General Landscape Uses:
Primarily recommended for natural landscapes and habitat restorations. Also as an accent tree in dry soils.
Ecological Restoration Notes: A geographically restricted but relatively common sub-canopy shrub or tree in xeric habitats.
Availability:
Grown by one or two native plant nurseries in South Florida.
Description: Large shrub to medium tree with a rounded, broad crown. Trunks to 1 foot or more in diameter, but usually much smaller. Bark grayish, relatively smooth, but roughened by numerous ridges. Leaves temperate deciduous, compound, aromatic when crushed.
Dimensions: Typically 15-30 feet in height in South Florida; to 47 feet in Florida. Usually taller than broad.
Growth Rate: Moderate.
Range:
Endemic to peninsular Florida from Miami-Dade and Charlotte counties north to Volusia and Marion counties. Extirpated in Miami-Dade and Broward counties. For a digitized image of Elbert Little's Florida range map, visit the
Exploring Florida website. Also, see IRC's
Floristic Inventory of South Florida website.
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: Scrub, scrubby flatwoods and xeric hammocks.
Soils: Dry to moist, well-drained sandy soils, with or without humusy top layer.
Nutritional Requirements: Low to moderate; it can grow in nutrient poor soils or soils with some organic content.
Salt Water Tolerance: Low; does not tolerate flooding by salt or brackish water.
Salt Wind Tolerance: Low; salt wind may burn the leaves.
Drought Tolerance: High; does not require any supplemental water once established.
Light Requirements: Full sun to light shade.
Flower Color: Greenish.
Flower Characteristics: Male flowers in semi-showy hanging catkins.
Flowering Season: Spring.
Fruit: Nut.
Wildlife and Ecology: Provides significant food and moderate amounts of cover for wildlife.
Horticultural Notes: Can be grown from stratified seed, sown in spring.
References: Schaefer & Tanner 1997
