General Landscape Uses:
Accent or specimen shrub in coastal uplands.
Availability:
Commonly available at native plant nurseries in central Florida. Available at native plant nurseries in South Florida.
Description: Large shrub or small tree with an open, irregular crown. Trunks short, bearing many irregular branches. Bark, thick, fissured, reddish brown. Leaves bright green above, the underside coated with rust-colored hairs.
Dimensions: About 5-15 feet in height or sometime more. Often broader than tall.
Growth Rate: Slow.
Range:
Southeastern United States south to Miami-Dade and Collier counties. Very rare in South Florida outside of Palm Beach and Martin counties. Perhaps never present or extirpated in Broward County. Presumed extirpated in Miami-Dade County.
Map of select IRC data from peninsular Florida.
Map of Postal Code Areas of IRC data from peninsular Florida.
Habitats: Coastal hammocks and scrub.
Soils: Moist to dry, well-drained 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: White.
Flower Characteristics: Inconspicuous.
Flowering Season: All year; peak spring-summer.
Fruit: Black ovoid berry.
Wildlife and Ecology: Attracts pollinators.
Horticultural Notes: Can be grown from de-pulped seed.
