A Short Field Trip to the Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge

On February 19, 2023, the Palm Beach County Chapter of the Florida Native Plant Society sponsored a field trip to the Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge. We went on the 0.4 mile (0.64 kilometer) boardwalk trail that took us through an 80-year-old second growth cypress swamp and, after the boardwalk trail, we spent a bit of time at the Refuge's pollinator garden outside the visitor center. Here are a few photographs taken during the field trip.

 

I went to the Refuge with fellow native plant enthusiast, Julia Renninger. In her mostly native garden were a few non-natives, including this Calliandra emarginata 'Nana'. It is sometimes a component of wildlife gardens in Florida for its flowers, which attract bees and hummingbirds. The yellow mottled foliage is fairly common in specimens cultivated in south Florida, but I am not certain if it is indicative of a mineral deficiency or a virus. 

 

A close-up of the flowers of Calliandra emarginata 'Nana'.

 

A close-up of the flowers of Arachnothryx leucophylla (common name Panama-rose), another non-ntive plant sometimes cultivated in native plant gardens in the warmer parts of Florida, presumably for hummingbirds.

 

Acer rubrum (Red Maple) was putting out a flush of fresh, new spring growth in the cypress swamp.

 

As to be expected, epiphytes were everywhere and we stumbled across this fortuitous assemblage of three native epiphytes: Epidendrum rigidum (rigid epidendrum), Pleopeltis michauxiana (resurrection fern), and Tillandsia setacea (southern needle-leaf airplant). All three were readily seen from the boardwalk, with the fern and airplant being frequent and the orchid common.

 

Plants of Nephrolepis biserrata (giant swoard fern) were spectacular at the Refuge, where they were growing under ideal conditions of moisture and partial shade. Macho fern, which is rather popular as a large landscape fern in south Florida, is a cultivar of this species (Nephrolepis biserrata 'Macho').

 

As was to be expected, Saururus cernnus (lizard's tail) was frequent and abundant in the Refuge's cypress swamp.

 

Telmatoblechnum serrulatum (swamp fern) was also frequent along the boardwalk trail and, under ideal conditions of moisture and light, were among the largest and most robust representatives of this species that I'd ever seen.

 

There were many birds present along the boardwalk on the February morning that we visited the Refuge and one birder in our group recorded about two dozen species. Other than the birds and a swarm of termites, there were few signs of wildlife although this cypress trunk (Taxodium species) was clear evidence that a bobcat (or bobcats) were using it as a favored scratching post.

 

We saw many, many more plants in addition to the ones listed above; however, I was unable to take good photographic images of them. Of special interest were Acrostichum danaeifolium (giant leather fern), which is the largest native fern in Florida, as well as a second orchid, Iopnopsis utricularioides (delicate violet orchid), the latter in full bloom.

Image and text © 2023 Rufino Osorio

A Visit to Meke Aloha Orchids

On Friday, July 1, 2022, Michael Manna and I visited Meke Aloha Orchids in Sarasota, Florida. Michael had been particularly keen on visiting because of his deep interest in Schomburgkia species and hybrids. He was in luck because the owner of Meke Aloha Orchids, Paul Storm, is, as far as I know, the world's foremost grower and breeder of Schomburgkia species and hybrids. While Michael went gaga over the incredible diversity and variety of plants at Meke Aloha Orchids, I took photographs. Unfortunately, I did not, with a single exception, record what I was photographing. So, the following do not have names but I will revise this post to include the names should they become known to me in the future. However, I hope that this will give you an idea of the diversity of plants that Paul is growing and a visit to the Meke Aloah Orchids website is well worth it for anyone with an interest in Schomburgkia species and hybrids.

 

Schomburgkia hybrid.

 

Cattleytonia hybrid.

 

Encyclia species or hybrid.

 

Encyclia species or hybrid.

 

Schomburgkia hybrid.

 

Encyclia species or hybrid.

 

Schomburgkia hybrid.

 

Schomburgkia hybrid.

 

Broughtonia sanguinea, an orchid species native to Jamaica. The flowers are typically red but can range from pure white to pink, orange-red, red, scarlet, and even yellow.

 

Image and text © 2022 Rufino Osorio

Croton punctatus — Gulf Croton

A fully mature, densely branched plant about three years old. It is approximately 2.5 feet tall and about 3.5 feet wide.

Croton punctatus is an easily grown, but short-lived, shrub that reaches full maturity in 2–3 years and then begins a slow decline as it devotes itself to maximizing flowering and seed production. Its most distinctive feature is its leaves, which are densely coated with silvery scales resulting in leaves that vary in color from grayish green to silvery white. Young leaves have the densest coating of scales and can be so shiny and white as to appear to be made up of a metal such as aluminum. This is reflected in one of its common names, silverleaf croton.

A close-up of the leaves on a young, 6-month-old plant just beginning to flower.

Gulf croton naturally occurs in coastal strand and beach dunes along the Atlantic coasts of the Carolinas, Georgia, and Florida, from where it extends to the Gulf states and Cuba. It well lives up to its name, gulf croton, because it occurs along coasts nearly throughout the entirety of the Gulf of Mexico, from the western Florida coast to Texas and on to Mexico, Central America, and northern South America (Gann et al. 2016). In Florida, it has been recorded all along our coastline but it is apparently absent, or at least not recorded, from the Florida Keys, the coasts of mainland Monroe County, and Florida's west coast from Wakalla County to Pasco County (Wunderlin et al. 2016). Surprisingly, there are disjunct occurrences from the landlocked counties of Dauphin and Philadelphia in Pennsylvania (USDA 2016). All United States occurrences of gulf croton are in coastal counties except for the two Pennsylvania counties and Leon County in Florida and Brooks County in Georgia.

Its natural habitat provides clear clues to its cultivation and, as is the case with most beach-dwelling plants, it requires well-drained soil in a location where it receives full sun for most of the day. It is extremely drought tolerant once established but, for the healthiest, most densely branched, and beautiful plants, supplemental water should be provided during extreme or very long dry spells. In garden settings, it may be used as an accent plant or as a tallish groundcover. It is also useful as a small shrub in wildflower gardens or butterfly gardens where its fragrant flowers attract a wide variety of native flower-visiting insects. But gardeners must bear in mind that it is short-lived and it is rare for individual plants to last more than three or four years. Ample moisture produces big, beautiful plants but these tend to be the shortest lived, whereas plants grown under drier, leaner conditions tend to be the longest lived. However, declining plants are soon replaced by self-sown seedlings if the garden has open, sunny areas in which the seedlings can establish themselves. Propagation is by seeds or cuttings but seeds are difficult to gather because the capsules open ballistically and hurl the seeds far from the mother plant. I have never tried to grow gulf croton from cuttings because it abundantly self-seeds in my garden, but local native plant enthusiast, Ryan Leavengood, has had good success rooting cuttings of gulf croton in perlite and a rooted cutting from Ryan was the source of my original plant.

The flowers are not large or showy but they are reportedly fragrant and they attract a wide variety of insects. The flowers are either male or female but both genders are carried on the same plant.

Because it naturally grows in coastal strand and beach dunes, gulf croton is well adapted to the stressful environment of saltwater coasts and it is resistant to intense sunlight, strong winds, sand scouring, burial, high soil temperatures, low nutrient levels, and the occasional salt spray (Lonard & Judd 2009). As a consequence of its adaptation to life on sand dunes, it is valuable in coastal habitat restorations where it is an important element of the sand dune vegetation and helps to both form new sand dunes and reduce the erosion of established dunes.

Besides gulf croton and silverleaf croton, it is also known as beach-tea, which I assume is a reference to its previous use as a medicinal tea; however, I have not been able to locate any information on medicinal uses. Interestingly, Lonard & Judd (2009), who prepared a thorough review of Croton punctatus, were also unable to find any information on this plant's medicinal uses.

Note: Gulf croton is a true croton in the genus Croton, a large genus of about 750 species found nearly throughout the world but concentrated in the tropics and subtropics. The ornamental croton with variegated leaves that is a ubiquitous tropical landscape cliché, is in the same family but is a member of the genus Codiaeum.

A native bee visits the flowers of Croton punctatus. The flowers are attractive to a wide range of native pollinators.

References:

• Gann, G.D., M.E. Abdo, J.W. Gann, G.D. Gann, Sr., S.W. Woodmansee, K.A. Bradley, E. Grahl, and K.N. Hines. 2005–2016. Natives For Your Neighborhood: Croton punctatus. Institute for Regional Conservation. Link visited 8 June 2016.
• Lonard, R.I. and F.W. Judd. 2009. The biological flora of coastal dunes and wetlands: Croton punctatus Jacquin. Journal of Coastal Research 25(1): 23–29. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.2112/07-0933.1
• USDA. 2007–2016. The PLANTS Database. Baton Rouge: United States Department of Agriculture National Plant Data Center. Link visited 8 June 2016.
• Wunderlin, R.P., B.F. Hansen, A.R. Franck, and F.B. Essig. 2016. Atlas of Florida Plants. Institute for Systematic Botany, University of South Florida, Tampa. Link visited 8 June 2016.

Image and text © 2016 Rufino Osorio

Zephyranthes atamasca – Atamasco-Lily

A clump of Zephyranthes atamasca, the atamasco-lily, blooming in my yard in March. It is one of the oldest plants in my collection having been continuously with me, either in pots or in the ground, since 1988 (26 years). Thus, it is as long-lived as it is beautiful.

Zephyranthes atamasca is a diminutive bulb in the amaryllis family (Amaryllidaceae) native to the southeastern United States. It occurs in the extreme southwest corner of Virginia and then extends through the Carolinas, Georgia, Mississippi, Alabama, and northern Florida. In addition to the listed natural range, there is also a disjunct population in Maryland. The Atlas of Florida Vascular Plants lists it in peninsular Florida only in Marion and Hernando counties. However, it extends at least as far south as Hillsborough County, where I have seen it in wet-mesic forests in Hillsborough River State Park.

Plants begin active growth with the arrival of cool autumn weather and continue their growth through the winter and early spring. The first flowers may open as early as February but full flowering occurs in March or April. With the arrival of warm weather, the plants go dormant for the summer. Our two native Zephyranthes species, Zephyranthes atamasca and Zephyranthes simpsonii, are frequently confused with the non-native, white-flowered Zephyranthes insularum or the non-native, pink-flowered Habranthus robustus. But the native Zephyranthes have very thin, linear leaves and are winter-growing, whereas the non-natives have wider leaves and are summer-growing. If it's July and your Zephyranthes has a thick clump of green foliage, it's not one of our two native Zephyranthes!

Zephyranthes atamasca is an extremely desirable and showy little plant that produces sweetly fragrant, relatively large flowers reminiscent of small Easter lilies. Fortunately, it is very easy to grow in moist soil in dappled shade to full sun. A single bulb will quickly form a large clump of dozens of bulbs and propagation is simply a matter of dividing a clump and separating the bulbs. Seeds are relatively short-lived and should be sown soon after ripening. They require no special treatment and germinate promptly. The seedlings, unlike the parent plants, are in no hurry to go dormant and they seem anxious to grow as long as possible and to build up as large a bulb as they can. If watered freely and provided with rich soil, the little seedlings can flower surprisingly quickly with seeds sown in April flowering in March or April of the following year. Zephyranthes atamasca may be grown in the ground but it must be protected from the encroachment of taller or larger plants. And it may also be readily grown in pots where it can compete with the showiest potted plants when in full bloom in the spring.

Image and text © 2014 Rufino Osorio

Flaveria linearis – Yellow Top

A beautifully grown flowering plant of Flaveria linearis photographed in the native plant garden of Ryan Leavengood, a member of the Palm Beach County Chapter of the Florida Native Plant Society.

Flaveria linearis is a common, easily grown perennial found in open, sunny areas in pine flatwoods and coastal situations from Jackson County in the Panhandle, south to the Monroe County keys. It is easily grown from seeds as well as vegetatively by division or cuttings, the latter readily rooting in a glass of water or a pot of moist soil. Its cultivation is undemanding and requires nothing more than moist, but well-drained soil, and a half-day or more of full sun. It tends to be short-lived in cultivation, especially if grown in very rich or heavily fertilized soil.

Although it bears small flower heads, Flaveria linearis puts on an attractive show due to the sheer number and brilliant golden-yellow color of the flower heads. Plants in flower are irresistable to a wide variety of insects including flower beetles, native bees, and butterflies. After flowering, the plants get a somewhat unkempt appearance due to the old dried flower heads but a little judicious pruning soon leads to a burst of fresh, bright green, new growth.

Flaveria linearis may be grown in flower beds, cottage gardens, bee or butterfly gardens, wildflower gardens, or along the sunny edges of shrub borders or tree plantings. Because it can tolerate much adversity, it may also be grown in tough urban situations as well as sites where construction has disturbed the soil and there is much rubble present. It naturally occurs in coastal sites and is thus also recommended for coastal gardens. The bright yellow flower heads and its long stems make Flaveria linearis a good plant for cut flowers. And, while it has no medicinal or herbal uses that I know of, its growth habit and appearance permit its use in herb gardens, where its bright green leaves will constrast nicely with silvery-leaved herbs. Its wide natural range from Florida's Panhandle to the Floria Keys indicates that it is an adaptable plant capable of being grown throughout the entire State of Florida. Yet, in spite of its vigorous, carefree nature, it is well-behaved in most gardens and is rarely, if at all, ever weedy due to aggressive self-seeding. Its ease of cultivation, showy golden flower heads, and benefits to native insect wildlife, highly recommend Flaveria linearis for any garden that can accommodate its needs, including those of novice gardeners or gardeners with little experience growing perennials, wildflowers, or native plants.

Image and text © 2013 Rufino Osorio

Manihot esculenta 'Variegata' – Variegated Cassava

Manihot esculenta 'Variegata' photographaed at the vegetable garden of Mounts Botanical Garden, where it was being grown as an ornamental accent plant.

Image and text © 2013 Rufino Osorio

Pentas lanceolata 'Gloria's Heirloom Pink'

Pentas lanceolata 'Gloria's Heirloom Pink'

Pentas lanceolata is an evergreen perennial or subshrub native to Africa and Yemen that is commonly used as a flowering landscape plant in frost-free areas and as an annual or houseplant in colder regions. Old-fashioned cultivars are rather large plants that grow to about 4 feet tall and wide, whereas modern cultivars tend to be more compact. Its common names are listed in a variety of references as Egyptian star flower or Egyptian star cluster, but, at least in south Florida, it is never known by those names and it is always referred to by the common name of pentas.

Pentas is very easily cultivated in well-drained but moist soil in full sun to light shade and it is easily propagated from seeds or cuttings, with the cuttings rooting easily in either a glass of water or soil. Poorly drained soils promptly lead to root rot and it struggles in excessively dry soil, thus, it is best to keep it moderately moist and to avoid extreme garden situations. It is much cultivated for the attractive flowers, which are borne throughout the year and come in shades of white, pink, red, magenta, and lavender. The flowers will last about five days when cut and placed in a vase of water and pentas is sparingly used as a cut flower and in flower arrangements.

Pentas is also highly recommended for butterfly gardens as a nectar plant. Unfortunately, modern cultivars are not particularly attractive to butterflies and, if used in butterfly gardens, one needs to seek out the large, old cultivars. One of these is 'Gloria's Heirloom Pink'. It is a selection found by the outstanding native plant gardener, Gloria Hunter, in the 1950s on the island of Palm Beach. It is a vigorous plant with bright pink flowers and in my garden it is a great favorite of honeybees and gulf fritillary, monarch, and queen butterflies. This cultivar is sparingly found in cultivation in the West Palm Beach region, mostly in the gardens of native plant enthusiasts with whom Gloria has generously shared cuttings.

Pentas lanceolata 'Gloria's Heirloom Pink' with a gulf fritillary butterfly (Agraulis vanillae).

Although pentas has been cultivated in the untold thousands throughout southern Florida, it has not shown invasive tendencies and it has been found outside of cultivation in Florida only in Miami-Dade County. I have seen such wild plants growing in moist, partially shaded, rocky places in Miami-Dade County but they had reverted to their wild form and were scarcely recognizable as pentas. The plants were rather spindly, wispy things barely a foot tall and with dull whitish flowers. I found this unusual since cultivated plants that revert to their wild form are usually more vigorous than the cultivated forms but these were decidedly less vigorous. Also, and perhaps the reason pentas has not shown invasive tendencies, they appeared short-lived, were never found in large numbers, and occurred in sites only where there was little or no competition from other plants.

Images and text © 2013 Rufino Osorio

South Florida Field Trip - Part 4

The last stop of our short field trip was the Navy Wells Pineland Preserve near Homestead, Florida, a little ways south of the Robert is Here Fruit Stand and Farm and north of Everglades National Park. Unlike Palm Beach County, which has some kind of public access to most of its county-designated natural areas, most natural areas in Miami-Dade County have no public access and no trespassing signs were posted throughout the perimeter of the preserve. Michael Manna and I, however, had received permission from one of Miami-Dade County's land managers and were able to visit the preserve.

The above sign was posted throughout the perimeter of the Navy Wells Pineland Preserve.

Navy Wells Pineland Preserve has an extremely rich rock pineland flora consisting of numerous grasses, herbaceous wildflowers, vines, and shrubs, many of which are near the northern limits of their natural range and are designated as state-listed threatened or endangered plants. A complete list of the nearly 400 plant species that have been recorded at Navy Wells is available from the Institute for Regional Conservation's web site. Below are a few images that only hint at the rich variety of plants we saw.

Rhynchosia reniformis differs from all other Florida members of its genus in its erect or suberect growth habit; leaves consisting of a single leaflet (instead of three leaflets); and pods conspicuously longer than the calyx.

American beautyberry (Callicarpa americana).

Trema micrantha bore flowers, unripe fruits, and ripe fruits simultaneously.

Euphorbia pinetorum (synonym: Poinsettia pinetorum) has dark green leaves that are often suffused with burgundy. It is a state-listed endangered plant. 

Hieracium megacephalon has small yellow flowerheads less than an inch across but they are very showy when closely examined.

Hypoxis sessilis was easily overlooked unless it was in flower.

Koanophyllon villosum was one of many examples of unusual and rare shrubs growing at Navy Wells Pineland Preserve with tropical affinities and that reach their northern range limits in Miami-Dade County. It is related to the genus Eupatorium and looks very much like a shrubby Eupatorium. The white autumn flowers are very attractive to butterflies and the leaves of some plants, including those at Navy Wells, have a subtle but distinct minty fragrance when crushed.

This image of the non-native Indigofera spicata gives a good indication of the substrate that most plants are growing in at the Navy Wells Pineland Preserve. Note how small the plant is at the end of August in spite of there having been abundant rain during the spring and summer. As a lawn or roadside weed in Palm Beach County, this same plant would have had meter-long stems and abundant flowers and fruits.

Go to Part 1 of a "South Florida Field Trip."
Go to Part 2 of a "South Florida Field Trip."
Go to Part 3 of a "South Florida Field Trip."

Image and text © 2012 Rufino Osorio

South Florida Field Trip - Part 3

This is the third part of a four-part series of blog posts on a short botanical field trip to south Florida.

Our second stop of the field trip was right-of-way road along a canal that had been cut through lime rock. This did not seem like a particular interesting site but it turned out to have a wide variety of grasses, sedges, small herbaceous wildflowers, assorted vines, and various woody plants. And, in a dark, shady spot where a few trees had formed a small grove, Michael Manna found Adiantum tenerum, a native maidenhair fern.

The right-of-way road of a canal was our second stop.

A variety of Euphorbia species were easily seen at this site, including the common and weedy wild poinsettia, Euphorbia cyathophora. Wild poinsettia is very easily grown in any moist to dry lightly shaded to sunny spot but it is remarkably weedy in garden settings and I have had occasions where literally several hundred plants were growing in my garden at one time. They are pretty enough when in full flower but they are annuals and are decidedly less attractive as they slowly decline as they go to seed.

The narrow leaf form of wild poinsettia, Euphorbia cyathophora (synonym: Poinsettia cyathophora).

The true flowers of Euphorbia cyathophora are inconspicuous but they are subtended by modified leaves (bracts) that are brightly colored in various shades of red or orange-red just like the larger, showier Christmas poinsettia.

The broad leaf form of Euphorbia cyathophora is so distinct as to appear to be a different species but every gradation between narrow leaf and broad leaf forms can be found in nature.

I am inordinately fond of sandmat Euphorbia species, which were formerly referred to the segregate genus, Chamaesyce. So I could barely contain my excitement to see that the state-listed endangered plant, Euphorbia conferta was common at this site. It was joined by Euphorbia mendezii, a plant that, at least in south Florida, commonly occurs in disturbed rocky areas. And a third sandmat Euphorbia species (pictured below) was new to me. It was unusual in forming a rounded mat of prostrate stems with a perimeter of ascending flowering stems.

Euphorbia conferta (synonym: Chamaesyce conferta), the plant in the center of the image, is a state-listed endangered species. Here it grew with an assortment of weedy plants and grasses. The tiny yellow daisy in the lower right is Pectis glaucescens.

Euphorbia conferta covered by shallow water that has accumulated in a shallow depression in the lime rock after a rain storm.

An unidentified Euphorbia species.

Completely new to both me and Michael Manna was Tournefortia volubilis, an unusual woody vine in the borage family with tiny yellow-green flowers. It would be interesting to see what pollinates such unusual little flowers. The fruits are pea-sized white berries with two, or sometimes three, conspicuous purplish-black or black spots.

Tournefortia volubilis

In one area, there was a thick growth of Ipomoea hederifolia, an annual or short-lived vine sometimes grown in butterfly or hummingbird gardens for its showy, eye-catching orange or orange-red flowers. But it should not be introduced into small, tidy gardens since it produces numerous, rather unattractive seed capsules and, if conditions are to its liking, it can produce hundreds of self-sown seedlings and can overrun the garden.

Ipomoea hederifolia

We also saw Cissus verticillata, in the grape family (Vitaceae), growing in thickets. It is fairly uncommon in Palm Beach County but was rather common throughout our field trip and, later in the day, we saw it along roadsides as well as climbing fences around avocado groves.

Cissus verticillata

Although the vines were interesting and not something we see every day in Palm Beach County, it was the abundant and varied grasses, sedges, and small wildflowers that most held my attention and the next three images are but a sample of the variety of small herbaceous plants that we found along the canal right-of-way road.

Stachytarpheta jamaicensis, the native blue porterweed, was rather inconspicuous but common throughout the site.

An unidentified member of the hibiscus family (Malvaceae) growing with a few of the many species of grasses found along the canal right-of-way.

Although it has unusual salmon orange or salmon pink flowers, Sida ciliaris was easily overlooked since it rarely exceeded an inch in height. It was but one example of the remarkable assemblage of small, herbaceous plants found at the site.

Go to Part 1 of a "South Florida Field Trip."
Go to Part 2 of a "South Florida Field Trip."
Go to Part 4 of a "South Florida Field Trip."

Image and text © 2012 Rufino Osorio

South Florida Field Trip - Part 2

This is the second part of a four-part series of blog posts on a short botanical field trip to south Florida.

Our first stop of the field trip was a roadside ditch along U.S. Route 27 in southern Broward County, where it runs beside the eastern edge of the Florida everglades.

The Everglades, as seen along U.S. Route 27 in Broward County just north of Miami-Dade County. In the background, one can see killed melaleuca trees (Melaleuca quinquenervia). Without control efforts, much of the Everglades would be a monoculture of melaleuca.

Growing in very large patches in the road median and along the sides of the road was Ruellia ciliatiflora, originally native to South America but now becoming common in south Florida. It is distinct from native Ruellia species in its flowers, which are borne in a stalked inflorescence above the uppermost leaves. In contrast, native south Florida Ruellia species bear their sessile (stalkless) or very short-stalked flowers in the axils of the leaves.

Ruellia ciliatiflora, a native of South America, is spreading in south Florida.

Joining Ruellia ciliatiflora along the roadsides of U.S. Route 27 was Euphorbia heterophylla, a weedy Florida native plant. The Atlas of Florida Vascular Plants does not list it for Palm Beach County but a colony is present on the grounds of the West Palm Beach headquarters of the South Florida Water Management District, where I work, and it has persisted for at least a decade as a weed in the garden of a friend in Lake Worth. Although Florida has been well botanized, it isn't particularly difficult to find new county records and, in the case of Euphorbia heterophylla, finding the new Palm Beach County record was as easy as going to work or visiting a friend's garden.

Euphorbia heterophylla (synonym: Poinsettia heterophylla).

Just a short distance westward from the mowed roadside, in wet depressions that paralleled the west side of U.S. Route 27, there were colonies of the state-listed endangered plant, Lippia stoechadifolia. In places, the colonies extended for thousands of yards and one would scarcely think that it was a particularly rare plant. The genus Lippia closely resembles Phyla but Lippia species have at least some stems that are erect or ascending and become woody with age. In contrast, Phyla has creeping stems, none of which ever become erect and woody.

Lippia  stoechadifolia (synonym: Phyla stoechadifolia) is a state-listed endangered plant recorded only from Broward, Collier, and Miami-Dade counties.

Close-up of the tiny flowers of Lippia stoechadifolia.

Many typical native plants of wet ground were growing with Lippia stoechadifolia but especially notable was Pluchea baccharis (synonym: Pluchea rosea). I had never seen such large, healthy, robust specimens and the dark pink to maroon-pink flowerheads made a pleasing contrast to the whitish upper leaves and bracts of the inflorescences.

Pluchea baccharis (synonym: Pluchea rosea), formed large freely flowering plants at this site.

Go to Part 1 of a "South Florida Field Trip."
Go to Part 3 of a "South Florida Field Trip."
Go to Part 4 of a "South Florida Field Trip."

Images and text © 2013 Rufino Osorio