Author: Steve Turner

Rare & Unusual Tropical Trees & Plants, Flowering, Fruit, Native, Palm, Bamboo, Heliconia, Hummingbird, Butterfly

Florida Natives

Richard Lyons’ Nursery has a large selection of Florida Native Plants for the landscape.  Here are just a few to choose from:


September 22, 2012 0

Ming Fern (Asparagus macowanii)

Despite its name, the ming fern is a flowering plant and not a fern at all.   It produces white flowers in the spring to early summer.  It is in the same genus as the edible cultivated perennial vegetable, Asparagus officinalis. Ming Ferns do well in full sun as well as shaded locations.  A native to…
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September 15, 2012 0

Fukien Tea Plant

The Fukien Tea Plant is named for the Fukien or Fujien Province of S. China where it is native.  Its botanical name which most people are familiar with is Carmona microphylla.  However, recently it has been renamed Ehretia buxifolia.  It is a member of the Boraginaceae family, or Borage Family.  In the Philippines, the leaves…
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September 9, 2012 0

The Atala Butterfly

This is an interesting article from the University of Florida about the relationship between the Atala butterfly and its host plant, Florida Coontie http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/mg347.  At the nursery we have a population of the Atala Butterflies, and the adults can be seen landing on the Sweet Almond flowers (Aloysia virgata) and Florida Fiddlewood flowers (Citharexylum spinosum) for nectar,…
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August 4, 2012 0

Rainbow Shower Tree: Featured Plant of the Week

This tree is a hybrid between Cassia fistula (Golden Shower Tree) and Cassia javanica(Apple Blossom Tree).  The flowers are a blend of the two trees.  Some are more yellow than pink, while others are the reverse, giving a very spectacular look to the tree when it is in full bloom.  We propagate this tree by air-layering to…
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July 22, 2012 1