General Landscape Uses:
Primarily recommended for natural landscapes and habitat restorations. Also wildflower gardens in wet to moist areas.
Availability:
Grown by enthusiasts.
Description: Medium herbaceous wildflower with grass-like leaves.
Dimensions: About 2-3 feet in height when in flower. Taller than broad.
Growth Rate: Moderate.
Range:
Miami-Dade County and the Monroe County mainland north to Brevard, Orange and Citrus counties; disjunct in Flagler County; West Indies, Mexico, Central America, South America and Africa.
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: Swamps, marshes and open disturbed sites.
Soils: Wet to moist, moderately well-drained to poorly-drained sandy, organic or calcareous soils, with or without 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 flooding by salt or brackish water.
Salt Wind Tolerance: Low; salt wind may burn the leaves.
Drought Tolerance: Low; requires moist to wet soils and is intolerant of long periods of drought.
Light Requirements: Full sun to light shade.
Flower Color: Green-purple.
Flower Characteristics: Showy.
Flowering Season: Summer-winter.
Fruit: Capsule containing numerous minute seeds.
References: A Gardner's Guide to Florida's Native Plants
Comments: See also the Florida Wildflower Foundation's
Flower Friday page.
