Interesting pink veined foliage, showy flowers. Often lies on its side with the flowers held somewhat above the rest of the plant. Has an extremely de , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Considertions, Toxic if eaten unless boiled with two waters. Tends to sprawl. , Habitat, Sandhill, clayhill, scrub. , Did You Know?, Showy flowers, Showy fruits, Interesting foliage Larval host to the Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus), Queen butterfly (Danaus gilippus) and other

Use in a wildflower garden. Good for roadside wilflower plantings. , 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 small birds. , Habitat, Mostly ruderal. , Did You Know?, Showy flowers Attracts bumble bees, butterflies Larval host for the silvery checkerspot, found only in extreme north Florida.

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

Leaves have sharp spiny tips. Specimen plant. Low hedge. , 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, The leaves have hard, sharp points. , Wildlife, Provides wildlife cover , Habitat, Dry sites. Scrub, scrubby flatwoods. , Did You Know?, Showy flowers, Interesting foliage Larval host plant for cofaqui giant skipper (Megathymus cofaqui) and yucca giant skipper (Megathymus yuccae) butte

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.

Spicy smell to crushed foliage. Florida is at the southern end of the range for this species, and the range is likely disjoint with the species occurr , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Considertions, Like it's relative redbay(Persea borbonia), it's susceptible to attacks by the redbay ambrosia beetle, which spreads a deadly fungus called Laural Wil , Wildlife, Birds and mammals eat the fruits. , Habitat, Bluffs, floodplains, calcareous hammocks. Rare. , Did You Know?, Aroma, fragrance, Showy fruits, Interesting foliage Larval host for the spice bush swallowtail and other butterflies.  Attracts bees and flies.

Specimen tree in wet settings. This is a good plant to grow in floodplains. , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Considertions, Nut and leaf drop can be messy in a home landscape. , Wildlife, Ducks and other wildlife consume nuts. , Habitat, Swamps , Did You Know?, Interesting foliage Larval host for many moths including; luna moth (Actias luna), hickory leafroller moth (Argyrotaenia juglandana), royal walnut mo

Because it's a legume, it will grow well in poor soil. There are multiple subspecies. Wildflower garden. This is a low, wide-spreading plant that wil , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Wildlife, Birds and other small wildlife consume seeds (in pods). , Habitat, Dry flatwoods. , Did You Know?, Showy flowers Larval host for southern dogface (Zerene cesonia). Attracts pollinators, especially bees.

Curiosity in wetland gardens. , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Considertions, Like many members of the Arum family, all parts of this plant are toxic. , Habitat, Shallow water of pools, streams, and swamps. , Did You Know?, Showy flowers, Interesting foliage Pollinated by bees, flies, and beetles (Florida Wildflower Foundation)

Wildflower garden. Flowers in spring and summer. , Tolerance, Tolerant of inundation with brackish water Some tolerance to salty wind but not direct salt spray. , Considertions, May appreciate periodic light pruning. , Habitat, Dry hammocks, dry hardwood forests , Did You Know?, Showy flowers Pollinated by moths, especially polka-dot wasp moth and the oleander moth. These moths also use it as a larval host.

Restoration of savannas. Curiosity in the wildflower garden. , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Wildlife, Small birds consume seed. , Habitat, Cutthroat seeps, wet flatwoods, savannas. , Did You Know?, Showy fruits it is the larval host plant of arogos skipper (Atrytone arogos) butterflies.

Information on salt tolerance comes from northern nurseries in areas where the biggest issue is likely to be salt used for deicing roadsides. This nat , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Some tolerance to salty wind but not direct salt spray. , Considertions, Thorns. , Wildlife, Fruits eaten by birds and small mammals , Habitat, Floodplains, marshy or swampy shores, cypress swamps and wet thickets, often in shallow water. , Did You Know?, Showy flowers, Showy fruits, Thorns Attracts pollinators and is especially important for native bees.

Can be cut back to improve appearance, but should not be severely pruned more than once a year. Spores cover undersides of leaves giving them a bi-col , Tolerance, Tolerant of inundation with brackish water High. Can tolerate significant and ongoing amounts of salty wind and salt spray without injury. , Considertions, Not drought tolerant. , Wildlife, Used as cover. , Habitat, Brackish and freshwater marshes, swamps, river floodplains. , Did You Know?, Interesting foliage

Understory tree, use as a background plant or screen. , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Habitat, Floodplains, rich woodlands, upland mixed forest. , Did You Know?, Fall color, Showy fruits Larval host for the giant swallowtail. Carrion flies pollinate the flowers.

Small tree with shiny foliage. New leaves are reddish. Columnar growth form. Suited to planting near structures and a good background plant for urban , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Some tolerance to salty wind but not direct salt spray. , Wildlife, Provides cover. , Habitat, Hammocks. , Did You Know?, Interesting foliage

Wet garden. Rain garden. Shade tree for wet areas and along wetland edges. Leaves turn yellow in fall. Slow growing. , Tolerance, Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray , Wildlife, Fruits eaten by birds and smal mammals. , Habitat, Floodplain forests , swamps, usually in water. , Did You Know?, Fall color Visited by bees and valued by commercial bee keepers as a source of exceptionally sweet honey.  Also said to be wind pollinated.