General Landscape Uses: Accent or specimen tree.
Ecological Restoration Notes: Not recommended for habitat restoration projects. Already over planted within its native range.
Description: Small tree or shrub. Usually taller than broad.
Dimensions: Typically 10-25 feet in height. Usually taller than broad.
Growth Rate: Fast.
Range: Miami-Dade and Monroe counties; the West Indies, southern Mexico and Central America. In South Florida, native only to the Florida Keys and the extreme southern mainland, mostly in Everglades National Park. For a digitized image of Elbert Little’s Florida range map, visit the Exploring Florida website.
Habitats: Hammock edges.
Soils: Moist, well-drained limestone or calcareous sandy soils, with humusy top layer.
Nutritional Requirements: Moderate; can grow in nutrient poor soils, but needs some organic content to thrive.
Salt Water Tolerance: Low; does not tolerate long-term flooding by salt or brackish water.
Salt Wind Tolerance: High; can tolerate moderate amounts of salt wind without significant injury.
Drought Tolerance: High; does not require any supplemental water once established.
Light Requirements: Full sun to light shade.
Flower Color: Orange.
Flower Characteristics: Showy.
Flowering Season: Summer-fall.
Fruit: White fleshy drupe.
Wildlife and Ecology: Nectar plant for large orange sulpher (Phoebis agarithe), Schaus’ swallowtail (Papilio aristodemius ponceasus) and other butterflies.
Horticultural Notes: Can be grown from seed.
References: Hammer 2004, Nelson 2003
Comments: Widely cultivated outside its native range in South Florida and sometimes naturalizing.
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