Florida Native Plant Society Blog

By Michelle Remogat and Alana Walker Figure 1. Ipomoea pes-caprae ssp. brasiliensis , railroad vine, has nectar guides to direct its pollinators. Photo by B. Navez. 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. Characteristics Leaves: Simple; sometimes lobed or compound Fruit: capsule Flower: actinomorphic, funnel-shaped corolla Description The Convolvulacaeae family is known as the Bindweed or Morning Glory family and is found primarily in the tropics and subtropics, but has become cosmopolitan. The family takes its name after the genus Ipomoea (Figure 1), but another 14 genera are also found in the state. In Florida, the family is home to 40 native and 27 non-native species (including varieties and subspecies). The state-listed endangered Bonamia grandiflora ...

 An impossible dream in an HOA-controlled community? Pam Brown's front yard In Pinellas County.  by Nanette O’Hara I hear it all the time. Folks who live in deed-restricted communities tell me they can’t remove even a blade of grass from their front yard for fear of recrimination from their evil HOAs. But is this really the case? Probably not. I think acceptance of “non-traditional” landscapes depends largely on how you deliver your pitch, and the effort you put into making your case for an alternative to the typical turfgrass-dominated yard with a couple of scraggly palm trees and a neatly manicured hedge of shrubs along the front of the house. State laws enacted in recent years make it clear that HOAs cannot prevent homeowners from implementing Florida-Friendly landscapes. Many homeowner associations may not be aware of this (especially if no one has bothered to inform them about it), and still more are unclear about what a “Florida Yard” looks like. They fear, unders...

By Laurie Sheldon Based loosely on Robert Northrop's presentation at the 2012 FNPS Conference. ( If you missed Part 1, click here .) (Please start by playing the following video) This is the city: Ruskin, Florida. Located on Florida’s central west coast, Ruskin occupies about 15 square miles of land in unincorporated Hillsborough County. From 1934 until the early 1950s, the major social event of the year was a Tomato Festival. We’ve stepped things up a bit since then, but we’re still something of a sleepy little town with a population of about 17,000… so when a deadly disease makes its Florida premiere in our backyard, I go to work. Monday, December 11, 2006, 59° I had just arrived at headquarters when I got a call from the lab Shannon and I sent tissue samples to the week before. Phil Shannon’s my partner at the Department of Agriculture’s Plant Industry Division. Our boss is Captain Crunch. My name is Sunday - Moe Sunday - I carry a badge. 8:45 A.M. I...

Do you know where the Callisia live? See below for more photos to help with ID. Polyploid complexes within the genus Callisia Loefl.,  section Cuthbertia (Commelinaceae) By Iwan Molgo Ph.D. candidate at the University of Florida in Gainesville Callisia is a genus in the Commelinaceae and is part of the 39 genera within the subfamily Commelinoideae (Burns et al., 2011). In this project, I would like to focus on Callisia section Cuthbertia , which consists of three species that are endemic to the Southeastern U.S.: C. graminea , C. ornata and C. rosea . Giles (1942) documented that there are two types of Callisia graminea that differ in morphology, cytology and geography. One type is a diploid which occurs in the sand hills of both North and South Carolina. The other type is a tetraploid which occurs along the coastal plain from the Carolinas to Florida. Giles also found rare triploids and hexaploids within C. graminea. My Ph.D. project will investigate the relati...

By Shannon Sardisco and Shannon Tapscott This post is one of a series from professor Nisse Goldberg's Botany students at Jacksonville University. Figure 1. Black-eyed Susan, Rudbeckia hirta . Photo credit: Keith Bradley. Classification Kingdom: Plantae Division: Magnoliophyta Class: Magnoliopsida Order: Asterales Family: Asteraceae Genus: Rudbeckia Specific epithet: hirta Description Rudbeckia hirta, or black-eyed or brown-eyed Susan, is one of nine species of Rudbeckia native to Florida. As with many of the Asteraceae, the flowers are found on a head with both ray and disk flowers (Figure 1).  The ray flowers are golden yellow and as the common name suggests, the disk flowers are dark brown.  Black-eyed Susan blooms during the months of July through October, offering nectar to pollinators such as butterflies and bees. The bristly stems (Figure 1) are 1-2 feet tall, with oval leaves. Figure 2. R. hirta seeds. Photo credit: ARS...

By Laurie Sheldon Based loosely on Robert Northrop's presentation at the 2012 FNPS Conference. (Please start by playing the following video) This is the city: Ruskin, Florida. Located in Hillsborough County on the south shore of Tampa Bay, it has all of the charm you’d expect from a town with a population of about 17,000. Founded on the shores of the Little Manatee River, its pristine estuarine preserves, untouched natural areas, and mild winters combine to make Ruskin ideal for quiet, peaceful living… so when I get a phone call from a hysterical woman screaming about a killer on the loose, that's when I go to work. Ruskin, a sleepy little town on Florida's west coast. "My tree is dead and someone just mistook me for Barbara Billingsley!" Friday, November 24, 2006, 65° I was on field patrol, Department of Agriculture’s Plant Industry Division, with my partner, Phil Shannon. Our boss, Captain Crunch, was out fishing. My name is Sunda...

What could be more all-American than native plants? This is the last of our Independence Day posts, in which we've featured species with red, white, or blue flowers or fruit. We hope you've enjoyed it! Figure 1. Male flowers of Myrica cerifera . Photo credit: Paul Redfearn, Jr. By Veronica Gajownik This post is one of a series from professor Nisse Goldberg's Botany students at Jacksonville University. Classification Kingdom: Plantae Order: Fagales Family: Myricaceae Genus: Myrica Specific epithet: cerifera Figure 2. Developing fruits of M. cerifera . Photo credit: Dennis Girard. Description Myrica cerifera is commonly known as the southern wax myrtle or southern bayberry. It grows throughout Florida, from Key West through the panhandle, where it thrives in sandy areas, upland woods and swamps. It is also found on both the Atlantic and Gulf coast, a testament to its tolerance of salty conditions. Its leaves are relatively narrow (F...

Happy Independence Day! What could be more all-American than native plants? We don't know. That's why we're featuring species with red, white, or blue flowers or fruit this week, so stay tuned! Figure 1. Vaccinium myrsinites in FL By Steven W. Woodmansee, FNPS President While shopping at my local grocery store in Kendall, I bought some blueberries to make a pie. I was surprised at how expensive they were, even when on sale ($2.50/half pint). Unaware that blueberries were grown commercially in Florida, I was even more startled when I read on the label that these were from Winter Haven (near Orlando). After thinking about it, it seemed fairly reasonable, especially given how many native species occur here. I am uncertain what species of blueberry I purchased (they were delicious), but was reminded of a blueberry which is found in almost every county in the state (Figure 1).   Figure 2. Shiny blueberry flowers Blueberries are in the heath famil...

What could be more all-American than native plants? In honor of Independence Day, we'll be featuring species with red, white, or blue flowers or fruit this week, so stay tuned! Figure 1. Upright growth habit of A. tetragonus , with closed flower. Photo credit: Alan Boatman. By Daneisha Hawkins This post is one of a series from professor Nisse Goldberg's Plant Taxonomy students at Jacksonville University. Classification Kingdom: Plantae Phylum: Magnoliophyta Class: Magnoliopsida Order: Caryophyllales Family: Cactaceae Genus: Acanthocereus Specific epithet: tetragonus   Figure 2. Night-blooming A. tetragonus shows its white tepals with yellow stamens. Photo credit: Bob Upcavage. Description Barbed-wire cactus, or Acanthocereus tetragonus , is typically found along the coast from St. Lucie County southward to Lee County, including the Keys. Interestingly, the plant is not vouchered in Broward County. Of the 12 native cactus specie...