It's quite hardy and tolerant of difficult environments. The herbarium specimen from Wakulla County is from a natural area.  It is a 2012 specimen and , 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, Good wildlife shelter.  Birds eat the fruits. , Habitat, Hammocks, pinelands, sloughs, seasonally flooded marshes in pine rocklands. , Did You Know?, Interesting foliage

The genus name honors the English botanist William Vernon, who did fieldwork in North America. Back of a moist wildflower garden. Can also use on the , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Some tolerance to salty wind but not direct salt spray. , Habitat, Exposed sand and gravel bars of streams during low water, stream banks, hydric to wet mesic pine flatwoods. Rich soils. Ruderal. , Did You Know?, Showy flowers Nectar attracts butterflies and native beens.  Larval host for spring azure butterfly.

Understory tree. Can be trimmed to keep sized as a shrub. Accent shrub or can be trained as a hedge. , 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, Slow growing. , Wildlife, Birds eat the fruit. , Habitat, Tropical rockland hammock (borders), coastal berm. , Did You Know?, Showy fruits Insect pollinated.

This is a wetland plant, but it will do well once established in a moist garden setting. Moist wildflower gardens. Easily grown along streams. , Tolerance, Tolerant of inundation with brackish water Some tolerance to salty wind but not direct salt spray. , Habitat, Riverine swamps, riverine marshes, open wet prairies. , Did You Know?, Aroma, fragrance, Showy flowers Pollinated by sphinx moths. Larval host for Spanish moth a.k.a. convict caterpillar (Xanthopastis timais)

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)

Dry wildflower garden.  Abundant flowers are produced near the ends of the stems. , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Wildlife, Seeds eaten by birds. , Habitat, Scrub, scrubby ruderal areas, sandhill, river levees. , Did You Know?, Showy flowers, Showy fruits Attracts bees and butterflies (Hawthorn Hill).  Documented bee visitors include  Colletes mandibularis, C. thysanellae, C

The cream-colored petals are crimped at the margins with numerous dark-purple stamen filaments and bluish anthers. Silky hairs cover the lower leaf su , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Habitat, Slope forest, upland hardwood forest, baygall. On acidic soils. , Did You Know?, Showy flowers

Moist wildflower garden, especially acidic gardens oriented toward sphagnum, pitcher plants, and similar bog species. , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Wildlife, Attracts pollinators. , Habitat, Flatwoods, wet prairie, savanna. , Did You Know?, Showy flowers

It is listed as endangered by the state of Florida and as critically imperiled in South Florida by The Institute for Regional Conservation. Specimen , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Habitat, Tropical rockland hammock, coastal rock barren, beach dune, coastal strand. Lower Keys only. , Did You Know?, Showy fruits, Interesting foliage

Not generally grown, little information on culture has been located. Wildflower in moist casual setting. , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Habitat, Moist flatwoods, savannas. , Did You Know?, Showy flowers Bees have been documented using this species including Dialictus nymphalis and D. tegularis (Deyrup et al. 2002).

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.

Nice blog article by Florida Wildflower Foundation. Background plant somewhere between a shrub and vine in character. , 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, Weak--needs support. Can be aggressive in the home landscape. , Wildlife, Birds and other wildlife consume fruit. , Habitat, Coastal hammocks, pine rocklands, coastal flats, disturbed forest edges. , Did You Know?, Showy flowers, Showy fruits Larval host for the Miami blue butterfly (Cyclargus thomasi) and Snowberry clearwing moth (Hemaris diffinis). Attracts a

Specimen plant or rock garden. , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Considertions, If conditions are right, it's a prolific reseeder. , Wildlife, Blooms attract hummingbirds. Seeds consumed by small birds. , Habitat, Bluffs and rock outcrops in moist deciduous forests. May also be found on shallow loamy soils over rock. , Did You Know?, Showy flowers Blooms attract bees, butterflies, and hawk moths

There is a natural dwarf form that is associated with xeric uplands.  I makes a nice, low-growing shrub in casual gardens. Good as a background or he , Tolerance, Tolerant of occasional/brief inundation such as can occur in storm surges. Moderate. Tolerant of salty wind and may get some salt spray. Exposure t , Considertions, It is flammable, so plant away from buildings in fire-prone areas. It fixes nitrogen with its roots like a legume, so it tolerates poor soils. , Wildlife, Good wildlife cover. Seeds eaten by birds. , Habitat, Wet-dry sites. Upland mixed forest, floodplains, wetland edges, cutthroat seeps, old fields, scrub, fencerows , Did You Know?, Hurricane wind resistance Larval host for banded hairstreak (Satyrium calanus) and red-banded hairstreak (Calycopis cecrops)butterflies.

Red/orange fall color is excellent. Leaves have three separate shapes: ovoid, tri-lobed, or mitten-shaped (left or right). Mature trees tend to have f , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Considertions, Like other members of this family, sassafras trees are threatened by the spread of the redbay ambrosia beetle and the laural wilt fungus it carries. M , Wildlife, Birds consume fruit. , Habitat, Dry sites. Dry mesic forests. , Did You Know?, Aroma, fragrance, Fall color, Interesting foliage Larval food for spicebush butterfly(Papilio troilus), tiger swallow-tail(papilio glaucus), palamede

It is listed as Endangered by the state of Florida. Understory tree. Use as screen or specimen plant. , Tolerance, Tolerant of inundation with brackish water Some tolerance to salty wind but not direct salt spray. , Wildlife, Fruits eaten by birds and small mammals. Hummingbirds visit the flowers. , Habitat, Rockland hammock in coastal areas. , Did You Know?, Aroma, fragrance, Showy flowers, Interesting foliage Nectar plant for Schaus' swallowtail (Heraclides aristodemius) and other butterflies.

Specimen shrub. , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Considertions, May be difficult to establish because of its long tap root. , Wildlife, Small mammals and birds harvest the fruit. , Habitat, Sandhills, flatwoods, scrubby flatwoods , Did You Know?, Showy flowers The flowers produce an odor similar to rotting meat to attract blowflies or carrion beetles for cross pollination. Larval host for zebr

Makes a nice ground cover in semi-shady to shady areas. , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Habitat, Hammocks, secondary woods and hedge rows. , Did You Know?, Interesting foliage

Moist wildflower garden. As it is tall and thin, it's best planted as a group toward the rear of other plants. , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Habitat, Open seepage areas, flatwoods, moist ditches. , Did You Know?, Showy flowers Pollinated by bumblebees and beeflies.