Landscape Uses:
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Primarily recommended for natural landscapes and habitat restorations. It can also be used as an accent shrub in moist to wet sunny areas. It is also useful in buffer plantings. |
Ecological Restoration Notes: |
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An occasional element of tidal marshes; rarer in freshwater marshes. |
Availability: |
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Grown by enthusiasts and occasionally by native plant nurseries. |
Description: |
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Medium erect shrub with a narrow crown. Leaves linear, 1-2 inches long. |
Height: |
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Typically 4-9 feet in height. Taller than broad. |
Growth Rate: |
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Fast to moderate. |
Range: |
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Southeastern United States south to the Monroe County Keys; Bahamas. Somewhat sporadic in South Florida. Very rare in the Monroe County Keys on Key Largo and then apparently disjunct to Big Pine Key and nearby islands. |
Habitats: |
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Coastal wetlands, occasionally inland. |
Soils: |
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Wet to moist, periodically inundated freshwater or brackish sandy, limestone, or organic soils, with or without humusy top layer. |
Nutritional Requirements: |
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Moderate; can grow in nutrient poor soils, but needs some organic content to thrive. |
Salt Water Tolerance: |
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Moderate; tolerates brackish water or occasional inundation by salt water. |
Salt Wind Tolerance: |
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Moderate; grows near salt water, but is protected from direct salt spray by other vegetation. |
Drought Tolerance: |
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Moderate to low; requires moist to wet soils, but tolerant of short periods of drought once established. |
Light Requirements: |
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Full sun. |
Flower Color: |
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Pale yellow. |
Flower Characteristics: |
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Semi-showy heads. Fragrant. Dioecious, with male and female flowers on different plants. |
Flowering Season: |
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Summer-fall. |
Fruit: |
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Inconspicuous achene, but fruiting masses can be semi-showy. |
Wildlife and Ecology: |
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Provides some food and significant cover for wildlife. May be a nectar plant for monarch (Danaus plexippus) and other butterflies. Nectar from the male flowers attacts pollinators and the seeds are dispersed by wind. |
Horticultural Notes: |
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Can be grown from seed. Cover with just enough soil to keep the seeds from blowing away. Also can be propogated from soft or hard wood cuttings. |
Comments: |
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The long narrow leaves are very attractive. The pollen is an allergen. |