General Landscape Uses:
Primarily recommended for natural landscapes and habitat restorations. Also butterfly gardens and water gardens and along pond and lake edges.
Availability:
Grown by enthusiasts.
Description: Small creeping herb.
Dimensions: About 1-2 inches in height. Spreading and forming large open or dense patches.
Growth Rate: Fast.
Range:
Widespread in the eastern and central United States south to the Monroe County Keys; Bahamas.
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: Primarily disturbed areas, including lawns, but also found in hammocks and near water bodies.
Soils: Wet to moist, well-drained to poorly drained sandy, limestone or organic soils, with or without humus.
Nutritional Requirements: Moderate to low; it prefers soils with organic content, but will still grow reasonably well in nutrient poor soils.
Salt Water Tolerance: Low; does not tolerate long-term flooding by salt or brackish water.
Salt Wind Tolerance: Secondary line; tolerates significant salt wind without injury, but usually is somewhat protected.
Drought Tolerance: Moderate; generally requires moist soils, but tolerant of short periods of drought once established.
Light Requirements: Light shade to full sun.
Flower Color: Greenish.
Flower Characteristics: Inconspicuous.
Flowering Season: Spring-fall.
Fruit: Inconspicuous capsule.
Horticultural Notes: Easily grown from divisions of creeping, rooted stems, but keep moist at all times.
Comments: Can be weedy in the garden, but covers ground and competes with less desirable plants.
