Most people know this plant by its botanical genus name, Mussaenda. However, there is a common name for this plant which is not used very often and that is Flag Bush. Mussaenda is a genus of shrubs in the Rubiaceae Family (the Coffee Family) with very showy enlarged floral sepals which surround the true flower.…
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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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Clerodendrum paniculatum, The Pagoda Flower is named for the shape of its flowers. This shrub spreads by means of root suckers to create a nice clump of stems, each producing a scarlet pagoda shaped inflorescence. It will flower all summer long and into the fall. As a bonus, Pagoda Flower is an excellent nectar source…
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Leucophyllum frutescens is a woody shrub native to the Chihuahuan Desert. It may be an arid growing shrub native to Texas, but it grows very well in South Florida. It thrives in well drained alkaline soils common to South Florida and can tolerate our humid rainy season as well as our drier winters. It flowers…
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Hamelia cuprea is a close relative to our native firebush (Hamelia patens). Bahama Firebush, is native to Jamaica, Cuba, Haiti, and the Cayman Islands. However, despite its common name, is not native to the Bahamas. Its leaves are larger and glossier than our native firebush, and its flowers are bell shaped and much showier than…
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