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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
Symphyotrichum dumosum
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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Habitat, Sandhills, flatwoods, pine-oak-hickory woods, floodplains, secondary woods, cutthroat seep.
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers
Attracts pollinators, especially native bees.
Larval host plant for pearl crescent (Phyciodes tharos) butterflies.
- Not a true pine
- Will not tolerate frost
- Massive, nutrient-dense edible fruit
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
Solidago odora var. chapmanii
This forms clumps but does not form large clones, which means it will not take over a garden.
Wildflower garden
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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, Songbirds such as goldfinches and sparrows eat the seeds, and mice and deer browse the foliage and flowers.
Provides cover for many small animals inc
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Habitat, Typically a plant of mesic to dry flatwoods and scrubby flatwoods. Can be ruderal.
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers
Used for nectar by butterflies.
Attracts a wide variety of pollinators, especially bees. Documented bee visitors include Colletes maiz
- Not as popular as it once was
- Slow Growth
- Long-lived perennial
- Native
Rhododendron minus var. chapmanii
Endemic to Florida
Listed as Endangered by the USFWS and FL
Specimen plant. Screen plant. Can be grown in a mass under trees.
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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 pollinators, including hummingbirds.
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Habitat, Mesic flatwoods, scrubby flatwoods, seep slope. Ecotone between flatwoods and edges of titi swamps.
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers
Attracts insects. Apparently important to bumble bees.
- Killed by citrus greening (HLB)
- Elegant and compact
- Colorful new leafs
- Excellent edible fruit
Aralia spinosa
FNPS Blog article
Specimen plant or background hedge.
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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, When its huge triply compound leaves are shed in the fall, only the main thorny stem is left standing through the winter months--hence the name devil'
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Wildlife, Birds and small mammals consume the fruit. Birds include nuthatches, orioles, chickadees, titmice, and warblers.
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Habitat, The edges of dry hammocks and dry hardwood forests.
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers, Showy fruits, Thorns
Attracts butterflies and bees. Documented bee species include Colletes mandibularis, Hylaeus confluens, Augochlo
- Slow Growth
- Wonderfully fragrant at night
- Easily trimmed to maintain desired size
- Symmetrical shape
- Narrow enough for tight spaces
- Fragrant clusters of flowers in fall
Iris verna var. smalliana
Noted for fragrance.
Casual shade garden. It spreads, so eventually acts as a groundcover.
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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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Did You Know?, Showy flowers
Attracts bees, esp. bumblebees.
- Stunning
- Wonderfully fragrant, carries a great distance
- Arched, recurving fronds
- Colorful older leaves
- Slow Growth
Helenium autumnale
Wildflower garden.
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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, Bluffs, swamps, floodplains, wet flatwoods, bogs, savannas.
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Did You Know?, Showy flowers
Attracts bees and butterflies.
- Stunning long emerald crownshaft
- Cold tolerant
- Showy display of fruit
- Christmas tree shape
Coreopsis floridana
This is one of our larger (taller and larger flowers) Coreopsis species.
Useful as a colorful wildflower along the edge of a wetland. Often overlooke
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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, Wet prairie, herbaceous seepage areas, wet roadsides.
,
Did You Know?, Showy flowers
Attracts many different butterflies and pollinators.
- Easily trimmed for smaller spaces
- Narrow canopy
- Stately and uncommon
- Attractive dark green leaves
Colubrina arborescens
Listed as endangered in Florida. Please acquire from appropriate sources.
Large tree or small shrub. Buffer planting or specimen tree.
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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, Seeds. Can become a weed.
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Wildlife, Birds and other small wildlife consume seed.
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Habitat, Rockland hammocks and understory of pine rocklands.
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Did You Know?, Interesting foliage
Pollinated by bees (http://tropical.theferns.info/).
- Native
- Narrow canopy
- Abundance of orange-red flowers in summer
- Lush, dense shade tree
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)
Ilex glabra
Rarely planted.
Good background plant. Can make a good screen. Becomes scraggly if overly shaded, but may be trimmed back for bushier growth. Clonal.
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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 are eaten by birds though it is bitter and often eaten as a last resort.
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Habitat, Low flatwoods, cutthroat seeps, dry prairie, coastal swales, bogs, sinks.
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Did You Know?, Bees pollinate flowers. Documented bees include Colletes banksi, C. brimleyi, C. inandibularis, C. nudus, Perdita floridensis, Agapostemon splendens,
- Slow Growth
- Massive stature when mature
- Majestic
- Highly wind tolerant
