Landscape Uses:
	Specimen or shade tree in residential and commercial landscapes.
Ecological Restoration Notes:
Availability:
	Native plant nurseries. Available in Melbourne at Native Butterfly Flowers .
Description:
	Medium to large tree with an irregular, rounded crown. Trunks large, erect, buttressed at the base, to 3 feet in diameter. Bark brown to gray brown or reddish-brown, thick, broken into thick plates exposing inner bark. Leaves glossy, dark green to yellowish-green with a wavy margin, 2-6 inches long.
Height:
	Typically 30-60 feet in height; to 118 feet in South Florida. Taller than broad.
Growth Rate:
	Moderate.
Range:
	Monroe County Keys north, mostly along the coasts, to Volusia and Manatee counties; West Indies and Mexico. Very rare in the middle and lower Monroe County Keys. For a digitized image of Elbert Little's Florida range map, visit the Exploring Florida website.
Habitats:
	Hammocks.
Soils:
	Moist, well-drained sandy or 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:
	High; can tolerate moderate amounts of salt wind without significant injury.
Drought Tolerance:
	High; does not require any supplemental water once established.
Light Requirements:
	Full sun.
Flower Color:
	Greenish-yellow.
Flower Characteristics:
	Inconspicuous but foul-smelling.
Flowering Season:
	Spring-fall; peak in summer.
Fruit:
	Yellow-orange berry, about 1" long. Edible. Winter-summer.
Wildlife and Ecology:
	Provides significant food and cover for wildlife. pollinators
Horticultural Notes:
	Can be grown from seed.
Comments:
	The fruits are edible raw, but the latex is very sticky. The wood is used for ship building in the West Indies.