|                    Balloonvine, Heartseed
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                |                    Cardiospermum corindum var. corindum
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                |                    Sapindaceae 
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                 Landscape Uses:
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                 Primarily recommended for natural landscapes and habitat restorations.  Also butterfly gardens in the upper Florida Keys. | 
               
                Ecological Restoration Notes:  | 
               
              
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                 Grows along the edges of coastal hammocks, but may become too aggressive during early stages of restoration. | 
               
              
                | Availability: | 
               
              
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                 Grown by enthusiasts. Available in Key West at Key West Botanical Garden, and in Miami at Dade County FNPS | 
               
              
                | Description: | 
               
              
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                 Climbing vine with tendrils. | 
               
              
                | Height: | 
               
              
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                 N/A; a vine with stems to 10 ft or more in length. | 
               
              
                | Growth Rate: | 
               
              
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                 Fast. | 
               
              
                | Range: | 
               
              
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                 Monroe and Miami-Dade counties; West Indies, Texas, Mexico, Central America and South America.  In the Monroe County Keys, very rare or extirpated south of Plantation Key and apparently absent from the lower Keys. | 
               
              
                | Habitats: | 
               
              
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                 Coastal hammocks. | 
               
              
                | Soils: | 
               
              
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                 Moist, well-drained limestone soils, with humusy top layer. | 
               
              
                | Nutritional Requirements: | 
               
              
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                 Moderate; can grow in nutrient poor soils, but needs some organic content to thrive. | 
               
              
                | Salt Water Tolerance: | 
               
              
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                 Low; does not tolerate flooding by salt or brackish water. | 
               
              
                | Salt Wind Tolerance: | 
               
              
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                 Moderate; grows near salt water, but is protected from direct salt spray by other vegetation. | 
               
              
                | Drought Tolerance: | 
               
              
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                 High; does not require any supplemental water once established. | 
               
              
                | Light Requirements: | 
               
              
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                 Full sun. | 
               
              
                | Flower Color: | 
               
              
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                 White. | 
               
              
                | Flower Characteristics: | 
               
              
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                 Semi-showy. | 
               
              
                | Flowering Season: | 
               
              
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                 All year. | 
               
              
                | Fruit: | 
               
              
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                 Inflated, papery capsule; seeds with a heart-shaped hilum. | 
               
              
                | Wildlife and Ecology: | 
               
              
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                 Larval host plant for Miami blue (Cyclargus thomasi bethunebakeri) and silver-banded hairstreak (Chlorostrymon simaethis) butterflies; occasional larval host for gray hairstreak (Strymon melinus) butterflies. | 
               
                     
                | Horticultural Notes: | 
               
              
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                 Can be grown from seed. | 
               
              
                | Comments: | 
               
              
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                 Recruits readily in the garden from seed. | 
               
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                    Kristen Finch Cultivated plant, Palm Beach County, Florida, 2013
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                    George D. Gann in habitat, Everglades National Park, Florida, 2013
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