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Melinis repens (Willd.) Zizka
Rose Natalgrass

Melinis repens
Copyright by: Grasses, Sedges and Rushes of Palm Beach and Martin Counties, Florida website.

Family: Poaceae

Group: Monocot

Substrate: Terrestrial

Habit: Herb

Perennation: Perennial

Native Range: Old World (southern Africa); widely cultivated and naturalized.

Map of select IRC data for peninsular Florida

FLEPPC Status: Category I Invasive

SOUTH FLORIDA Occurrence: Present

SOUTH FLORIDA Native Status: Not Native, Naturalized

SOUTH FLORIDA Cultivated Status: Assumed to be Cultivated

Comments: For more images, click on the Atlas of Florida Vascular Plants link below.

Synonyms: Rhynchelytrum repens.

Other data on Melinis repens available from :

Melinis repens has been found in the following 149 conservation areas :
Occurrence Native Status
A.D. Doug Barnes Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Arch Creek Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge Present Not Native, Naturalized
Atlantic Dunes Park Possibly Extirpated Not Native, Naturalized
Attwood Addition, Indian Key Historic State Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Big and Little George Hammocks Present Not Native, Naturalized
Big Cypress National Preserve Present Not Native, Naturalized
Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Bill Sadowski Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Biscayne National Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Biscayne National Park, Florida Keys Section Present Not Native, Naturalized
Black Creek Forest Present Not Native, Naturalized
Blazing Star Preserve Present Not Native, Naturalized
Blue Heron Hammock, Florida Keys Wildlife and Environmental Area Present Not Native, Naturalized
Boystown Pineland Present Not Native, Naturalized
Caloosahatchee Creeks Preserve Present Not Native, Naturalized
Camp Owaissa Bauer Addition Present Not Native, Naturalized
Cape Romano - Ten Thousand Islands Aquatic Preserve Present Not Native, Naturalized
Castellow Hammock parcel 33 Present Not Native, Naturalized
Castellow Hammock Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Cayo Costa State Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Chapman Field Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Chernoff Hammock Present Not Native, Naturalized
Collier-Seminole State Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Coral Reef Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
County Line Scrub, Miami-Dade County Present Not Native, Naturalized
Crandon Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Crocodile Lake National Wildlife Refuge Present Not Native, Naturalized
Crystal Lake Sand Pine Scrub Natural Area Present Not Native, Naturalized
Curry Hammock State Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Dagny Johnson Key Largo Hammocks Botanical State Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Daskas Present Not Native, Naturalized
Deering Estate at Cutler Present Not Native, Naturalized
Delnor-Wiggins Pass State Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Delray Beach, Lake Ida parcel Present Not Native, Naturalized
Delray Oaks Natural Area Present Not Native, Naturalized
Dolphin Center and Dolphin Center Addition Present Not Native, Naturalized
Don Pedro Island State Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Dove Creek Hammocks, Florida Keys Wildlife and Environmental Area Present Not Native, Naturalized
Dr. Von D. Mizell-Eula Johnson State Park Possibly Extirpated Not Native, Naturalized
Dupuis Reserve Present Not Native, Naturalized
Eachus Pineland Present Not Native, Naturalized
Everglades and Francis S. Taylor Wildlife Management Area Present Not Native, Naturalized
Everglades National Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Florida Atlantic University Ecological Site Present Not Native, Naturalized
Florida City Pineland Present Not Native, Naturalized
Fort Lauderdale Ex. Airport Gopher Tortoise Preserve Present Not Native, Naturalized
Fred C. Babcock-Cecil M. Webb Wildlife Management Area Present Not Native, Naturalized
Frenchman's Forest Natural Area Present Not Native, Naturalized
Frog Pond/L-31 N Transition Lands Present Not Native, Naturalized
Fuchs Hammock Preserve Present Not Native, Naturalized
George N. Avery Pineland Present Not Native, Naturalized
Gomez Present Not Native, Naturalized
Gopher Tortoise Preserve Present Not Native, Naturalized
Goulds Pineland Present Not Native, Naturalized
Halpatiokee Regional Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Hattie Bauer Hammock Present Not Native, Naturalized
Hawk's Hammock Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Hickey Creek Mitigation Park Wildlife and Environmental Area Present Not Native, Naturalized
Highlands Scrub Natural Area Present Not Native, Naturalized
Hillsboro Pineland Natural Area Present Not Native, Naturalized
Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge Present Not Native, Naturalized
Hobe Sound Sandhill Present Not Native, Naturalized
Hugh Taylor Birch State Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Ingram Pineland Present Not Native, Naturalized
J.N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge Present Not Native, Naturalized
J.W. Corbett Wildlife Management Area Present Not Native, Naturalized
John Kunkel Small Pineland Present Not Native, Naturalized
John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Jonathan Dickinson State Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Juno Dunes Natural Area Present Not Native, Naturalized
Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse Outstanding Natural Area Present Not Native, Naturalized
Jupiter Ridge Natural Area Present Not Native, Naturalized
Kiplinger Present Not Native, Naturalized
Koreshan State Historic Site Present Not Native, Naturalized
LaBelle Nature Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Larry and Penny Thompson Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Lignumvitae Key Botanical State Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Lignumvitae Key Botanical State Park, Klopp Tract Present Not Native, Naturalized
Loggerhead Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Long Key Natural Area & Nature Center Present Not Native, Naturalized
Loxahatchee River Natural Area Present Not Native, Naturalized
Lucille Hammock Present Not Native, Naturalized
Ludlam Pineland Present Not Native, Naturalized
Luis Martinez United States Army Reserve Station, Richmond Pine Rocklands Present Not Native, Naturalized
Mangrove Preserve Present Not Native, Naturalized
Medlock Pineland Present Not Native, Naturalized
Meissner Hammock Present Not Native, Naturalized
Military Trail Natural Area Present Not Native, Naturalized
Miramar Pineland Present Not Native, Naturalized
Moreno Pine Rockland Present Not Native, Naturalized
Mound Key Archaeological State Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
National Key Deer Refuge Present Not Native, Naturalized
Navy Wells Pineland Preserve Present Not Native, Naturalized
Ned Glenn Nature Preserve Present Not Native, Naturalized
Nixon Smiley Pineland Addition Present Not Native, Naturalized
Nixon Smiley Pineland Preserve Present Not Native, Naturalized
Northrop Pineland Present Not Native, Naturalized
Palm Drive Pineland Present Not Native, Naturalized
Pal-Mar Present Not Native, Naturalized
Peck Lake Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Picayune Strand State Forest Present Not Native, Naturalized
Pine Island Ridge Natural Area Present Not Native, Naturalized
Pine Jog Environmental Sciences Center Present Not Native, Naturalized
Pine Ridge Sanctuary Present Not Native, Naturalized
Pine Shore Preserve Present Not Native, Naturalized
Pond Apple Slough Natural Area Present Not Native, Naturalized
Porter-Russell Pineland Present Not Native, Naturalized
Prairie Pines Preserve Present Not Native, Naturalized
Quail Roost Pineland Present Not Native, Naturalized
R. Hardy Matheson Preserve Present Not Native, Naturalized
Railhead Scrub Preserve Present Not Native, Naturalized
Red Reef Park, including Gumbo Limbo Nature Center Possibly Extirpated Not Native, Naturalized
Rock Pit 39 Present Not Native, Naturalized
Rockdale Pineland Present Not Native, Naturalized
Rocky Point Hammock Present Not Native, Naturalized
Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve Present Not Native, Naturalized
Rosemary Ridge Preserve Present Not Native, Naturalized
Rosemary Scrub Natural Area Present Not Native, Naturalized
Rotenberger Wildlife Management Area Present Not Native, Naturalized
Royal Palm Beach Pines Natural Area Present Not Native, Naturalized
Savannas Preserve State Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Scrub Oak Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Seabranch Preserve State Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Seacrest Scrub Natural Area Present Not Native, Naturalized
Seminole Wayside Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Serenoa Glade Preserve Present Not Native, Naturalized
Silver Palm Groves Present Not Native, Naturalized
Silver Palm Hammock Present Not Native, Naturalized
Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve Present Not Native, Naturalized
Snake Creek Hammocks, Florida Keys Wildlife and Environmental Area Present Not Native, Naturalized
SOCSOUTH Present Not Native, Naturalized
South Dade Wetlands Present Not Native, Naturalized
St. Lucie Inlet Preserve State Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Sunny Palms Pineland Present Not Native, Naturalized
Tamiami Pineland Complex Addition Present Not Native, Naturalized
Ten Thousand Islands National Wildlife Refuge Present Not Native, Naturalized
Tilton Present Not Native, Naturalized
Tradewinds Park & Stables Present Not Native, Naturalized
Trinity Pineland Present Not Native, Naturalized
Tropical Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Twin Rivers Present Not Native, Naturalized
West Biscayne Pineland Present Not Native, Naturalized
Wild Turkey Strand Preserve Present Not Native, Naturalized
Windley Key Fossil Reef Geological State Park Present Not Native, Naturalized
Yamato Scrub Natural Area Present Not Native, Naturalized
Yellow Fever Creek Preserve Present Not Native, Naturalized
Zoo Miami Present Not Native, Naturalized

Melinis repens has been found in the following 10 counties :
Occurrence Native Status
Broward County Not Native, Naturalized
Charlotte County Not Native, Naturalized
Collier County Not Native, Naturalized
Hendry County Not Native, Naturalized
Lee County Not Native, Naturalized
Martin County Not Native, Naturalized
Miami-Dade County Not Native, Naturalized
Monroe County (Keys) Not Native, Naturalized
Monroe County (Mainland) Not Native, Naturalized
Palm Beach County Not Native, Naturalized

Melinis repens has been found in the following 8 habitats :
Beach Dune
Coastal Strand
Disturbed Upland
Mesic Flatwoods
Pine Rockland
Scrub
Scrubby Flatwoods
Shell Mound

All Images:

Melinis repens
Copyright by: Grasses, Sedges and Rushes of Palm Beach and Martin Counties, Florida website.
Melinis repens
Copyright by: James Johnson, 2014
In habitat, Miramar Pineland Natural Area,
Broward County, Florida
Melinis repens
Copyright by: James Johnson, 2014
In habitat, Miramar Pineland Natural Area,
Broward County, Florida
Melinis repens
Copyright by: Roger L. Hammer
Melinis repens
Copyright by: Grasses, Sedges and Rushes of Palm Beach and Martin Counties, Florida website.
Melinis repens
Copyright by: Grasses, Sedges and Rushes of Palm Beach and Martin Counties, Florida website.