General Landscape Uses:
Primarily recommended for natural landscapes and habitat restorations.
Availability:
Grown by enthusiasts.
Description: Climbing woody vine.
Dimensions: N/A; a climbing vine with stems to 20 feet or more.
Growth Rate: Moderate.
Range:
Monroe and Miami-Dade counties north along the west coast to Lee County; West Indies, Mexico, Central America and South America. Very rare in the Monroe County Keys and perhaps absent south of Key Largo.
Map of select IRC data from peninsular Florida.
Map of ZIP codes with habitat recommendations from the Monroe County Keys north to Martin and Charlotte counties.
Habitats: Upland margins of mangrove swamps. Rare in hammocks inland.
Soils: Moist, well-drained limestone or calcareous sandy soils, with humusy top layer.
Nutritional Requirements: Moderate; can grow in nutrient poor soils, but needs some organic content to thrive.
Salt Water Tolerance: Moderate; tolerates brackish water or occasional inundation by salt 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 full sun.
Flower Color: Greenish-white.
Flower Characteristics: Semi-showy.
Flowering Season: Spring-summer.
Fruit: Lobed capsule with winged seeds.
References: Hammer 2004
Comments: It has medicinal properties.
