General Landscape Uses:
Primarily recommended for natural landscapes and habitat restorations. Also wildflower gardens.
Availability:
Grown by enthusiasts and occasionally by native plant nurseries.
Description: Small herbaceous wildflower.
Dimensions: Basal rosette to about 1 inch in height; to 4 inches when in flower. Taller than broad when in flower.
Growth Rate: Fast.
Range:
Peninsular Florida from Miami-Dade and Collier counties scattered north to Indian River, Osceola, Sumter and Citrus counties; southern Texas, Mexico, Central America and South America. Not documented on barrier islands in Florida, but possibly historically present; it grows well at
Pan’s Garden in Palm Beach.
Map of select IRC data from peninsular Florida.
Map of Postal Code Areas of IRC data from peninsular Florida.
Habitats: Wet pinelands and marl prairies.
Soils: Seasonally wet to moist, moderately well-drained to well-drained sandy or limestone soils, without humus.
Nutritional Requirements: Low; it grows in nutrient poor soils.
Salt Water Tolerance: Low; does not tolerate flooding by salt or brackish water.
Salt Wind Tolerance: Low; salt wind may burn the leaves.
Drought Tolerance: Low; requires moist to wet soils and is intolerant of long periods of drought.
Light Requirements: Full sun.
Flower Color: Pink.
Flower Characteristics: Semi-showy.
Flowering Season: All year.
Fruit: Inconspicuous capsule.
