Cestrum nocturnum (Night Blooming Jasmine) and Cestrum diurnum (Day Blooming Jasmine) are not actually related to true jasmines but rather they are members of the Solanaceae Family like tomato plants. They are very fragrant like jasmines so I suppose that is the reason for the common name. Night blooming jasmine is a shrub that can…
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Peacock Ginger (Kaempferia pulchra) is a very good ground cover for a moist shaded area. Peacock Ginger produce four-petaled lavender flowers throughout the summer, but their beautifully patterned foliage probably stands out the most. The oval leaves consist of a green background with an overlay of striking bronze or purple markings. It spreads via rhizomes…
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Two native plants to South Florida that probably are growing in your yard right now and you may not even know it, or you walk by them without taking a second glance. The first is the Resurrection Fern (Pleopeltis michauxiana). This amazing epiphytic fern shrivels up during dry periods losing 90% of its tissue moisture.…
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Bulnesia arborea is a tree with a spreading, rounded growth habit, which creates dense shade under its canopy. Over time the canopy becomes wider than the overall height of the tree which can obtain a height of 20-30 feet. It has shiny dark green pinnately compound leaves composed of 7-14 pairs of leaflets. It produces brilliant…
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Spanish Shawl (Heterocentron elegans) is related to Tibouchina, and when you see the flower, it is quite apparent. Unlike Tibouchina, Spanish Shawl does quite well in South Florida’s alkaline soils. It is a low, fast growing free flowering ground cover that forms a very dense mat. It will easily meander and cover rocky areas. It…
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