This is one of Florida's most showy and most under-appreciated wildflowers. Look for it along disturbed roadsides in mid-late winter and early spring. , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Considertions, Sharp thorn-like prickles cover most of the plant. Highly toxic. , Habitat, Ruderal areas. Common on dry roadsides. , Did You Know?, Showy flowers, Thorns Attracts pollinators including bees, flies, and beetles.  Documented bee species include  Apis mellifera (honeybee), Dialictus

This plant is listed as Endangered in Florida where the southern limit of its range barely makes it into the state. Moist site garden though will tol , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Habitat, Floodplains, moist deep woods, thickets. , Did You Know?, Showy flowers, Showy fruits Attracts bees.

They are included here because they are valuable to insects and because they are lovely and good to have in a native garden if you are lucky enough to , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Considertions, Both species are hemi-parasitic (semi-parasitic) and difficult to grow without appropriate host plants. , Habitat, Open upland woods and disturbed edges. , Did You Know?, Showy flowers Larval host for  black buckeye. Attracts insects.

Plant at the back of an informal wildflower or butterfly garden--it gets tall. , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Habitat, Moist upland hardwood forests, mixed hardwood-pine forests. Secondary woods. , Did You Know?, Showy flowers Attracts many insects including bees and butterflies.

Flowers tend to appear in spring or after a significant rainfall. Otherwise inconspicuous. Small wildflower or plant in with other low groundcovers. , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Habitat, Dome swamp, wet flatwoods, wet prairie. In ditches, wet pastures, roadsides. Often in burned areas. , Did You Know?, Showy flowers Attracts pollinators.

Sometimes difficult to establish in new areas, but definitely worth the effort. Wildflower garden, meadow. , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Wildlife, Reported to attract hummingbirds. , Habitat, Sandhill, clayhill, scrub, ruderal , Did You Know?, Showy flowers Attracts butterflies, bees, other insects. Larval host to the monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus), queen butterfly (Danaus gilippus) a

This plant is believed to be extirpated in the wild in Florida.  According to most sources, it was known from a single area south of Miami near Biscay , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. High. Can tolerate significant and ongoing amounts of salty wind and salt spray without i , Habitat, Coastal areas. Dunes and limerock and said to like hollows near mangroves. , Did You Know?, Interesting foliage Nectar attracts  butterflies.

There is potential name confusion with this species since it was formerly considered to be a subspecies of O. hirtellus (Oplismenus hirtellus subsp. s , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Moderate. Tolerant of salty wind and may get some salt spray. Exposure to salt spray wo , Considertions, Unfortunately, this low growing grass is not visible during winter-spring, so its use is somewhat restricted to areas where this is not an issue. , Habitat, Moist sites. Shade. Moist hammocks. , Did You Know?, Interesting foliage Larval host for Carolina satyr (Hermeuptychia sosbius) butterfliy (IRC)

Specimen plant, screen plant, understory tree/shrub. , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Wildlife, Attracts pollinators. Birds and other wildlife consume fruit. , Habitat, Upland hardwood forests, bluffs, secondary woods. , Did You Know?, Showy flowers, Showy fruits Larval host for the spring azure butterfly (Celastrina ladon). Both native and non-native viburnums (Viburnum spp.) attra

Moist wildflower garden or butterfly garden. Edges of water features. Will spread to form large patches. , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Habitat, Riverine swamps, cypress savannas. , Did You Know?, Showy flowers Nectar plant for obscure skipper (Panoquina panoquinoides), salt marsh skipper (Panoquina panoquin), southern broken-dash (Wallengrenia

Listed as Threatened in Florida.  Please acquire only from appropriately licensed sources. Specimen tree or understory tree. , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Moderate. Tolerant of salty wind and may get some salt spray. Exposure to salt spray wo , Wildlife, Fruits are eaten by birds. , Habitat, Rockland hammock, pine rockland. Disturbed areas. , Did You Know?, Interesting foliage Bees pollinate flowers.

Listed as Endangered by the State of Florida. Please acquire in an environmentally conscientious manner. Retain in the natural landscape if present. , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Considertions, Slow growing. , Wildlife, Birds and other wildlife consume fruit. , Habitat, Rockland hammock. Coastal hammock. , Did You Know?, Showy flowers, Showy fruits, Interesting foliage, Hurricane wind resistance Insect pollinated.

It is listed as Threatened by the state of Florida. Naturalistic landscapes. , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Some tolerance to salty wind but not direct salt spray. , Wildlife, Birds and other wildlife consume fruit. , Habitat, Relatively dry hammocks. , Did You Know?, Interesting bark Larval host plant for Florida white (Appias drusilla) butterfly.

Mass planting or specimen plant in moist areas. Best for informal gardens. , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Some tolerance to salty wind but not direct salt spray. , Wildlife, Birds and other wildlife consume fruit. , Habitat, Moist hammocks, flatwoods, stream banks. , Did You Know?, Showy flowers Attracts butterflies. Attracts many pollinators including bees. Larval host plant for clymene moth (Haploa clymene).

The blue fruits on this tree are actually fleshy cones. Often used as a screen by planting in one or two fairly dense rows. Also useful as a backgrou , 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 eat the fruit-like cones and use the foliage for cover. , Habitat, Calcareous soils, shell mounds, coastal hammocks, second growth on open rocky fields. Open. , Did You Know?, Interesting foliage, Hurricane wind resistance

Tolerates winter flooding. This is a wetland plant. It is rarely grown, but it has potential in appropriate sites. Wet wildflower garden. For appeara , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Habitat, Moist sites. Hydric and mesic pine flatwoods, edges of sloughs, savannas, bogs, ditches. , Did You Know?, Showy flowers Larval host of  Gray Hairstreak, Painted Lady Butterfly, Common Checkered Skipper and Tropical Checkered Skipper butterflies and  four

Use as a small specimen shrub in moist areas. Can also be used in floodplains. , Tolerance, Tolerant of occasional/brief inundation such as can occur in storm surges. Some tolerance to salty wind but not direct salt spray. , Wildlife, Used by birds for nesting and food. A wide variety of animals eat the fruit. , Habitat, Shallowly inundated floodplain forest, shallow set sinks, hydric seep slopes and immediately adjacent mesic slopes, hydric hammock, moist mesic hammoc , Did You Know?, Interesting foliage Pollinated by bees.

Two varieties exist, both occur in this area. Wildflower garden. , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Habitat, Scrub, scrubby flatwoods, dry flatwoods. Also known from some rockland areas in Miami-Dade County. , Did You Know?, Showy flowers Attracts butterflies and bees. Documented bee visitors include  Agapostemon spleizdens, Augochlorella aurata, Augochloropsis suinptuosa

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

The shiny green leaves, gently fragrant flowers and glossy berries make this a charming plant. Can occasionally be subject to defoliation by the moth , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Wildlife, Berries eaten by many species of bids and other wildlife. , Habitat, Dry sites. Pinelands, maritime and sub-tropical or tropical hammocks , Did You Know?, Aroma, fragrance, Showy flowers, Showy fruits, Hurricane wind resistance Larval host for fiddlewood leafroller moth (Epicorsia oedipodalis) (Institut

Wildflower garden.  Low borders. , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Habitat, Pinelands, flatwoods, open hammocks, roadsides. , Did You Know?, Showy flowers Attracts butterflies and bees.