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Bidens laevis
Depending on the weather, this may be either an annual or perennial in Florida.
Informal gardens in wet sites.
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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 fruits stick to pant legs and animal fur leading to moniker beggarticks. Generally no an issue in the wetland sites where this will grow.
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Habitat, Swamps, river edget
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers
Attracts native bees and butterflies
- Tall and romantic
- Fruit attracts wildlife
- Striking symmetrical appearance
- Unique and prized
- Beloved in South Florida
- Grows tall, but not massive
Amorpha fruticosa
Multistemmed shrub that can form small thickets. Plant as a screen, hedge, or background 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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Considertions, Can become aggressive in some habitats.
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Habitat, Moist hammocks, dry hammocks, dry hardwood forests
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Did You Know?, Fall color, Showy flowers
Larval host for southern dogface (Zerene cesonia), gray hairstreak (Strymon melinus), and silver-spotted Skipper (Epargyreu
- Requires shade when young
- Colorful older leaves
- Symmetrical shape
Nymphoides aquatica
This species is listed as invasive in parts of the world where it is not native.
Water garden, planting of surface water management pond. Often used
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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, Water. Ponds, lakes, quiet streams, swampa, ditches, canals. This species can be seen in the Lower Hillsborough Flood Detention Area in Hillsborough
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers
Pollinated by bees and flies.
- Easy/Carefree native
- Handsome
- Pyramidal crown
- Does best in cooler areas of South Florida
- Easily trimmed to maintain desired size
- Does poorly in very wet soil
Lantana depressa var. depressa
This is a rare South Florida native that has entered the nursery trade. A major concern is hybridization with Lantana strigocamara, a multicolored inv
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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, Birds eat the fruits and spread the seeds.
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Habitat, Pine rockland. On limestone. Vacant lots.
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers
May be pollinated by butterflies during the day and by moths at night (Osorio 2012). Also visited by bees.
- Forms an open canopy
- Lovely dark green, shiny leaves
- Attractive mottled bark
- Narrow canopy
- Beautiful rounded dense canopy
- Wonderfully fragrant, carries a great distance
Drypetes lateriflora
It is listed as Threatened by the state of Florida.
Naturalistic landscapes.
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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 wildlife consume fruit.
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Habitat, Relatively dry hammocks.
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Did You Know?, Interesting bark
Larval host plant for Florida white (Appias drusilla) butterfly.
- Unique flowers, with petals like banana peels
- Unique swollen blue-green to silver trunk
- Easy/Carefree native
Saururus cernuus
Both the common and scientific genus names refer to the lizard-like shape of the drooping flower head.
This is a wetland plant. It can form dense pat
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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, Eaten by wood ducks and other foraging birds.
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Habitat, Shallow water of streams, swamps, wet forests, ditches.
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Did You Know?, Aroma, fragrance, Showy flowers, Interesting foliage
Nectar plant for hairstreaks and other insects esp. bees and flies, but apparently mostly wind p
- Fragrant in the evening
- Tall and romantic
- Pyramidal crown
Lygodesmia aphylla
The short lived bloom opens before sunrise and is most beautiful from just before dawn till about mid-morning when it fully opens. By night fall it wi
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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 soils, flatwoods, pine barrens, sandhill, scrub, and disturbed areas
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers
Attract a wide variety of insect pollinators. One documented bee pollinator is Augochlorella aurata (Deyrup et al. 2002).
- Very showy bright yellow flowers
- Attractive contrast between flowers and foliage
- Wonderfully fragrant at night
Lupinus diffusus
Given that this is short-lived (biennial) and difficult to transplant or grow from seed, this is perhaps best encouraged in places where it grows natu
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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, Hard to establish. Biennial, though may reseed.
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers, Showy fruits, Interesting foliage
Larval host for frosted elfin (Callophyris irus) butterfly, which is listed as Endangered in Flori
- Very full crown
- Attractive symmetrical appearance
- Majestic and graceful
Magnolia virginiana
The silvery undersides of the leaves are striking.
Erroneously listed as a host for palamedes swallowtail butterflies. Palamedes swallowtails only fee
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Tolerance, Tolerant of inundation with brackish water
Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray
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Wildlife, Seeds are eaten by woodpeckers, kingbirds, red-eyed vireos, mockingbirds, robins, thrushes, crows, cardinals, squirrels, mice among others.
Deer brows
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Habitat, Bay swamp, forested seep slopes, floodplains of small streams, low flatwoods where fire has been excluded.
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Did You Know?, Aroma, fragrance, Showy flowers, Showy fruits, Interesting foliage, Hurricane wind resistance
Larval host plant for Eastern tiger swallowtail (Pterou
- Briefly bare for about a month in the winter
- Attractive silver-gray foliage
- Heavy feeder
Vernonia gigantea
The genus name honors the English botanist William Vernon, who did fieldwork in North America.
Back of a moist wildflower garden. Can also use on the
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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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Habitat, Exposed sand and gravel bars of streams during low water, stream banks, hydric to wet mesic pine flatwoods. Rich soils. Ruderal.
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers
Nectar attracts butterflies and native beens.
Larval host for spring azure butterfly.
- Colorful new leafs
- Rare, despite being a South Florida native
- Beautiful rounded dense canopy
