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Saccharum giganteum
Specimen plant or background plant in moist informal garden. This is a mid-sized bunching grass until the flower stalk shoots up in the fall. Then it
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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, The flower stalks need to be removed once no longer showy.
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Wildlife, Birds will eat the seeds. Provides cover.
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Habitat, Flatwoods, marshes, coastal swales, cypress ponds, lake shores, cutthroat seep.
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers, Showy fruits
Host plant for the Clouded Skipper butterfly (Lerema accius)
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Did You Know?, Yerba mate, the traditional tea-like beverage from South America, is made with leaves of a close relative to our holly trees, the Ilex Paraguayanis.
Y
- Easily trimmed to maintain desired size
- Christmas tree shape
- Massive, nutrient-dense edible fruit
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
Quercus velutina
Shade tree. Forest tree.
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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, squirrel and other wildlife consume the acorns.
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Habitat, Xeric to dry-mesic pine-oak-hickory woods, sometimes on bluff microsites.
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Did You Know?, Fall color, Interesting foliage, Hurricane wind resistance
Larval host for the white-M hairstreak.
- Unique flowers, with petals like banana peels
- Not a true pine
- Deciduous
- Unique and prized
- Wonderfully fragrant at night
Diospyros virginiana
Persimmon wood is very hard and nearly black--it's in the ebony family.
Typically grown for its fruit. Plant in full sun. Also useful as an early suc
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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, Tent caterpillars can be an aesthetic issue and fruit drop can be messy. Persimmons are dioecious, so if you wish to have fruit, make sure that you ha
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Wildlife, Fruits are used by a broad array of small mammals and some birds.
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Habitat, Dry-moist-wet sites. Disturbed sites, wetland edges, old fields, sandhill.
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Did You Know?, Fall color, Showy fruits, Hurricane wind resistance
Larval host for royal walnut moth (Citheronia regalis), pecan carpenterworm moth (Cossula magnifi
- Very showy clusters of red flowers
- Tall and romantic
- Formal appearance
- Dense, full crown
- Wonderfully fragrant
Phytolacca americana
Interesting red stems. Makes a good specimen plant in an informal garden. Weedy in appearance if in large numbers and stems tend to split when branche
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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, The roots and seeds are poisonous.
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Wildlife, Birds eat the berries.
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Habitat, Flatwoods, disturbed areas.
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers, Showy fruits
Attracts bees including Augochlora pura, Augochloropsis metallica, A. sumptuosa, Dialictus miniatulus, D. nymphalis, D. p
- Decorative diamond-shaped trunk pattern
- Elegant
- Beautiful pinwheel flowers, often multicolored
- Attractive dark green leaves
- Available single or multi-stalked
- Attracts butterflies and bees
Litsea aestivalis
Litsea aestivalis is listed as Endangered by the State of Florida. Since that listing, the laurel wilt disease has come to Florida, and is known to k
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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, Fruits eaten by birds and mammals.
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Habitat, Near the edges of forested wetlands and some seasonal ponds wtih open centers.
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Did You Know?, Attracts flies and small bees.
A likely host for the spicebush swallowtail butterfly.
- Highly nutritious fruit
- Beautiful pinwheel flowers, often multicolored
- Cornerstone plant in South Florida
Symphyotrichum chapmanii
Based on the BONAP range map, this species is a "near endemic" -- it occurs only in the panhandle and a 3 counties in southern Alabama.
At this time,
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Tolerance, Unknown
Unknown
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Wildlife, Small birds eat the seed.
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Habitat, Wet flatwoods, bogs, savannahs, prairies
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers
Nectar plant for many butterfly species but also visited by other native insect pollinators.
- Beautiful, natural globe shape
- Uncommon
- No longer recommended
Coccoloba uvifera
Can be pruned.
Works well as a specimen plant. Its thick, large leaves make it stand out from most other plants in the landscape.
Very useful in sett
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Tolerance, Tolerant of occasional/brief inundation such as can occur in storm surges.
High. Can tolerate significant and ongoing amounts of salty wind and salt
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Considertions, Fast growing, tends to sprawl. Very cold sensitive if planted inland from the coast even in the counties noted as its range. Unless cold is extreme, i
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Wildlife, Birds and other wildlife consume fruit.
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Habitat, Coastal uplands
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Did You Know?, Fall color, Showy fruits, Interesting foliage, Hurricane wind resistance
Nectar plant for Florida duskywing (Ephyriades brunneus), julia (Dryas iulia
- Often draped with Spanish moss
- Arched, recurving fronds
- Wonderfully fragrant flowers
- Wide umbrella-shaped canopy
- Swollen, succulent branches
Panicum virgatum
In the opinion of this author, this species has a weedy look.
Occurs throughout Florida but is more frequent in flatwoods pond settings and small flo
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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, An aggressive grower. Plant where that characteristic is appropriate.
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Habitat, Riverine forests, flatwoods, beaches, fresh and brackish marshes, disturbed sites.
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Did You Know?, Larval host for tawny edged skipper.
- Majestic and graceful
- Slender trunk, 4" in diameter
- Highly nutritious fruit
Phlox divaricata
Range includes most of eastern and central north Ameria west to the prairie region and north into southeastern Canada. The southern range limit is in
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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, Rich woods, calcareous hammocks (in FL) but frequently in acid soils elsewhere.
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers
Attracts butterflies and bees -- only butterflies and long-tongued bees can reach the nectar but other insects are attracted to the flo
- Symmetrical shape
- Magnificent
- Easy/Carefree native
- Forms an open canopy
Calamintha ashei
This species is listed as Threatened in Florida. Please acquire plants only from a reputable nursery.
This small plant could make a good border along
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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, Scrub in disturbed areas, sandhill.
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Did You Know?, Aroma, fragrance, Showy flowers
Attracts a variety of insects and mostly pollinated by bees. Documented bees include Agapostemon splendens, Augochl
- Killed by citrus greening (HLB)
- Striking silhouette
- Can be kept narrow
- Relatively uncommon in South Florida
Cephalanthus occidentalis
Noted for it's round satellite "ball" flowers and round "button" fruits. Fragrant.
Sources disagree on salt tolerance of this plant.
Wetlands and wet
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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, Foliage is poisonous to livestock and humans.
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Wildlife, Deer browse the foliage. Ducks and other birds including jays, cardinals, nuthatches, titmice, warblers, and mockingbirds consume the seed.
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Habitat, Marshes, swamps, river floodplains
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Did You Know?, Aroma, fragrance, Showy flowers, Showy fruits
Host plant to several moths including titan sphinx (Aellopos titan) and hydrangea sphinx (Darapsa versi
- Mostly bare in the coldest months
- Beautiful exotic foliage
- Rapid growth
- Uniquely shaped with a muscular look
- Prolific fruiter
