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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
Gaillardia pulchella
It is difficult to know the native range of this plant in Florida as it has been widely planted on roadsides across much of the state at least since t
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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, A series of studies in the last 10 years are suggesting that Gaillardia pulchella is likely not native to Florida. It is widely grown and naturaliz
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Wildlife, Birds that eat the seeds include chickadees, titmice, and warblers.
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Habitat, Dry sites, often near the coast.
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers
Attracts many pollinators including native bees, honeybees, butterflies, butterflies and wasps.
- Attractive silver-gray foliage
- Tiered branches
- Showy red berries
- Native
- Lovely dark green, shiny leaves
Sabal palmetto
Designated as the Florida State Tree.
Trees on coastal islands in the Big Bend area are failing to reproduce due to sea level rise, and islands in th
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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, Fronds and flower stalks fall. Seeds sprout readily and can require control. In southern part of the state, strangler figs can sprout in the boots and
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Wildlife, Seeds used by small mammals such as raccoons. Used by birds for nesting.
Dead palm fronds -- roosting habitat for yellow bats. Their yellowish color
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Habitat, Flatwoods, moist hammocks, swamps, river floodplains, ruderal
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Did You Know?, Interesting bark, Interesting foliage, Hurricane wind resistance
Larval host plant for Monk Skipper (Asbolis capucinus) butterfly.
Pollinated by bees
- Dense canopy
- Stately and uncommon
- Colorful fall foliage
- Excellent edible fruit
- Tall and stately
- Narrow crown
Lobelia cardinalis
Wildflower in moist garden, edge of water garden, understory plant in wet woods or stream edges
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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, Attracts hummingbirds.
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Habitat, Riverine swamps, spring run swamps, bogs, in mats of floating vegetation, wet ditches.
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers
The nectar attracts various Swallowtail butterflies.
Bumblebees will steal nectar through slits in the tubular corolla.
Halictid bees s
- Attracts butterflies
- Narrow enough for tight spaces
- Sometime grows horozontially
- Grows tall, but not massive
Pinus serotina
Rarely grown. This tree occurs predominantly in the coastal plain (withoutliers) from eastern Alabama north to southern New Jersey.
Shade tree for m
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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, squirrels and other animals eat the seeds.
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Habitat, Moist-wet sites. Hydric to mesic seep slopes, fringes of cypress and mixed hardwood swamps, wet flatwoods, mesic flatwoods.
- Dense attractive foliage
- Fragrant clusters of flowers in fall
- Iconic symbol of the south
- Unique and prized
- Recently classified invasive
- Prefers acidic soil
Quercus stellata
Shade tree. Branches may be quite twisty giving it an interesting form. Can also be used as a street tree and for ecosystem restoration.
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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, Acorn drop can be a maintenance issue.
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Wildlife, Acorns appreciated by squirrels and other wildlife including some birds.
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Habitat, Sandhill, pine-oak-hickory woods.
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Did You Know?, Larval host for the white-M butterfly and Horace's duskywing.
- Requires shade when young
- No longer recommended
- Very showy clusters of red flowers
Spartina alterniflora
Used for shoreline protection. A major saltmarsh plant. Useful for erosion control.
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Tolerance, Tolerant of frequent or regular inundation (usually areas with tidal inundation)
High. Can tolerate significant and ongoing amounts of salty wind and
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Wildlife, Birds and other animals eat the seeds.
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Habitat, Salt marsh, tidal flats, beaches.
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Did You Know?, Interesting foliage
Larval food for Louisiana eyed silkmoth (Automeris louisiana)
- Stunning
- Long emerald crownshaft
- Beautiful purple-brown crownshaft
Chrysophyllum oliviforme
Specimen tree. Valued for its foliage which is shiny green on top and silky brown beneath.
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Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water.
Some tolerance to salty wind but not direct salt spray.
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Considertions, Slow growing. May be top-killed by frost in extreme northern parts of its range or when planted to the north of its natural range. Does resprout from
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Wildlife, Birds and other wildlife consume fruit.
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Habitat, Tropical rockland hammocks.
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Did You Know?, Interesting foliage, Hurricane wind resistance
Insect pollinated.
- Requires high humidity
- Fruit attracts wildlife
- Very showy clusters of flowers
- Readily pruned into attractive shapes
- Killed by citrus greening (HLB)
- Recently classified invasive
Persea humilis
Do not plant this plant unless you are absolutely sure that it is not infected by laurel wilt disease. In general, this small bay seems to be escapin
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Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water.
Some tolerance to salty wind but not direct salt spray.
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Considertions, This small tree appears to less likely to be killed by laurel wilt than Florida's other bays.. It is likely that it is too small to attract the beetle
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Wildlife, Fruits eaten and dispersed by birds.
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Habitat, Dry sites. Scrub, high pine, scrubby sandhill.
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Did You Know?, Interesting foliage
Larval host plant for palamedes swallowtail (Papilio palamedes) and spicebush swallowtail (Papilio troilus) butterflies.
Attracts
- Decorative diamond-shaped trunk pattern
- Very fast growth rate
- Attractive light to medium green crownshaft
Borrichia arborescens
Most reproduction is vegetative (Lonard et al. 2015).
Plant in coastal wetlands on upslope side of mangrove swamps.
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Tolerance, Tolerant of inundation with brackish water
High. Can tolerate significant and ongoing amounts of salty wind and salt spray without injury.
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Wildlife, Birds and small mammals consume seed.
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Habitat, Coastal wetlands
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers, Interesting foliage
Attracts various pollinators.
Nectar plant for great southern white (Ascia monuste), Schaus' swallowtail (Heracl
- Unusually shaped, asymmetrical tree
- Excellent edible fruit
- Beautiful shiny green leaves
- Wonderfully fragrant, carries a great distance
- Attractive flowers, typically deep orange
Amsonia ciliata
The blue tubular flower opens into 5 petal-like lobes with a white center. Several blossoms grow in a loose cluster. Narrow seed pods and dark yellow
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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, Ruby-throated hummingbirds are attracted to the nectar.
Avoided by mammalian herbivores.
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Habitat, Flatwoods, chalky hills.
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Did You Know?, Fall color, Showy flowers
The flowers attract long-tongued insects such as carpenter bees, hummingbird moths, and butterflies. Not known to be a lar
- Healthy edible fruit
- Does best in cooler areas of South Florida
- Width often exceeds height
- Slow Growth
- Dark green leaves
Hypericum lissophloeus
Listed as Endangered in Florida. Please follow all State requirements for growing and transporting this species.
Best used as a shoreline plant in t
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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, Foliage and seeds are food source for birds and mammals.
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Habitat, Sandhill upland lake margins, sinks. Alsays open. Always sandy. Tolerant of dramatic water fluctuations.
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Did You Know?, Interesting bark
Attracts insect pollinators, especially bees.
- Rare and unique
- Showy creamy white flowers
- Attractive symmetrical appearance
- Unique, stout pineapple-like trunk when young
- Moderately rapid growth
- Prolific fruiter
