Lizard’s tail
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Saururus cernuus
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Saururaceae
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Landscape Uses:
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Water gardens and along pond and lake edges. |
Ecological Restoration Notes: |
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Availability: |
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Grown by one or two native plant nurseries in South Florida. |
Description: |
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Medium herbaceous wildflower. |
Height: |
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About 1-2 feet in height. Usually spreading and forming patches broader than tall. |
Growth Rate: |
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Moderate. |
Range: |
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Eastern and central North America west to Texas and south to Miami-Dade County and the Monroe County mainland. Not documented on barrier islands in South Florida, but possibly historically present; it grows well at Pan’s Garden in Palm Beach. |
Habitats: |
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Marshes and swamps. |
Soils: |
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Wet, poorly-drained organic soils. |
Nutritional Requirements: |
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High; requires rich organic soils for optimal growth. |
Salt Water Tolerance: |
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Low; does not tolerate flooding by salt or brackish water. |
Salt Wind Tolerance: |
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Low; salt wind may burn the leaves. |
Drought Tolerance: |
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Low; requires moist to wet soils and is intolerant of long periods of drought. |
Light Requirements: |
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Light shade to moderate shade or full sun. |
Flower Color: |
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White. |
Flower Characteristics: |
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Showy. |
Flowering Season: |
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Spring-summer. |
Fruit: |
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Inconspicuous indehiscent carpels. |
Wildlife and Ecology: |
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Provides food for birds. |
Horticultural Notes: |
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Comments: |
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See also the Florida Wildflower Foundation's Flower Friday page.
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Susan Lerner, cultivated at Pan's Garden, Town of Palm Beach, Florida, USA.
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