General Landscape Uses:
Primarily recommended for natural landscapes and habitat restorations.
Ecological Restoration Notes: A common understory herb in hammocks nearly throughout South Florida.
Availability:
Grown by enthusiasts.
Description: Small herbaceous wildflower.
Dimensions: About 6-9 inches in height; 12-15 inches when in flower. Taller than broad.
Growth Rate: Moderate.
Range:
North Key Largo in the Monroe County Keys, Miami-Dade and Collier counties north to Duval, Bradford and Levy counties; West Indies, Mexico, Central America and South America.
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: Moist forests and swamps.
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: Moderate; grows near salt water, but is protected from direct salt spray by other vegetation.
Drought Tolerance: Low; requires moist to wet soils and is intolerant of long periods of drought.
Light Requirements: Light shade to moderate shade.
Flower Color: Green.
Flower Characteristics: Semi-showy.
Flowering Season: Fall-winter.
Fruit: Capsule containing numerous minute seeds.
Comments: See also the Florida Wildflower Foundation's
Flower Friday page.
