Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray

The herbarium specimen from Polk County almost certainly has a wrong location.  Lithia is in Hillsborough County and the most likely translation of a wrongly written latitude and longitude is also in Hillsborough County -- but the exact location would have been agricultural in 1962. Hedges, back borders. Blooms in summer.

It's a legume, so nitrogen fixation may help it survive in low nutrient soils. Fast growing. Shade tree. Attractive for its lacy foliage. Does well as a street tree.

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 fewer lobed leaves. Subject to laurel wilt disease.  Please be careful not to move firewood or dead wood around.  Best not planted in areas where laurel wilt is present. A relatively small tree that often forms thickets. Best used in informal settings.

The inflorescence consists of a few long-stalked flowers with 6 tepals and many bulblets that tend to sprout in place. The first leaf from the bulblet tends to curl giving the structure a wild-haired appearance. Wildflower garden, rain garden, bioswale, or herb garden.

This can be a love-it-or-hate-it plant.  It is robust and can cover a large area.  Consider where you are going to plant it, and avoid planting in areas where it could take over a community pond. While this plant meets the Florida Native Plant Society's definition of native (here when Europeans first arrived), the center of its range is the Mississippi River and its tributaries.  American Indians are known to have spread this plant given that it was a good, prolific food source once established.  They may have brought it to Florida. Water plant.

Salt tolerance has not been studied but it has been recorded (in New England) in salt marshes, suggesting tolerance of at least brackish water and likely tolerance of some salt spray. Information is lacking regarding pollination for the species. However, the family exhibits flowers that are hermaphrodite, dioecious, or gynodioecious (fairly commonly), and is most often pollinated by insects, (bees, butterflies & moths, or flies).  Also has cleistogamous flowers,so self pollination may also occur(Collins 1976 as cited in New England Native Plant Trust, 2002). Wildflower garden. It blooms early before most of the other wildflowers.

Very thorny. In the northern parts of its range, a thornless cultivar is planted. Specimen tree. To avoid insect issues, best not to plant in large numbers.

Natural areas with some trees and vines for support

Grows well well north of its native range.  Documented in very southern counties with an outlier in Martin County -- that outlier is also unique in that it was collected near a cypress dome. Closely related to corn, this species has been crossed with maize to produce a corn that is resistant to Helminthosporium turcicum, the fungus that causes northern leaf blight  (Wikipedia). Listed as Threatened in Florida. Informal borders.

Although it has square stems and opposite leaves like members of the mint family (Lamiaceae), this is a member of the daisy family, but it has no ray florets that look like petals. All the florets in the flower head are fertile. Use in a butterfly garden or informal wildflower garden.

This plant is considered to be Threatened in Florida. Please preserve in the landscape and acquire new plants in an environmentally sound manner (seed or nursery-grown plants). Good as a buffer plant. Could be used as an informal hedge.

Specimen plant, typically forms clumps of stems,the young fan-shaped fronds hide the principal stems. The lower fronds can be removed so that the trunks can be clearly seen. Sometimes used as a street tree.

Primarily useful for coastal restoration projects.

Minimize competition especially if it is over-topping the Pityopsis. Wildflower garden. Foliage can be attractive year-round as silvery-gray green. Also suitable for naturalizing. The foliage will spread into a small mat which can be used to some extent as a groundcover.

Understory tree, use as a background plant or screen.

Litsea aestivalis is listed as Endangered by the State of Florida.  Since that listing, the laurel wilt disease has come to Florida, and is known to kill this species.   It is likely best to plant this plant only if the stock is known to be disease free, and only if planting it is not likely to provide new hosts for the disease.  As with any Endangered species, please acquire only from reputable nurseries with appropriate licences to grown and sell this species. The documented range of this species suggests that the occurrence is sparse, but fairly broad in the northern half of Florida.  It is also a plant that is easily overlooked and that may have a wider range than that suggested by documentation from herbarium specimens given that much of its habitat has likely been eliminated by forestry practices.  It is also probably that the range is becoming sparser due to laurel wilt. Wetland areas where the goal is to attract birds.

This is one of Florida's more widespread spiderlilies. It is sometimes seen in roadside ditches. It is feasible to transplant this species if a plant rescue is needed. However note, a permit may be required. Retain it if in its natural setting. Plant in a moist setting.

The Emerald Ash Borer (Agrilus planipennis)is a very destructive wood-boring beetle native to Asia. It was discovered in North America in July 2002, and has become established in Michigan, New York, Ohio and Ontario (Canada). Millions of ash trees have been killed in the northeastern US. Although the borer has not been detected in Florida (Dec. 2011), the presence of ash trees and the ongoing movement of wood, trees and cargo into the state make Florida an area where the beetle could potentially become established. Your help is needed to detect possible infestations so they can be quickly eradicated...if you see it, contact the Florida Division of Forestry. Appropriate for edges of lakes and ponds. Will also grow as a shade tree in uplands, but white ash has better form. Can be used in settings with soil disturbance.

Informal shady semi-shady gardens.

Wildflower garden.