Tough Florida bully
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Sideroxylon tenax
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Sapotaceae
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Landscape Uses:
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Accent or specimen shrub in coastal uplands. |
Ecological Restoration Notes: |
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Availability: |
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Native plant nurseries. |
Description: |
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Large shrub or small tree with an open, irregular crown. Trunks short, bearing many irregular branches. Bark, thick, fissured, reddish brown. Leaves bright green above, the underside coated with rust-colored hairs. |
Height: |
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About 5-15 feet in height or sometime more. Often broader than tall. |
Growth Rate: |
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Slow. |
Range: |
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Southeastern United States south to Miami-Dade and Collier counties. Very rare in South Florida outside of Palm Beach and Martin counties. Perhaps never present or extirpated in Broward County. Presumed extirpated in Miami-Dade County. |
Habitats: |
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Coastal hammocks and scrub. |
Soils: |
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Moist to dry, well-drained sandy soils, with 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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Low; does not tolerate long-term flooding by salt or brackish water. |
Salt Wind Tolerance: |
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High; can tolerate moderate amounts of salt wind without significant injury. |
Drought Tolerance: |
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High; does not require any supplemental water once established. |
Light Requirements: |
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Full sun to light shade. |
Flower Color: |
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White. |
Flower Characteristics: |
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Inconspicuous. |
Flowering Season: |
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All year; peak spring-summer. |
Fruit: |
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Black ovoid berry. |
Wildlife and Ecology: |
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Attracts pollinators. |
Horticultural Notes: |
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Can be grown from de-pulped seed. |
Comments: |
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