Florida Native Plant Society Blog

By Lily Everson and Kara Cecil This post is one of a series from professor Nisse Goldberg's Plant Taxonomy students at Jacksonville University. FNPS blogger Laurie Sheldon assisted the students with their initial drafts, providing suggestions for editing and content development. Overview Mangroves are tropical trees that can grow well in both fresh and brackish water. There are four main species of mangroves in Florida: the red mangrove ( Rhizophora mangle , Fig. 2), the black mangrove ( Avicennia germinans , Fig. 3), the white mangrove ( Laguncularia racemosa , Fig. 4), and buttonwood ( Conocarpus erectus ). This article will focus on the red, black, and white mangrove species . Figure 1. Mangrove zonation. Mangroves are traditionally found on the coasts of Florida as far north as St. Augustine. With the warming of temperatures, the mangroves have been spreading northward into salt marsh habitats dominated by Spartina alterniflora . This has become a topic of intere...

By Cindy Liberton, 32nd Annual FNPS Conference Planning Committee Corridor Expedition route Here we are again, between Earth Day 2012 and Arbor Day, holidays best spent outdoors. Earth Day was originally intended as a date to commemorate humankind's relationship with the planet. Since its start in 1970 , we have seen the event evolve, wax and wane, but, to me, April 22nd means a day for celebration, reflection, and lots of community events.  Each event, in every, community, wouldn't happen without volunteers.  And that is a big thing, and something to reflect upon. 2012’s Earth Day in Florida was especially remarkable to me because of some specific volunteers, both renowned and unsung. On this Earth Day, just over the Florida state line, four intrepid environmentalists completed day 97 of the "1000 miles, 100 Days”  Florida Wildlife Corridor Expedition . Their efforts to spotlight the remaining greenways and wildlife corridors of Florida have made the news thr...

By Steven W. Woodmansee, FNPS President Perhaps one of the biggest challenges to growing new native plant species is obtaining seeds and germplasm for them. Germplasm is a term used to describe any plant material used in propagation. It could be seeds, cuttings, air layers, or tissue (root or otherwise).  By and large, the plant nursery industry often prefers cuttings or tissue culture as they present the easiest/cheapest way to mass produce plants, as well as preserve certain plant characteristics. Seeds are generally the preferred method ecologically , as each seed will present a unique set of genetic material thereby assuring genetic diversity within a species and preventing things like artificial genetic drift (i.e. plants will no longer be selected for survivability), disease susceptibility, inbreeding, etc. Not all plants are the same when it comes to harvesting, storing, & germinating seed/fruit. First things first, when harvesting wet or pulpy fruit, in general...

By Dakota Nielsen and Ciarra Slater * This post is one of a series from professor Nisse Goldberg's Botany students at Jacksonville University. Classification Kingdom: Plantae Division: Magniolophyta Class: Magnoliopsida Order: .Fabales Family: Fabaceae Genus: Erythrina Specific epithet: herbacea Description Erythrina herbacea , also known as the coralbean, Cherokee bean and the cardinal spear, is a member of the Fabaceae or pea family. It is found throughout the state, growing in hardwood hammocks, open sandy woods, and even near saltwater. The coralbean can grow to 3-4 ft tall and has prickly stems. To maximize exposure to sunlight for photosynthesis, they can change their orientation to the light, which is known as heliotropism. The flowers are scarlet red and bloom in the months of May to June, attracting hummingbirds with sweet delicious nectar. Coralbean takes its name from the bright red seeds found inside each pod. The large seeds are eaten by birds and other ani...

Erysimum sp., known commonly as wallflowers, are not native to Florida or FNPS conferences FNPS member Janet Bowers reflects on a half decade of conferences I joined the Florida Native Plant Society several years ago to find out where to buy native plants. I decided to go to a chapter meeting a couple years later, which truly I enjoyed. A schedule change shortly thereafter prevented me from attending other meetings. Although I received the statewide newsletters and info about the yearly conference, I was hesitant to attend since I didn’t know anyone in the organization. Author Janisse Ray, happily signing books after a great lecture The first conference I attended was in Gainesville in 2007. I actually went as a vendor to volunteer at the Bok Tower plant sale table outside. The selection at the sale was incredible. Awed by the sheer volume of plants, I quickly filled my car with purchases. When I discovered that Janisse Ray was the keynote speaker, I read her boo...

By Jeff Cassel This post is one of a series from professor Nisse Goldberg's Plant Taxonomy students at Jacksonville University.   Figure 1: Dodder stems lack chlorophyll and are easy to spot because of their orange color. Photo credit: Curtis Clark. Classification Kingdom: Plantae Division: Magnoliophyta Class: Magnoliopsida Order: Solanales Family: Cuscutacea Genus: Cuscuta Specific epithet : pentagona Common name : Fiveangled Dodder Description Figure 2: White, bell-shaped dodder flowers. Photo credit: Curtis Clark. Cuscuta pentagona , or fiveangled dodder is a parasitic climbing vine, which means that it derives its nutrients from other organisms. Fiveangled dodder can be found throughout Florida in a variety of different habitats that include hammocks, dunes, and brackish marshes. You can recognize the plant by its yellow to orange stems (Fig. 1) and white, bell-shaped flowers (Fig. 2). Because it is parasitic, dodder does not have chloroph...

by Cindy Liberton Location, Location, Location The Suncoast Chapter serves Hillsborough County, reaching from Tampa Bay north to Lutz, south to Ruskin, and east to Plant City, site of the 32nd annual Florida Native Plant conference. With so many places to choose from, some may wonder, “why Plant City? Is it the name?" If you only know Plant City as a blur south of the Interstate, you are not alone. After whizzing by it countless times, I finally slowed down to see what Plant City had to offer; it was truly a worthwhile decision. Here are some of the reasons why... The Collins Street mural captures the history and culture of Plant City for the passerby. Dedicated 1/10/2010, it commemorates the 125th anniversary of the city's incorporation. Depicting 53 total figures, the mural includes 25 historical people and iconic city landmarks. It turns out that Plant City is one of the few “walkable” towns in Florida, complete with historic buildings and murals. Though clos...

By Becca Massip Figure 1: The Pineland Butterfly Pea, Centrosema arenicola , is an endangered species found in Duval County, Florida Photo credit: Shirley Denton This post is one of a series from professor Nisse Goldberg's Plant Taxonomy students at Jacksonville University. FNPS blogger Laurie Sheldon assisted the students with their initial drafts, providing suggestions for editing and content development. The Fabaceae family is known as the Pea Family. It is the third largest family amongst flowering plants, containing over 16,000 species. There are 314 species in Florida alone, 168 of which are natives! This family is found in temperate and tropical environments all over the world however, most species prefer seasonally dry habitats. This family is very unique because it can directly fix atmospheric nitrogen with the help of root nodulating bacteria. Characteristics Leaves: simple, trifoliate, pinnate, or bipinnate Fruit: legume Flower: zygom...

A Story about Live Oaks, Pollen, and Understanding By Laurie Sheldon Writing in a layer of pollen on a vehicle. Source: www.sciencephoto.com/media/84104/enlarge      Aah, spring… the sun is shining, the birds are singing, the oaks are leafing out and my neighborhood is plastered in yellow. No, we don’t have a Post-it® fetish. It’s pollen, and it’s earlier and thicker than usual this year. Don’t go hating on the oak trees, though - it’s not really their fault. They are simply responding to the climbing temperature. The fresh air and changes in wind which push out at least some of the pollen come from the cold fronts we normally have in early spring. These beneficial fronts have been m.i.a. this year, which has left us roosting in an inert yellow cloud.      On the bright side, however, is the effect that this abundance of pollen has had on my curiosity. It occurred to me that, while fairly knowledgeable about zoophyly ...