|                    Downy milkpea
                      |  
              
                |                    Galactia volubilis  
                      |  
              
                |                    Fabaceae 
                      |  
  
              
                 Landscape Uses:
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                 Primarily recommended for natural landscapes and habitat restorations.  Also wildflower and butterfly gardens. | 
               
                Ecological Restoration Notes:  | 
               
              
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                 A relatively common understory herb or small vine in pine rocklands and coastal uplands. | 
               
              
                | Availability: | 
               
              
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                 Grown by enthusiasts. | 
               
              
                | Description: | 
               
              
                |   | 
                 Small twining, low climbing vine. | 
               
              
                | Height: | 
               
              
                |   | 
                 N/A; a vine with stems to 3 feet or more in length. | 
               
              
                | Growth Rate: | 
               
              
                |   | 
                 Moderate. | 
               
              
                | Range: | 
               
              
                |   | 
                 Eastern United States west to Texas and south to the Monroe County Keys; West Indies. | 
               
              
                | Habitats: | 
               
              
                |   | 
                 Pinelands, hammocks and thickets. | 
               
              
                | Soils: | 
               
              
                |   | 
                 Moist, well-drained sandy or limestone soils, with or without humusy top layer. | 
               
              
                | Nutritional Requirements: | 
               
              
                |   | 
                 Low; it grows in nutrient poor soils. | 
               
              
                | Salt Water Tolerance: | 
               
              
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                 Low; does not tolerate long-term flooding by salt or brackish water. | 
               
              
                | Salt Wind Tolerance: | 
               
              
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                 Secondary line; tolerates significant salt wind without injury, but usually is somewhat protected. | 
               
              
                | Drought Tolerance: | 
               
              
                |   | 
                 High; does not require any supplemental water once established. | 
               
              
                | Light Requirements: | 
               
              
                |   | 
                 Full sun to light shade. | 
               
              
                | Flower Color: | 
               
              
                |   | 
                 Bright pink fading to blue. | 
               
              
                | Flower Characteristics: | 
               
              
                |   | 
                 Semi-showy. | 
               
              
                | Flowering Season: | 
               
              
                |   | 
                 All year. | 
               
              
                | Fruit: | 
               
              
                |   | 
                 Small brown pod (legume). | 
               
              
                | Wildlife and Ecology: | 
               
              
                |   | 
                 Larval host plant for cassius blue (Leptotes cassius), ceraunus blue (Hemiargus ceraunus), gray hairstreak (Strymon melinus), silver spotted skipper (Epargyreus clarus) and zarucco duskywing (Erynnis zarucco) butterflies. | 
               
                     
                | Horticultural Notes: | 
               
              
                |   | 
                 Can be grown from seed. | 
               
              
                | Comments: | 
               
              
                |   | 
                 This is a part of a confusing group with unstable taxonomy; this species was listed as Galactia regularis in Wunderlin & Hansen (2011) and for several years on the Atlas of Florida Vascular Plants. Plants in the Florida Keys and in the pine rocklands of Miami-Dade County are the closely related Galactia parvifolia, with narrow leaflets. For any Galactia species, we recommend using plants that were originally collected from near your project location. | 
               
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                | 
                    George D. Gann, 2019. Ocean Ridge Hammock Park, Palm Beach County, Florida.
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