Needs substantial water during establishment, then relatively drought tolerant. Nodules on the roots of the plant, with the help of Rhizobium bacteria, fix nitrogen. Grow as a groundcover. Can be used as a turf replacement and can be mowed. Not good for heavy traffic. Tends not to have good cover during late fall through early spring.

While occurring naturally in wetlands, this plant makes a good shrub in reasonably moist uplands. Use as a background plant in moist, shady areas. Charming when planted along a stream. Blooms are showy, longlasting. Has a tendency to produce suckers, so best planted where it can be contained.

This species is broadly planted. It is one of the few native trees that is widely available. Noted for its twisty form, tolerance of root damage, and longevity. The form of this tree varies enormously with light conditions.  Open grown trees are sometimes shaped like inverted bowls and there is much horizontal growth.  Shade grown trees tend to grow straight toward the best light source and can either be tall and straight, or if the light is nor directly above, be very twisty. Noted for being a good epiphyte host. Throughout much of its range its branches are hosts to many epiphytic plants, especially bromeliads (such as ball moss, Tillandsia recurvata and Spanish moss, T. usneoides), ferns (such as resurrection fern, Pleopeltis polypodioides  and orchids including butterfly orchid (Encyclia tampensis). Large specimen tree or shade tree.

Groundcover for moist to wet sites.