinity to produce berries on the females.
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Wildlife, Fruits are eaten by birds and small mammals.
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Habitat, Dry hammocks, sandhills, scrub, dunes.
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Did You Know?, Showy fruits
Bees pollinate flowers.
- Moderately slow growth
- Attractive flowers, typically deep orange
- Critically endangered
- Stunning
Dalea carnea
Because it's a legume, it will grow well in poor soil.
There are multiple subspecies.
Wildflower garden. This is a low, wide-spreading plant that wil
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Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water.
Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray
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Wildlife, Birds and other small wildlife consume seeds (in pods).
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Habitat, Dry flatwoods.
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers
Larval host for southern dogface (Zerene cesonia).
Attracts pollinators, especially bees.
- Can be trimmed into manicured shapes
- Lovely deep green, glossy leaves
- Wide umbrella-shaped canopy
Zanthoxylum clava-herculis
Wood is quite soft and weak. This author had one break in a storm. It did however resprout from low on the trunk and the sprout is now about 15 ft t
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Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water.
Moderate. Tolerant of salty wind and may get some salt spray. Exposure to salt spray wo
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Considertions, Quite thorny.
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Wildlife, Birds and other wildlife eat the fruit.
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Habitat, Hammocks, wet woods, dunes, shell middens.
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Did You Know?, Interesting bark, Showy flowers, Interesting foliage, Thorns
Larval host for giant swallowtail (Papilio cresphontes).
- Attracts butterflies and bees
- Showy display of fruit
- Beautiful sweeping fronds with drooping leaflets
- Killed by citrus greening (HLB)
Quercus myrtifolia
This plant can form clones from underground stems. It is adapted to fire environments.
Forms a thicket with many sprouts from spreading roots
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Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water.
Moderate. Tolerant of salty wind and may get some salt spray. Exposure to salt spray wo
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Wildlife, Small mammals use the acorns.
Provides significant food and cover for wildlife.
The acorns are utilized by squirrels.
An important food source for th
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Habitat, Scrub, scrubby flatwoods, scrubby sandhill.
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Did You Know?, Hurricane wind resistance
Larval host for Horace's duskywing (Erynnis horatius), red-banded hairstreak (Calycopis cecrops) and white-M hairstreak (P
- Silvery blue-green fronds
- Smaller stature
- Easy/Carefree
- Attractive glossy leaves
Opuntia spp.
These species are, in combination, found throughout Florida and from a cultivation perspective, are very similar. In nature, O. stricta tends to be i
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Tolerance, Tolerant of occasional/brief inundation such as can occur in storm surges.
Moderate. Tolerant of salty wind and may get some salt spray. Exposure t
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Considertions, Thorns! The thorns on this plant make weeding around it difficult. Best planted where no one will be walking adjacent to the plant.
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Habitat, Coastal dunes, coastal grasslands.
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers, Showy fruits, Interesting foliage, Thorns
Nectar plant for Meske's skipper (Hesperia meskei) butterflies.
Attracts a variety of insect
- No longer recommended
- Thick branching into attractive silouttes
- Can be grown indoors
- Native
Galactia elliottii
Rarely planted and hence likely to be difficult to acquire.
This sprawling vine has the potential to be used as a groundcover. It also could be trai
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Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water.
Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray
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Habitat, Dry, sandy ruderal sites, dry flatwoods, sandhill, relatively open xeric to dry mesic hammocks.
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers
Attracts bees including Halictus ligatus, Nolnia maneei, Megachile exilis parexilis, M. georgica, M. rnendica and M. petzclans (Deyrup
- Width often exceeds height
- Colorful older leaves
- Relatively uncommon in South Florida
- Very full crown
- Showy display of fruit
Pentalinon luteum
Grow on a trellis, fence, or post.
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Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water.
High. Can tolerate significant and ongoing amounts of salty wind and salt spray without i
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Considertions, The sap is an irritant to the skin and poisonous if ingested.
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Wildlife, Said to attract hummingbirds.
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Habitat, Pine woods, coastal hammocks, edges of coastal marshes.
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers, Interesting foliage
Larval host of the polka dot wasp moth (Syntomeida epilais), but there is a question whether or not that's a nativ
- Attracts butterflies and bees
- Prized scent, used in commercial perfumes
- Uniquely shaped with a muscular look
- Towering
- Slender profile
- Highly salt tolerant
Nymphaea mexicana
The range of this plant appears to encompass most of Florida with actual occurrances having been found in streams with appropriate water chemistry (ap
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Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water.
Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray
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Habitat, Aquatic. Quiet pools in spring-run streams, spring-fed lakes and ponds, still water.
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers
Everything from flies, to beetles, and various sorts of bees have been recorded on water lilies (In Defense of Plants blog). Given the
- Attractive and unique swollen trunk
- Often draped with Spanish moss
- Handsome
- Attractive dark green leaves
- Elegant appearance
- Distinctive-looking fruit with spiked exterior
