Whether you want to go native, with Sea Grapes, Sea Oats and Sabal Palms … or want to mix in the tropical colors of Florida-friendly Bouganvillea, Hibiscus and Shore Juniper, there are hundreds of flowers, shrubs, ferns, grasses, vines, palms and other trees that blend beauty with benefits to the environment. And leave you with low-to-no maintenance worries.
LANDSCAPING ALTERNATIVES for the Island Yard
Plants provide food and shelter for wildlife. The plants you choose determine the wildlife value of your yard—birds and butterflies and four-legged critters. Just a little homework can go a long way!
Plants provide food and shelter for wildlife. The plants you choose determine the wildlife value of your yard—birds and butterflies and four-legged critters. Just a little homework can go a long way!
 Native Yucca
Getting Started
Plants already on your property, particularly native plants, may be well-suited to the site, and if at all possible, should be retained! Saving existing plants reduces costs and leaves valuable wildlife habitat undisturbed. If you’re building a new home, retaining existing plants also limits erosion by reducing the amount of clearing required. Root out Invasives Don’t plant noxious, invasive species! The State of Florida prohibits planting Brazilian Pepper, Australian Pine, Carrotwood and Melaleuca, though, unfortunately, there are still plenty around. These invasives crowd out native plants, seriously threaten Florida’s ecosystems and wildlife, and some can cause allergic reactions. Aim for diversity Strive for a potpourri of trees, shrubs, ground covers, native grasses and wildflowers. Large expanses of the same plant species (monocultures) are prone to disease and insect infestation. Green Ground Cover Shell and stone might be low-maintenance, but they require herbicides to keep them weed-free and offer no food or shelter for wildlife. Good alternatives to turf areas are ground covers or landscaped beds. They greatly cut down the need for fertilizing, watering, cutting and herbicides! (Shore and Blue Juniper, for instance, make an evergreen low maintenance cover for septic fields.) Strange as it seems, slower-growing plants last longer and create less work. More Information at:
A Guide to Environmentally Friendly Landscaping: Florida Yards and Neighborhoods Handbook Florida-Friendly Landscaping: SW Florida Water Management District |
The melaleuca tree (pictured above) is considered “a pest” and “hazardous” because of its tendency to blow over during windstorms. It has become illegal to plant one in Florida. BUT by using Melaleuca mulch, you will not only help eliminate this pest of a tree, but you will NOT be using Cypress tree mulch, which are being harvested at an alarming rate for the sole purpose of mulch. |
NATIVE and FLORIDA-FRIENDLY PLANTS
Below you can find more than 100 Native & Florida-friendly plants. Plants that appear in bold are Native Island plants. Plants designated with "(S)" are suitable on top of septic fields.
Below you can find more than 100 Native & Florida-friendly plants. Plants that appear in bold are Native Island plants. Plants designated with "(S)" are suitable on top of septic fields.
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Flowers
Beach Buttercup, Beach Primrose, Black-eyed Susan, Blanket Flower, Blue Daze(S), Blue Sage, Butterfly Milkweed, Camphor Daisy, Coreopsis, Crown of Thorns, Dill, Dotted Horsemint, Fennel, Firecracker, Fire Spike, Fireweed, Gaillardia, Goldenrod, Liatris, Liriope, Mimosa, Penta, Porterweed, Prickly Pear, Rosemary, Scarlet Sage, Sea Oxeye, Spider Lily, Spiderwort, Starry Rosinweed |
Blue Daze(S)
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Bougainvillea
Shrubs
Agave, Bay Cedar, Beachberry, Beach Elder, Beauty Berry, Blue Bottlebrush, Bougainvillea, Cassia, Century Plant, Cocoplum, Coontie, Copperleaf, Croton, Firebush, Florida Privet, Golden Creeper, Golden Dewdrop, Hibiscus, Indian Hawthorn, Inkberry, Ixora, Jatropha, Lakeview Jasmine, Marlberry, Myrsine, Natal Plum, Necklace Pod, Oleander, Pigeon Plum, Plumbago, Sea Grape, Saw Palmetto, Shore Juniper (S), Shrub Allamanda, Silver Buttonwood, Simpson’s Stopper, Snowbush, Sweet Acacia, Wax Myrtle, Wild Coffee, Wild Lantana, Wild Lime, Yapon Holly, Yucca, Zamia Furfuracea
Agave, Bay Cedar, Beachberry, Beach Elder, Beauty Berry, Blue Bottlebrush, Bougainvillea, Cassia, Century Plant, Cocoplum, Coontie, Copperleaf, Croton, Firebush, Florida Privet, Golden Creeper, Golden Dewdrop, Hibiscus, Indian Hawthorn, Inkberry, Ixora, Jatropha, Lakeview Jasmine, Marlberry, Myrsine, Natal Plum, Necklace Pod, Oleander, Pigeon Plum, Plumbago, Sea Grape, Saw Palmetto, Shore Juniper (S), Shrub Allamanda, Silver Buttonwood, Simpson’s Stopper, Snowbush, Sweet Acacia, Wax Myrtle, Wild Coffee, Wild Lantana, Wild Lime, Yapon Holly, Yucca, Zamia Furfuracea
Railroad Vine
Climbers & Vines
Beach/Dune Sunflower(S), Beach Morning Glory(S), Blue Sky, Confederate Jasmine, Coral Bean, Coral Honeysuckle, Cross, Flame, Nickerbean, Passion, Railroad Vine(S), Wild Allamanda
Ferns
Boston, Fishtail, Leather
Grasses
Fakahatchee(S), Muhly(S), Pampas, Sand Cordgrass, Sea Oats
Beach/Dune Sunflower(S), Beach Morning Glory(S), Blue Sky, Confederate Jasmine, Coral Bean, Coral Honeysuckle, Cross, Flame, Nickerbean, Passion, Railroad Vine(S), Wild Allamanda
Ferns
Boston, Fishtail, Leather
Grasses
Fakahatchee(S), Muhly(S), Pampas, Sand Cordgrass, Sea Oats
Palms
Alexander, Areca, Bismark, Chinese Fan, Christmas, Coconut, Lady, Foxtail, Needle, Pautotis, Queen, Roebelenii, Royal, Sabal, Silver, Thatch, Traveler, Washingtonian
Alexander, Areca, Bismark, Chinese Fan, Christmas, Coconut, Lady, Foxtail, Needle, Pautotis, Queen, Roebelenii, Royal, Sabal, Silver, Thatch, Traveler, Washingtonian
Trees
Black Olive, Buttonwood, Fiddlewood, Geiger, Gumbo Limbo, Live Oak, Loblolly Pine,Longleaf Pine, Loquat, Mahogany, Mango, Mangrove, Red Bay, Screw Pine, Slash Pine, Southern Red Cedar, Tabebuia, White Bird of Paradise, Wild Tamarind
Black Olive, Buttonwood, Fiddlewood, Geiger, Gumbo Limbo, Live Oak, Loblolly Pine,Longleaf Pine, Loquat, Mahogany, Mango, Mangrove, Red Bay, Screw Pine, Slash Pine, Southern Red Cedar, Tabebuia, White Bird of Paradise, Wild Tamarind