Natives For Your Neighborhood
Conservation of rare plants, animals, and ecosystems

General Landscape Uses: Accent shrub. Informal hedges. Buffer plantings.

Availability: Widely cultivated. Available in Lake Worth at Indian Trails Native Nursery and at Amelia's SmartyPlants , in Miami at Pro Native Consulting and in Boynton Beach at Sustainscape, and in Naples at Everglades Native Designs, and in Key West at Key West Botanical Garden.

Description: Medium shrub with dark green leaves.

Dimensions: About 3-4 feet in height. About as broad as tall.

Growth Rate: Moderate to slow.

Range: Monroe County Keys and Miami-Dade County; Bermuda, Bahamas and Greater Antilles. In South Florida, native only to North Key Largo in the Monroe County Keys, and Miami-Dade County in the vicinity of Matheson Hammock Park and the Richmond Pine Rocklands.

 Map of select IRC data from peninsular Florida.

 Map of suggested ZIP codes from South Florida north to southern Brevard, Osceola, Polk, and Pasco counties.

 Map of ZIP codes with habitat recommendations from the Monroe County Keys north to Martin and Charlotte counties.

Habitats: Rockland hammocks.

Soils: Moist, well-drained limestone soils, with humusy top layer.

Nutritional Requirements: Moderate; can grow in nutrient poor soils, but needs some organic content to thrive.

Salt Water Tolerance: Low; does not tolerate long-term flooding by salt or brackish water.

Salt Wind Tolerance: Moderate; grows near salt water, but is protected from direct salt spray by other vegetation.

Drought Tolerance: Moderate; generally requires moist soils, but tolerant of short periods of drought once established.

Light Requirements: Light shade to moderate shade.

Flower Color: White.

Flower Characteristics: Semi-showy.

Flowering Season: All year; peak spring-summer.

Fruit: Red drupe.

Wildlife and Ecology: Provides food and cover for wildlife. Birds and other animals eat the fruits.

Horticultural Notes: Can be grown from de-pulped seed. Place seeds on top of soil and sprinkle soil over the seeds to just cover. Place container in light shade.

References: Miami-Dade County Landscape Manual (2005).

Comments: It is listed as endangered by the state of Florida. See also Florida Natural Areas Inventory's Field Guide to the Rare Plants of Florida page (Chafin 2000).