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Cirsium horridulum
Natural landscapes including meadows and butterfly gardens.
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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, Purple thistle is a thorny plant - be very careful when handling.
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Wildlife, The seeds are rich in oil, an important food source for seed-eating birds.
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Habitat, Coastal plain, edges of salt marshes, pinewoods, prairies and disturbed areas.
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers, Interesting foliage, Thorns
Larval host to little metalmark (Calephelis virginiensis) and painted lady (Vanessa cardui) butterflies.
N
- Swollen, succulent branches
- Attracts butterflies and bees
- Readily pruned into attractive shapes
- Lovely dark green, shiny leaves
- Mostly bare in the coldest months
Kosteletzkya pentacarpos
Wetland wildflower garden.
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Tolerance, Tolerant of inundation with brackish water
Moderate. Tolerant of salty wind and may get some salt spray. Exposure to salt spray would be uncommon (
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Wildlife, Attracts hummingbirds.
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Habitat, Salt, brackish, or fresh water marshes, sloughs, ditches, borders of mangrove and other swamps, wet forest clearings.
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers
Attracts butterflies and various pollinators.
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Propagation, Fruit ones don't come true from seed so propagate vegetatively with either cuttings or by grafting onto a hardy
rootstock.
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Did You Know?, The plant is smaller, typically a large shrub, and more cold hardy. The fruits are sweet, with a thinner, edible red skin and the white flesh interior
- Flowers profusely year round
- Easy/Carefree
- Moderately salt tolerant
- Showy creamy white flowers
- Wonderfully fragrant flowers
Fagus grandifolia
Shade tree. It is known for its smooth light gray bark. Its leaves turn yellow and then light brown remaining on the tree until nearly spring and prov
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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, This is a large tree that will produce dense shade and many root suckers. Take this into consideration when deciding where to plant it. Slow growing.
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Wildlife, Fruits (a nut in a bur) are valued by wildlife.
Tree valued for nesting by some songbirds.
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Habitat, Upland, mesic to dry mesic hardwood forests.
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Did You Know?, Interesting bark, Fall color, Interesting foliage
Larval host for walnut sphinx (Amorpha juglandis).
- Excellent choice for narrow spaces
- Excellent small hedge
- Critically endangered
- Ideal for smaller spaces
Wisteria frutescens
Less aggressive growth than similar Asian species. Blooms only on new wood. At least one cultivar has white flowers.
Good trellis, post or fence vine
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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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Wildlife, Foliage palatable to deer.
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Habitat, Floodplains, gum swamps, upland thickets.
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers, Interesting foliage
Attracts pollinators.
Larval host for silver spotted skipper (Epargyreus clarus) and long-tailer skipper (Urbanus
- Colorful older leaves
- Massive stature when mature
- Unique, fern-like leaves
Asclepias perennis
Small specimen plant in wet areas. Does well in bog gardens and rain gardens or bioswales.
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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, Toxic.
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Habitat, Marshes, swamps
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers
Larval host to the monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus), queen butterfly (Danaus gilippus), and soldier butterfly, (Danaus eresimus).
A
- Relatively uncommon in South Florida
- Can be trimmed into manicured shapes
- Beautiful pinwheel flowers, often multicolored
- Ideal with Mediterranean architecture
- Wide umbrella-shaped canopy
Taxodium distichum
Younger specimens have a conical shape, but older trees tend to flatten out at the top. In some areas, the strangler fig (Ficus aurea)has strangled ma
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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 produce knees, even if grown in uplands.
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Wildlife, Attracts seed-eating birds. Valuable as roosting and nesting areas for colonial wading birds.
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Habitat, Riverine swamps, large swamps around lakes. Inundated areas associated with some form of flowing water. Floodplains, sloughs, strands. May be assoc
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Did You Know?, Fall color, Interesting foliage, Hurricane wind resistance
Larval host for baldcypress sphinx (Isoparce cupressi) moth.
- Not as popular as it once was
- Very full crown
- Often draped with Spanish moss
- Iconic symbol of the south
Iva frutescens
Retain in the landscape for coastal protection where present. Used for dune restoration.
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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, Provides some cover for wildlife and maybe some foods.
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Habitat, Salt marsh, dunes.
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Did You Know?, Interesting foliage, Hurricane wind resistance
- Highly nutritious fruit
- Abundance of orange-red flowers in summer
- Unique, sweet, almond-like flavor
- Pineapple-like showy fruits (female plants)
Conocarpus erectus
Two color morphs, green and silver.
Since it often occurs along the upland margin of mangrove swamps, it is sometimes referred to as the 4th Florida m
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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, The seeds are primarily dispersed by water.
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Habitat, Upper edges of mangrove swamps and on lower parts of dunes.
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Did You Know?, Showy fruits, Interesting foliage, Hurricane wind resistance
Nectar source and larval host plant for martial scrub hairstreak (Strymon martialis) and
- Majestic, sprawling canopy
- Slender trunk, 4" in diameter
- Drought tolerant
- Long-lasting year-round blooms
- Excellent small hedge
- Showy reddish peeling bark
Vallesia antillana
It is listed as endangered by the state of Florida and as critically imperiled in South Florida by The Institute for Regional Conservation.
Specimen
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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, Tropical rockland hammock, coastal rock barren, beach dune, coastal strand. Lower Keys only.
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Did You Know?, Showy fruits, Interesting foliage
- Lush, dense shade tree
- Beloved in South Florida
- Deciduous
- Highly wind tolerant
- Highly salt tolerant
- Underutilized
Solidago odora
Wildflower garden. Meadow.
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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, Spreads aggressively via rhizomes.
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Habitat, Sandhill, dunes, pine-oak-hickory woods, secondary woods.
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Did You Know?, Aroma, fragrance, Showy flowers
Attracts many pollinators. The goldenrod soldier beetle (a.k.a. leatherwing beetle(, Chauliognathus pensylvanicus is
- Extremely versatile
- Does best with periodic fertalization
- Attracts butterflies and bees
- Stunning during brief late spring bloom
- Unusual deep green leaves with bronze underside
Psychotria ligustrifolia
Specimen or hedge plant.
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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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Wildlife, Birds and other animals use the fruits
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Habitat, Tropocal hammocks, pine flatwoods.
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers, Showy fruits, Interesting foliage
Attracts bees and wasps, some flies, and other pollinators.
- Extremely versatile
- Distinctive-looking fruit with spiked exterior
- Beautiful rounded canopy
- Majestic and graceful
Chiococca alba
Nice blog article by Florida Wildflower Foundation.
Background plant somewhere between a shrub and vine in character.
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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, Weak--needs support. Can be aggressive in the home landscape.
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Wildlife, Birds and other wildlife consume fruit.
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Habitat, Coastal hammocks, pine rocklands, coastal flats, disturbed forest edges.
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers, Showy fruits
Larval host for the Miami blue butterfly (Cyclargus thomasi) and Snowberry clearwing moth (Hemaris diffinis).
Attracts a
- Often hosts orchids, ferns and bromiliads
- Does best in warmer areas of South Florida
- Attractive blue-green to silver leaflets
- Sprawling and informal shrub
