Specimen tree. Woodlands. , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Wildlife, Birds, squirrels and other animals eat the seeds. , Habitat, Dry sites. Mixed forest. Often invades abandoned fields.

Wildflower garden. , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Some tolerance to salty wind but not direct salt spray. , Habitat, Dry mesic to xeric pine flatwoods and dry open woods. Sandhills, secondary woods. , Did You Know?, Showy flowers Attractive to native bees and other pollinators.

If grown in a freshwater environment, S. patens will grow much bigger. Use as a shoreling stabilization plant on edges of sand beaches and saltmarsh. , Tolerance, Tolerant of occasional/brief inundation such as can occur in storm surges. High. Can tolerate significant and ongoing amounts of salty wind and salt , Wildlife, Birds and other animals eat the seeds. , Habitat, Salt and brackish water of shores, farmlands, marshes, dunes. , Did You Know?, Interesting foliage, Hurricane wind resistance