White Stopper – Eugenia Axillaris

General Landscape Uses: Accent shrub or small tree. Buffer plantings.

Ecological Restoration Notes: A relatively common understory or sub-canopy element in hammocks.

Description: Tall upright shrub or small tree with a small trunk and branches. Bark pale grayish to whitish, smooth. Leaves leathery, dull dark green above; leaf stem reddish.

Dimensions: Typically 10-20 feet in height; to 28 feet in South Florida. Taller than broad.

Growth Rate: Moderate to slow.

Range: Monroe County Keys north to Volusia, Hendry and Levy counties, mostly along the coast; Bermuda, West Indies, Mexico and Central America. For a digitized image of Elbert Little’s Florida range map, visit the Exploring Florida website.

Habitats: Hammocks.

Soils: Moist, well-drained sandy or limestone soils, with humusy top layer.

Nutritional Requirements: Moderate to high; grows best with some organic content and may languish in nutrient poor soils.

Salt Water Tolerance: Moderately low; does not tolerate long-term flooding by salt or brackish water, but tolerates short term inunation by salt water from storm surge with minimal damage.

Salt Wind Tolerance: Moderate; grows near salt water, but is protected from direct salt spray by other vegetation.

Drought Tolerance: Moderate; generally requires moist soils, but tolerant of short periods of drought once established.

Light Requirements: Light shade to full sun.

Flower Color: White.

Flower Characteristics: Semi-showy.

Flowering Season: All year; peak spring-summer.

Fruit: Black or reddish berry. Edible.

Wildlife and Ecology: Provides significant food and cover for wildlife. Attracts bee and moth pollinators, including the tantalus sphinx (Aellopos tantalus) moth. Birds eat the fruits.

Horticultural Notes: Can be grown from de-pulped seed. Place in light shade. Germination usually occurs within 1 month.

References: Schaefer & Tanner 1997

Comments: The pinkish new growth is very attractive. Some say white stopper has a “skunky” odor, although many can not detect the smell. See also the Florida Wildflower Foundation’s Flower Friday page.