Identification Guide For Invasive Exotic Plants of the Florida Keys

Identification Guide
For Invasive Exotic Plants
of the Florida Keys
2005-2006
Burma Reed
credit: APIRS
Prepared by
Kate Hadden, Kaita Frank & Chuck Byrd
The Nature Conservancy
Revised January 2005
for the
Florida Keys Invasive Exotics Task Force

FKIETF Invasive Exotics – Table of Contents
Category I: Invasive Exotics that are altering Florida Keys native plant
communities by displacing native species, changing community structures or
ecological functions, or hybridizing with natives.
Asiatic Colubrina (Colubrina asiatica)……..…………………………………………...3
Australian Pine (Causaurina spp)……………………………………………………….2
Beach Naupaka (Scaevola sericea)………………………………………………………9
Brazillian Pepper (Schinus terebinthifolius)…………………………………………..11
Burma Reed (Neyraudia reynaudiana)……………………………………………….…8
Laurel Fig (Ficus microcarpa)…………………………………………………………...4
Lead Tree (Leucaena leucociphala)………………………………………………….….5
Melaleuca (Melaleuca quinquinervia)…………………………………………………..7
Queensland Umbrella Tree (Schefflera actinophylla)…………………………..….…10
Sapodilla (Manilkara zapota)…………………………………………………………….6
Seaside Mahoe (Thespia populnea)…………………………………………………….12
Category II: Invasive Exotics that have increased in abundance or
frequency but have not yet altered Florida Keys plant communities to the extent
shown by category I species……………………………………………………………13
Air Potato ( Dioscorea bulbifera)………………………………………………………23
Asian Sword Fern (Nephrolepis multiflora)…………………………………………...29
Asparagus Fern (Asparagus densiflorus)……………………………………………...17
Bowstring Hemp (Sansevieria hyacinthoides)…………………………………………36
Carrotwood (Cupaniopsis anacardiodes)……………………………………………...21
Central American Sisal (Furcraea cabuya)……………………………………………25
Earleaf Acacia (Acacia auriculiformis)………………………………………………...14
Fountain Grass (Pennisetum setacea)………………………………………………….33
Ganges Primrose (Asystasia gangetica)………………………………………………..18
Guava (Psidium spp.)…………………………………………………………………...34
Guinea Grass ( Panicum maximums)………………………………………………….30
Lantana (Lantana camara)……………………………………………………………..28
Life Plant (Kalenchoe spp.)……………………………………………………………..27
Madagascar Rubber Vine (Cryptostegia madagascariensis)………………………….20
Napier Grass (Pennisetum purpureum)………………………………………………..32
Night-Blooming Cereus (Hylocereus undatus)………………………………………..19
Oyster Plant (Tradescantia spathacea)………………………….……………………..41
Porterweed (Stachytarpheta urticifilia)………………………………………………...38
Pothos (Epipremnum pinnatum)……………………………………………………….24
Puncture Weed (Tribulus cistoides)……………………………………………………42
Sea hibiscus (Hibiscus tiliaceus)………………………………………………………..26
i

Sickle Bush, (Dichrostachys cinera)……………………………………………………22
Sisal Hemp (Agave sisalana)……………………………………………………………15
Torpedograss (Panicum repens)………………………………………………………..31
Tropical Soda Apple (Solanum viarum)……………………………………………….36
Tropical Almond (Terminalia catappa)………………………………………………..40
Wedelia (Wedelia trilobata)…………………………………………………………….37
Woman’s Tongue (Albizia lebbeck)……………………………………………………16
Yellow Elder( Tecoma stans)…………………………………………………………...39
Category III: Invasive Exotics that have not yet become a problem in the
Florida Keys but are to be watched……………………………………………………43
Bahia Grass (Paspalum notatum)………………………………………………………64
Beach Vitex (Vitex rotundifolia)……………………………………………………….72
Black Olive (Bucida bucera)……………………………………………………………48
Black Olive ( Budida spinosa)……………………………………………………….....49
Bracelet Wood ( Jacquinia arbora)…………………………………………………….56
Chastetree (Vivitex trifolia)…………………………………………………………….73
Chinaberry (Melia azedarach)…………………………………………………………59
Crowfoot Grass (Dactyloctenuim aegyptium)………………………………………….53
Date Palm (Phoenix spp.)……………………………………………………………….65
False Banyan (Ficus altissima)…………………………………………………………54
Governor’s Plum (Flacourtia indica)………………………………………………….55
Ground Orchid (Oeceoclades maculata)………………………………………………63
Jumbie Bean (Macroptilium artopupureus)……………………………………...……57
Kopsia (Ochrosia parviflora)…………………………………………………………...62
Madagascar Periwinkle (Cantharanthus roseus)……………………………………..51
Natal Grass (Rhynchelytrum repens)…………………………………………………..66
Orange-Jessamine (Murraya paniculata)……………………………………………..61
Orchid Tree (Bauhinia variegata)……………………………………………………..46
Papaya (Carica papaya)………………………………………………………………...50
Paper Mulberry (Broussonetia papyrifera)……………………………………………47
Phasey bean (Macroptilium lathyroides)………………………………………………58
Pink Shower Tree (Tabebuia spp.)……………………………………………………..68
Pitch Apple (Clusia rosea)……………………………………………………………...52
Red Sandlewood (Adenanthera pavonina)…………………………………………….44
Shoebutton Ardisia (Ardisia elliptica)…………………………………………………45
St. Augustine Grass (Stenotaphrum secundatum)…………………………………….67
Tamarind (Tamarindus indicus)……………………………………………………….69
Wandering Jew (Tradescantia spp.)……………………………………………………70
Wood Rose (Merremia tuberosa)……………………………………………………….60
Yellow Alder ( Turnera ulmifolia)……………………………………………………..71
Zoysia Grass (Zoysia japonica)………………………………………………………...74
ii

Category
I
Invasive Exotics that are altering Florida Keys native
plant communities by displacing native species,
changing community structures or ecological functions,
or hybridizing with natives.
1

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Casuarina equisetifolia, Causaurina cunninghamiana,
Causaurina glauca
Australian pine, ironwood, beefwood, she-oak, horsetail tree
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Up to 150 feet
Gray-green, needlelike, jointed branches that resemble leaves.
Inconspicuous, in small axillary clusters
Reddish brown to gray, rough, brittle, peeling
Tiny, single seeded winged nutlet formed in woody cone-like clusters
Occurs throughout south Florida on sandy shores, in pinelands and disturbed
sites such as filled wetlands, road shoulders, cleared land and empty lots.
Once established, Australian pines dominate areas almost to the total
exclusion of native vegetation by chemically suppressing seed germination
and smothering seedlings and other plants with thick, dense litter.
Basal or stump with 10%-30% Garlon 4
APIRS- http://aquat1.ifas.edu
www.co.miami-dade.fl.us/derm/badplants.htm
2

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Colubrina asiatica
Asiatic or common Colubrina, latherleaf
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
A sprawling shrub to 10 feet with smooth, trailing or spreading branches.
Alternate, shiny dark green above with serrated edges, 1.5-3.5 inches long
Small and greenish white, in few-flowered clusters.
N/A. Evergreen with diffuse slender branches.
Capsule, green and fleshy turning to brown when dry.
Latherleaf invades coastal strand, dunes, mangrove-buttonwood forests, pine
rockland, the margins of hardwood forests, and disturbed sites. The
sprawling growth habit enables it to smother native vegetation and it has
been known to form a near monoculture if left unchecked. Seeds float in
seawater and are transported by ocean currents to other sites. Resprouts from
injured stems.
Foliar with 3% Garlon 4 in cut grid pattern
www.co.miami-dade.fl.us/derm/badplants.htm
APIRS- http://aquat1.ifas.edu
3

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Ficus microcarpa
Laurel Fig, Indian Laurel, Laurel rubber, Banyan tree
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Up to 50 feet
Simple, alternate, dark glossy green with leathery texture. Can be elliptical,
oval or diamond-shaped. Up to 5 inches long.
Tiny and numerous, hidden inside immature fig structure.
Milky and gray
Yellow or dark red when ripe
The tree has a spreading growth habit with numerous aerial roots that may
eventually become secondary trunks supporting the large, lateral branches.
This is the most frequently encountered non-native fig species found
invading natural areas in Florida. It often grows as an epiphyte on other trees
(especially palms) or as a lithophyte on turnpike overpasses, bridges, walls,
buildings and other concrete or stone structures. This tree invades hardwood
forests and other native plant communities where it competes heavily with
native plants for sunlight, nutrients, and space.
Basal with 5% Garlon 4
APIRS- http://aquat1.ifas.edu
APIRS- http://aquat1.ifas.edu
4

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Leucaena leucocephala
Lead tree
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Shrub or small tree to 25 feet in height
Gray-green, bipinnate leaves and numerous 3/8 to 1/2 inch, slightly sickleshaped
leaflets.
Terminal or axillary flower spikes produce white, multi-stamened,
powderpuff-like flowers.
Smooth, light gray to tan.
Pods are narrow, four to six inches long, 1/2 inch wide, green turning to
brown and produced in clusters. Seeds are brown and somewhat flattened.
Lead tree is a weedy, fast-growing tree that readily invades coastal strand,
pine rockland, the margins and canopy gaps of hardwood forests, and open
disturbed sites. Population densities can be high if left unchecked. Tends to
grow in dense groups.
Basal or stump with 40% Garlon 4
APIRS- http://aquat1.ifas.edu
www.co.miami-dade.fl.us/derm/badplants.htm
5

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Manilkara zapota
Sapodilla, Chicle-gum tree
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Large tree, reaching 50 feet or more
Dull dark green, leathery and alternate. Grow in clusters on the ends of twigs.
Oblong or elliptical in shape, notched at apex. 2-4 inches long, covered with
brownish fuzz.
Flowers are light yellow, six-lobed, about ½ inch wide. Occur in clusters.
Reddish brown bark
Brown berries about ½ inch in diameter, with spongy brownish flesh. Thick
skinned. One or more brownish black flat seeds.
Evergreen shrub occurring in hardwood hammocks and other habitats,
shading and dense seeding a problem
Basal with 10%-25% Garlon 4
www.proscitech.com
www.proscitech.com
6

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Melaleuca quinquineria
Melaleuca, paper-bark, cajeput, punk tree, white bottlebrush
tree
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Up to 100 feet
Alternate, simple, grayish green. Narrow and lance-shaped, up to 4 inches
long and ¾ inches wide. Leaves smell of camphor when crushed.
Off-white “bottle brush” type spikes up to 6 inches long.
Trunk and branches covered with thick layers of whitish, papery bark,
peeling off in sheets.
Fruit is contained in small, round, woody capsules occurring in clusters.
Evergreen tree with slender crown. Abundant in pine flatwoods, sawgrass
marshes and cypress swamps. Prefers seasonally wet sites but also occurs in
standing water and well-drained uplands. Melaleuca also constitutes a
significant health hazard because the flowers and new foliage produce
airborne emanations that cause severe asthma-like symptoms in sensitive
people.
Hack and squirt with 50% Garlon 3A and 1% Arsenal added
www.co.miami-dade.fl.us/derm/badplants.htm
APIRS-http://aquat1.ifas.edu
7

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Neyraudia reynaudiana
Burma reed, Silk reed, Cane grass
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Stems ranging from 3 to 12 feet tall.
Leaf blades are linear, flat or with margins rolled inward and upward from
the edges. Blades range from 10 to 20 inches long and 1/4 to 3/4 inch wide.
Airy inflorescence forms a large, feathery, silverish clump. Flowers nearly
year-round.
N/A
N/A
Reed-like plant that grows in tall clumps from short, coarsely textured
rhizomes. Occurs in pine rocklands as well as a wide variety of other
habitats. Can tolerate a wide range of conditions but prefers open, sunny, dry
and disturbed sites. Burma reed constitutes a serious threat to the globally
imperiled pine rockland habitat in the southern portion of Miami-Dade
county.
Foliar with 2% Roundup Pro
www.co.miami-dade.fl.us/derm/badplants.htm
APIRS- http://aquat1.ifas.edu
8

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Scaevola sericea
Beach naupaka/scaevola, Hawaiian half-flower
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Up to 16 feet
Simple, closely alternate, crowded at stem tips. Blades are thick, shiny and
bright green, yellowing with age. Up to 81/2 inches long, wider at tips.
White to pale purple, five petals spread out like a fan.
N/A
Fleshy, with a hard inner layer enclosing the fruit. Mature fruit is black.
Seeds can be water dispersed
Large bushy shrub with dense mounded habit. Similar to the native Scaevola
plumieri but exotic has shorter, more succulent leaves.
Basal with 10% Garlon 4 or stump with 50% Garlon 3A
APIRS- http://aquat1.ifas.edu
Identification & Biology of Non-Native Plants in
Florida’s Natural Areas by K.A Langeland, K. Craddock Burks
9

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Schefflera actinophylla
Queensland Umbrella tree, Schefflera, Octopus tree
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Up to 40 feet
Dark green, alternate, compound leaves with a palmate or “umbrella” like
arrangement. Generally having nine to 15 glossy, oblong, foot-long leaflets
that radiate outward.
Occur in dense clusters that form a large, red spray at stem tips.
Single or multistemmed trunks with greenish bark.
Fruit is round, fleshy and purplish black, about ¼ inch in diameter.
Evergreen tree occurring in a wide variety of habitats, from full sun to deep
shade. A common indoor plant. Introduced into Florida as a fast-growing,
flowering landscape tree. It remains extremely popular both as a landscape
tree in Florida and as an indoor subject in Florida and elsewhere. Umbrella
tree is salt- and drought-tolerant
Basal with 10% Garlon 4 or stump with 50% Garlon 3A
www.co.miami-dade.fl.us/derm/badplants.htm
APIRS- http://aquat1.ifas.edu l
10

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Schinus terebinthifolius*
Brazilian pepper, Florida holly
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
A low-branching, bushy, spreading tree to 40 feet.
Compound, aromatic leaves with 5 to 9 opposite leaflets to 3 inches long.
The leaf midrib is red. Crushed leaves smell like pepper or turpentine.
Flowers are tiny, whitish, and produced in compact clusters.
Smooth and grayish when young, increasingly striated as tree grows.
Showy, compact clusters of red, 3/16-inch, round fruit are produced on
female trees in fall and winter.
A serious threat to the very existence of pine rockland habitat, Brazilian
pepper also invades hardwood forests, solution holes in hammocks, and can
form a dense, impenetrable barrier around forest margins. It is salt-tolerant
and invades coastal strand, mangrove-buttonwood associations, and spoil
islands. *Blooming trees are a major source of respiratory distress to
many people and the sap can cause skin irritation, much like its relative
poison-ivy.
Basal or stump with 10%-15% Garlon 4
APIRS- http://aquat1.ifas.edu
www.co.miami-dade.fl.us/derm/badplants.htm
11

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Thespesia populnea
Seaside mahoe, portia tree
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
40 feet or more
Alternate, heart shaped leaves with five main veins spreading from base.
Large and hibiscus like, yellow with a red center. Flowers turn maroon by
nightfall.
Young branches have minute brown scales.
Leathery, flat, five-parted capsule about 1.5 inches wide, yellow to black.
Evergreen, shrubby tree. Salt tolerant, usually found in and around beach,
bay, inlet areas and coastal berms. Thrives in low silty land and coral and
sand berms. The fruit are buoyant in seawater, enabling seeds to be carried
by ocean currents to distant shores.
Stump with 50% Garlon 3A applied immediately upon cutting
APIRS- http://aquat1.ifas.edu
www.co.miami-dade.fl.us/derm/badplants.htm
12

Category II
Invasive Exotics plants that have increased in
abundance or frequency but have not yet altered
Florida Keys plant communities to the extent shown by
category I species.
13

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Acacia auriculiformis
Earleaf Acacia
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Up to 50 feet
Alternate, simple leaves with flattened leaf stalks. Leaves are blade-like and
slightly curved, 5-8 inches long with 3-7 parallel veins.
Bright yellow, buttonlike flower clusters appear in spring and sporadically
through summer and fall.
Smooth
Fruit is somewhat ear-shaped and brown, with contorted pods that persist for
months. Flat black seeds.
Common in disturbed areas, this species has invaded pinelands, scrub, and
hammocks. Tolerates a wide range of soil types, including seasonally
waterlogged soils. Earleaf acacia is exceptionally weedy along roadsides and
other disturbed sites and readily invades pine rockland habitat and the
margins of hardwood forests.
Stump with 50% Garlon 3A
APIRS- http://aquat1.ifas.edu
www.co.miami-dade.fl.us/derm/badplants.htm
14

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Agave sisalana*
Century plant, Sisal hemp, Sisal, Sisal agave
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Five feet or more
Four inch wide, sword-like fibrous leaves extending upward from a rosette at
the base. Terminate in long, hard, sharp spines. Green or grayish in color,
smooth in texture.
Flower stalk may rise 25-30 feet and has a branched top. Greenish flowers
N/A
Fruit is an egg-sized capsule which splits open to release black seeds.
Leaves contain a liquid that may be a skin irritant for some people.
Mother plant dies after blooming once. Native Agave will have spines along
the leaf margin while the exotic do not.
Spray with 3% Garlon 4 on center bud
Photos by Kaita Frank
15

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Albizia lebbeck
Woman’s tongue
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Up to 65 feet
Alternate, twice compound, with 2-5 pairs of pinnae, each with 3-10 pairs of
leaflets. Leaflets are elliptical and oblong, 1-2 inches long, dull green above
and paler green below.
Flowers occur in showy, rounded clusters, cream or yellowish white with
long stamens. Fragrant, 2-inch pale yellow, mimosa- or powderpuff-like
flowers are produced in summer.
Pale in color.
Flat linear pod can reach up to a foot long. The pods are retained through
spring after the leaves have fallen and rattle in the wind.
Occurs in tropical hammocks in the Keys. Does not do well in waterlogged
soils. Woman’s tongue outcompetes native vegetation and can form large
populations both from seed and extensive root suckers. Grows naturally in
the Himalayas to altitudes of 5,200 feet.
Basal or stump with 30% Garlon 4
APIRS- http://aquat1.ifas.edu
www.co.miami-dade.fl.us/derm/badplants.htm
16

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Asparagus densiflorus
Asparagus fern, Emerald fern
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Two feet (growth is largely lateral)
Branchlets are flat, needle-like and light green. Leaves are tiny and scalelike,
about one inch long and occur at the bases of branchlets.
Small, white or pink-white, fragrant. Flowers through summer and fall.
N/A
Bright red berries less than one inch in diameter.
Evergreen herb with stiff stems. Displaces native ground cover and
understory shrubs. Cultivated as an indoor plant. Drought tolerant, grows in
wide range of light conditions.
Foliar with Roundup Pro
Identification & Biology of Non-Native Plants in Florida’s
Natural Areas by K.A Langeland, K. Craddock Burks
APIRS- http://aquat1.ifas.edu .
17

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Asystasia gangetica
Ganges primrose, Chinese violet
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Shrubby herb which grows to three feet in height but can grow over shrubs
up to ten feet tall.
Thin and ovate with few pairs of veins.
Violet or white flower grows on a vine that spreads over fences and up other
plants.
N/A
Seed irregularly disk-shaped, pale, margin irregularly scalloped.
Chinese violet grows in dry habitats between sea level and 1000 feet.
Plant tends to be bushy and sometimes slightly woody below.
Foliar with Roundup Pro
wwww.plantatlas.usf.edu
www.plantatlas.usf.edu
18

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Hylocereus undatus
Night-blooming cereus
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
May reach 20 feet in length.
Heavy, three-sided, green, fleshy, much-branched stems have flat, wavy
wings with horny margins.
The magnificent, night-blooming, very fragrant, bell-shaped, white flowers,
up to 14 inches long and nine inches wide.
N/A
The non-spiny fruit is oblong-oval, to 4 in (10 cm) long, 2 1/2 in (6.25 cm)
thick, coated with the bright-red, fleshy or yellow, ovate bases of scales.
Within is white, juicy, sweet pulp containing innumerable tiny black, partly
hollow seeds.
Can be epiphytic ( recently changed from Cereus undatus)
Manual removal
Cal Lemke, University of Oklahoma
http://community.webshots.com/photo/62443479/62443708bFoRkt
19

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Cryptostegia madagascariensis
Madagascar rubber vine
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Vine to subshrub
Shiny dark green leaves.
One to 1.5 inches long. Corolla pale pink; tube-shaped. Five-petaled.
Brownish, mostly smooth
Triangular shaped pods 3 to 4 inches, occurring at the end of a branch
usually in pairs
Vigorous climbing shrub with milky sap.
Basal with 10% Garlon 4
Photos by Kaita Frank
20

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Cupaniopsis anacardioides
Carrotwood
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Up to 33 feet
Alternate, compound, with four-12 leaflets that are oblong, leathery, and
shiny yellowish green. Leaflets can reach eight inches in length and three
inches in width. Tips may be rounded or slightly indented.
Numerous, white to greenish yellow and small. Occur in branched clusters.
Dark gray outer bark and often orange inner bark.
Woody capsule with three distinctly ridged segments. Fruit ripen in summer,
each about one inch in diameter, yellow to orange in color and divided into
six sections, somewhat resembling a small pumpkin. Seeds are bright red.
Slender evergreen tree capable of competing with other aggressive nonnative
plants such as Brazilian pepper. Tolerant of a wide variety of extreme
conditions. Invades tropical hammocks, pinelands, mangrove swamps, scrub
habitats and coastal strands.
Basal with 10% Garlon 4 or stump with 50% Garlon 3A
www.co.miami-dade.fl.us/derm/badplants.htm
APIRS- http://aquat1.ifas.edu
21

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Dichrostachys cinerea
Marabou thorn, sickle bush, Kalahari Christmas tree.
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Up to 25 feet
Alternate, pinnatly compound, 2-3 inches long with 12-30 pairs of leaflets
per pinnae. Very thorny along branches
Very distinct, bi-color pink top with yellow tip. Reminiscent of a paper
lantern.
Dark gray outer bark furrowed with age
Clusters of long finger-like pods that are twisted. Starts out green then turns
brown with age. Many seeds per pod.
Tolerant of a wide variety of extreme conditions. Invades tropical
hammocks, pinelands, mangrove swamps, scrub habitats and coastal strands.
Forms dense thickets.
Wet bottom 12-15 inch of trunk to ground line with 30% Garlon 4 and basal
oil.
http://www.bushveld.co.za/sicklebush-tree.htm
http://www.desert-tropicals.com/Plants/Fabaceae/Dichrostachys.html
22

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Dioscorea bulbifera
Air Potato
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Vine, can creep up trees
Alternate broad heart shapes leaves, long petioles, leaf veins normally
originating from one point.
Small and unremarkable.
N/A
Small partially winged seeds.
Each tuber is a viable plant. All tubers must be bagged (black plastic) and
disposed of properly or burned.
Basal bark treatment of 10% Garlon 4 applied to stems emerging from tubers
will be translocated to the underground tuber. Hand pulling vines and bulbils
is a viable option in the winter.
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/AG112
23

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Epipremnum pinnatum
Pothos
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Vine, can creep up trees
Shiny, alternate, heart shaped leaves, can be variegated and varying shades of
green and yellow
N/A
N/A
N/A
Often found as a house plant
Treatment:
Foliar with 2% Roundup Pro
24

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Furcraea cabuya
Central American sisal
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
6 ft
Leaves simple, whole to indented or thorny-marginalized, usually succulent
or hard and fibrous.
Inflorescence is terminal, frequently great or immense, usually white to
greenish
N/A
N/A
Spray with 3% Garlon 4 on center bud
Image Copyright Missouri Botanical Garden
Image Copyright Missouri
Botanical Garden
25

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Hibiscus tiliaceus
Sea Hibiscus
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Up to 40 feet
Large and nearly round heart-shaped leaves, dark green above and light
green and downy below, can reach six inches in diameter
Five-petaled, funnel shaped yellow flowers with deep maroon centers. Turn
orange-red. Continuously flowering.
N/A
Seed capsules are one inch long, elliptical and five-parted. Capsules split
open at maturity to release large black seeds.
Large shrub or spreading tree has a dense, hemispherical crown. Can grow in
wet, salty soils as well as dry ground.
Stump with 50% Garlon 3A applied immediately upon cutting
www.plantatlas.usf.edu
www.co.miami-dade.fl.us/derm/badplants.htm
26

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Kalenchoe spp.
Life plant, mother-of-thousands
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Up to seven feet
Succulent, elliptical, with points along edges
Bell-like, dark pink or reddish
N/A
N/A
Succulent plant with tall-growing many-leafed stem. Each point on a
dropped leaf can produce a new individual. Fast-growing and very invasive.
Foliar with 2% Roundup Pro
APIRS- http://aquat1.ifas.edu
Photo by Kate Hadden
27

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Lantana camara
Lantana, Shrub verbena
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Six feet or more
Opposite, simple, with oval blades that are rough and hairy, up to six inches
long and two to three inches wide. Bases of blades are truncate. Leaves are
very aromatic.
Small multicolored flowers occur in dense, flat-topped clusters; flowers in a
single cluster may be white to pink or lavender, yellow to orange or red.
Square stems are covered with bristly hairs when green and are often armed
with small prickles.
Round and fleshy, very small. Initially green then turning to purple then
blue-black. Unripe berries are toxic.
Often confused with the endemic native Florida lantana, which can be
identified by tapered (rather than truncate) leaf blades. Often forms thickets
in sunny open areas and invades disturbed sites such as roadsides. Also
frequently found in well-drained undisturbed habitats such as pinelands,
hammocks, and beach dunes.
Basal with 5% Garlon 4
APIRS-ttp://aquat1.ifas.edu
Identification & Biology of Non-Native Plants in
Florida’s Natural Areas by K.A Langeland, K.
Craddock Burks
28

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Nephrolepis multiflora
Asian sword fern
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
2-3 feet
Triangular fronds of finely divided, bright green leaflets grow on dark wiry
stems
N/A
N/A
N/A
Foliar with 2% Roundup Pro
© Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County Foundation
© Natural History Museum of
Los Angeles County Foundation
29

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Panicum maximum
Guinea grass
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
6-10 ft tall clumps
Blades are often 12-16 inches long with a width of 1-3 inches often with
short stocky hairs. Stems can reach 10-24 inches
Clumps of green to purplish spikelets, 1 st clump larger then others
N/A
Grass seeds
Widely used as animal food, re-sprouts from rhizomes after fires. Can spread
by wind, animals, or rhizomes. Produces large amounts of seeds.
Foliar application of Rodeo at 10%
http://www.angrin.tlri.gov.tw/engli
sh/grine/farm-facee/maximum.html
© Gerald D. Carr, University of Hawaii Botany Department
(source URL: http://www.botany.hawaii.edu/
30

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Panicum repens
Torpedo grass, Quack grass, Bullet grass
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Up to three feet
Upper leaf sheaths are glabrous or hairy. Leaf blades are stiff, linear, flat or
folded, reaching ten inches in length and often having surfaces with a whitish
waxy coating.
Inflorescence is three to nine inches long with erect branches. Flowers nearly
all year
N/A
Grass seeds
Perennial grass with sharp, torpedo-like growing tips. Tolerant of drought
and partial shade, but ideally suited to moist to wet sandy or organic soils.
Reproduces principally via rhizomes.
Foliar with high concentration of Rodeo
APIRS- http://aquat1.ifas.edu
Identification & Biology of Non-Native Plants in
Florida’s Natural Areas by K.A Langeland, K.
Craddock Burks
31

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Pennisetum pupureum
Napier grass, elephant grass, Merker grass
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Clumping grass from six to ten feet tall
Leaf blades are linear or tapering, flat and often bluish green. Blades from
3/4- to one inch wide and ten to 24 inches long with fine-toothed margins.
Each leaf has a prominent white midrib.
Cylindrical flower spikes are tawny or purplish, six to ten inches long and
1/2 to 1 1/2 inches wide, somewhat resembling cattails.
N/A
Grass Seeds
Napier grass aggressively invades freshwater wetlands, canal banks, and
other areas with moist soil. It forms extensive stands and crowds out all other
vegetation. Can be confused with native foxtails. Grows well on a wide range
of soil types and in many habitats. Resprouts from rhizomes.
Foliar with 2% Roundup Pro
www.co.miami-dade.fl.us/derm/badplants.htm
APIRS- http://aquat1.ifas.edu
32

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Pennisetum setacea
Fountain grass
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Densely clumped growth with erect stems that grow two to three feet high.
N/A
The small flowers of fountain grass are grouped in pink or purple, bristly,
upright inflorescences six to 15 inches long.
N/A
Fruits are small, dry achenes adorned with long showy bristles.
Fountain grass is a fire-stimulated grass which carries intense fires
throughout its range. The seeds are dispersed by wind.
Foliar with 2% Roundup Pro
© Br. Alfred Brousseau, Saint Mary's College
© Br. Alfred Brousseau, Saint Mary's College
33

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Psidium guavajava
Common guava
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
A small tree to 33 feet
The leaves, aromatic when crushed, are evergreen, opposite, short-petioled,
oval or oblong-elliptic, somewhat irregular in outline; 2 3/4 to six inches
long, up to two inches wide, leathery, with conspicuous parallel veins, and
more or less downy on the underside.
Faintly fragrant, the white flowers, borne singly or in small clusters in the
leaf axils, are one inch wide, with four or five white petals which are quickly
shed, and a prominent tuft of perhaps 250 white stamens tipped with paleyellow
anthers.
Tree is characterized by a slender trunk with peeling bark
The fruit, exuding a strong, sweet, musky odor when ripe, may be round,
ovoid, or pear-shaped, two to four inches long, with four or five protruding
floral remnants (sepals) at the apex; and thin, light-yellow skin, frequently
blushed with pink.
N/A
Basal with 10% Garlon 4
Identification & Biology of
Non-Native Plants in Florida’s
Natural Areas by K.A Langeland,
K. Craddock Burks Identification & Biology of Non-Native Plants in Florida’s
Natural Areas by K.A Langeland, K. Craddock Burks
34

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Sansevieria hyacinthoides
Mother-in-law’s tongue , bowstring hemp
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Up to four feet
The long, linear leaves are usually green with contrasting darker green stripes
but may have yellow and/or white stripes along the edges or may have
yellow cross bands.
White to green flowers on an unbranched spike.
N/A
Small orange unremarkable berry.
A common houseplant, very tolerant of varying conditions.
Foliar with 5% Garlon 4 in water or oil.
www.plantatlas.usf.edu
University of HI Botany Dept
35

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Solanum viarum
Tropical Soda Apple
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Small bush 3- 7 feet tall
Simple, Alternate, lobed and covered with fine hairs. Can measure 6 inches
wide and 7 inches long.
White flowers with yellow stamens are found bunched on the stem under the
leaves.
N/A
Yellow Melons eaten by mammals and birds. Normally 1-3 inches in
diameter.
Fruit can be toxic to humans. Found in sod that comes from the main land.
Foliar application of Garlon3A (1-5% in water with surfactant) and pick up
and bag fruits.
36

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Sphagneticola trilobata
Trailing wedelia
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Seldom over one foot tall
Opposite, slightly hairy and fleshy, lightly toothed.
Bright yellow, one-inch wide flower heads have darker yellow centers occur
year-round.
N/A
Small cylindrical seeds.
A prostrate, creeping, herbaceous perennial commonly seen trailing over
rocks and sand in coastal settings. Wedelia is tolerant of poor, dry salty soils.
Frequently used as a ground cover. Also know as Wedelia tri.
Foliar with 2% Roundup Pro
www.plantatlas.usf.edu
www.plantatlas.usf.edu
37

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Stachytarpheta urticifilia
Porterweed, blue rattail
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
4-6 ft tall, grows 3-6 ft in diameter.
Evergreen, deeply veined , toothed edges.
Upright stem with many blue-violet smaller flowers.
N/A
N/A
Sold as a native in south Florida, blooms in Summer to late fall.
Can be hand pulled or treated with 10% Garlon 4 basal
38

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Tecoma stans
Yellow elder
Height: 15 ft tall. Small sized tree
Leaves: Pinnately compound, opposite, evergreen in warmer climates, normally 5-7
pale green leaflets with one at tip.
Flowers: Bright yellow trumpet like.
Bark: Twigs are tan/reddish brown with main trunk being grey.
Fruit: Long slender tube like, 6-8 inches long, up to 3 inches wide.
Other: Wind dispersed seeds, often used in landscaping due to the bright yellow
flowers.
Treatment:
Basal treat with 20 % Garlon 4 in oil
http://www.hear.org/pier/imagepages/singles/testap21.htm
http://www.hear.org/starr/hiplants/images/600max/html/starr_031108_2106_tecoma_stans.htm
39

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Terminalia catappa
Tropical Almond, wild almond
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
up to 90 feet
Horizontal whorls of branches offering clusters of foot long leaves that turn
pink-red before falling. The leaves form a rosette and are found only at the
end of a branch.
The flowers are axillary and occur in slender spikes. Small, greenish-white in
short elongated clusters, appearing on upper leaf axils.
Grey, fissured, flaky but not ridged.
The fruit is flattened or compressed and narrowly winged The green almondshaped
fruit turns red to purple when ripe.
During the dry season, the leaves turn into autumn colors of red, copper,
gold. The tree usually sheds all its leaves twice a year.
Basal with 10% Garlon 4 or stump with 50% Garlon 3A
Identification & Biology of Non-Native Plants in
Florida’s Natural Areas by K.A Langeland,
K. Craddock Burks
www.plantatlas.usf.edu
40

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Tradescantia spathacea*
Oyster plant, boat lily, Moses-in-a-boat
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Up to one foot
Leaves hide stem of plant and are overlapping in a spiral pattern. Blades are
broadly linear, sharp at tips, waxy, stiff and fleshy, 6-12 inches long and 1-3
inches wide. Upper surfaces are dark to medium green with pale yellow
stripes, lower surfaces are usually purple.
Small and white, clustered within a boat-shaped bract
N/A
Two-seeded capsules occur in clusters within the “boat”
Perennial herb that is widely used as an ornamental. Can colonize rock walls,
building roofs and trees as well as hammocks. Forms a dense, clumpy ground
cover. Roots renew easily when pulled up or broken. *Was known as Rhoeo
spa. Can cause stinging, itching and/or rash from contact with plant
surfaces or juice. Gloves are recommended for removal.
Foliar with 3% Garlon 4 in water or oil
Identification & Biology of Non-Native
Plants in Florida’s Natural Areas by
K.A Langeland, K. Craddock Burks
Identification & Biology of Non-Native Plants in Florida’s
Natural Areas by K.A Langeland, K.
Craddock Burks
41

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Tribulus cistoides
Puncture weed
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
N/A (trailing and prostrate)
Six-inch long leaves divided into six to eight pairs of elliptic or oblong
leaflets ranging from 1/4 to 1/2 inch long.
Solitary and yellow five-petalled flowers are produced year-round.
N/A
Hard, 1/2-inch wide fruit produce a few stout spines.
Subshrub introduced as a salt- and drought-tolerant groundcover for coastal
plantings. The fruit spines are stout enough to puncture rubber sandals and
bicycle tires, making it unpopular in beach parks and other coastal settings.
Puncture vine invades dunes and coastal strand as well as sandy inland sites.
It also colonizes road swales, median strips, and other disturbed sites.
Foliar with 2% Roundup Pro
www.co.miami-dade.fl.us/derm/badplants.htm
Photo by Kaita Frank
42

Category III
Invasive Exotics that have not yet become a problem in the
Florida Keys but are to be watched.
43

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Adenanthera pavonina
Red sandlewood
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
A medium sized tree to 30 ft or more
Compound, 10 to 12 inches long, with 10 to 12 oblong 2 inch leaflets.
White and yellow flowers are produced in dense narrow unbranched
inflorescences
Fruit are brown pods that coil upon opening to reveal many bright, scarlet
hard seeds that cling to the dry pods
This broad open canopied tree is usually deciduous, dropping its leaves in
winter either from cold or drought stress
Treatment:
University of HI Botany Dept
www.co.miami-dade.fl.us/derm/badplants.htm
44

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Ardisia elliptica
Shoebutton ardisia
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
A shrub or small tree to 15 ft
Leathery, lance shaped leaves ranging from 3 to 6 inches long. New growth
is rosy-pink
Small five petaled pinkish flowers are borne in clusters in the leaf axils and
appear in the summer and sporadically throughout the year
Clusters of small pink fruit the ripen almost black
Treatment:
Basal treatment with Garlon 4 and oil at 10%
Identification & Biology of Non-Native
Plants in Florida’s Natural Areas by
K.A Langeland, K. Craddock Burks
www.co.miami-dade.fl.us/derm/badplants.htm
45

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Bauhinia variegata
Orchid tree
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
To 50 feet
Alternate, thin leathery, simple but deeply cleft at apes, forming 2 large
rounded lobes
Showy, fragrant, 5 petaled, pale magenta to indigo, with dark red and yellow
also on upper petal, appearing during early spring
Fruit a flat, oblong pod, to 1 ft long
Semideciduouos tree with a spreading crown
Treatment:
APIRS- http://aquat1.ifas.edu
Identification & Biology of Non-Native
Plants in Florida’s Natural Areas by
K.A Langeland, K. Craddock Burks
46

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Broussonetia papyrifera
Paper mulberry
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
15 to 20 feet
Foliage is dull green, yellow green in the fall
Inconspicuous male catkins and small spherical female flowers appear in mid
to late spring
Mature bark develops a furrowed and ridged appearance, gray brown
Fall yields a red drupe, 3/4" wide
Growth habit is wide-spreading, forming a rounded broad crown. Can sucker
from base and become weedy if not pruned, very fast growing. Reproductive
at young age Very tolerant of grimy urban conditions, heat and drought, a
tough tree. Native to China and Japan.
www.biologicalresearch.com/Plants/
www.plantatlas.usf.edu/
47

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Bucida bucera
Black Olive
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Large tree, 40-45 ft tall with a crown width of 25-35 ft
3-5 inches long 2 inches wide egg shaped with a blueish- green tint
Small yellow
Grey
½ inch round “olive” not edible for humans
Planted as a shade tree, it has started to naturalize in Key Largo Hammocks.
Basal treatment with Garlon 4 at 20 %
http://www.floridagardener.com/pom/Bucida.htm
48

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Bucida bucera B. spinosa
Spiny Black Olive, dwarf black olive
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
15-20 ft
Egg shaped, blue-green
Small yellow
Grey unremarkable
Black, round, ½ inch, not edible for humans
Often “bonsied” , used in landscape plantings,
Treatment:
http://www.botanics.com/Products/botanics_details.asp?NameAssoc=409
49

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Carica papaya
Papaya
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
5-15 ft tall trees
Large green leaves with deep lobes on large slender stems coming off main
trunk.
Male- slender on stalks. Female – wide and colorful on trunk
Main stem stays green and never develops a true (bark)
Large ½ to 1 ½ pound egg shaped fruit hangs from the main trunk.colors
range from green to yellow
Widely planted for fruit has been found on coastal berms, disturbed areas,
and in hammocks. Disputed as an exotic.
Can be hand pulled at large size, cut stump Garlon 3a or basal with Garlon 4
at 20%
50

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Catharanthus roseus
Madagascar periwinkle
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
3 ft or less
Slight hair on top and bottom of dark green oblong leaf with a lightcolored
midrib,
Pink, purple or white 5 petals opening to a colored centerd
N/A
Often sold as a ground cover at landscape nurseries. Moves into beach dunes
Hand pulled
51

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Clusia rosea
Pitch apple, Autograph tree
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
20-50 feet tall
Thick and obovate, 8-16 cm long, 3.5-14 cm wide, lateral veins arising at an
45 degree angle or less from midrib, petioles 1-2 cm long
Petals 6-8, white or pink, 3-4 cm
Smooth
Capsules greenish brown, somewhat fleshy, 5-8 cm in diameter. Seeds with a
dark red, thin, fleshy aril
Terrestrial or epiphytic trees or shrubs
Basal with 10% Garlon 4
www.plantatlas.usf.edu/
www.plantatlas.usf.edu/
52

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Dactyloctenium aegyptium
Crowfoot grass
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
24 inches
N/A
N/A
N/A
Seed reproduction
Tufted summer annual with sprinklets arranged on several fingers at tip of
stem. Hairs extend outward from the margin of the base of the leaf blade.
Foliar with round-up.
www.plantatlas.usf.edu/
www.plantatlas.usf.edu/
53

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Ficus altissima
False banyan
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Large spreading tree to 80 ft or more
Glabrous, to 10 in long and 6 in wide
Not visible, internal flowers
Smooth gray brown
½ inch to ¾ inch diameter figs begin yellow, but ripen red
Aerial roots can create a crown more than 100 ft wide Often mistaken for
the Banyan Fig, Ficus banghalensis, which has hairy leaves below.
www.co.miami-dade.fl.us/derm/badplants.htm
http://community.webshots.com/photo/58202538/58307601BOiAeT
54

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Flacourtia indica
Governor’s plum
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Large shrub or small tree
Leaves are ovate to elliptic, 2 to 2 ½ inches long
Small, yellowish flowers are produced in clusters from the leaf axils
Fruit are round, purplish, ¾ in diameter berries with numerous small seeds
Has sharp spines in the leaf axils
www.plantatlas.usf.edu/
www.co.miami-dade.fl.us/derm/badplants.htm
55

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Jacquinia arbora
Bracelet Wood, barbasco
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Small tree or shrub ranging up to 12 ft tall
Evergreen spatulate grouped in threes or fours at the ends of branches
Small, star shaped , clustered at ends
Dark brown with fine cracks as it gets older
Small berries, reddish orange. Several seeds per fruit
Seeded by birds and is showing up in Key Largo
Treatment:
http://www.fs.fed.us/global/iitf/wil
dland_shrubs.htm
http://mobot.mobot.org/cgi-bin/search_vast?w3till=MOA-04085_001.jpg
56

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Macroptilium artopurpureum
Jumbie bean, siratro
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Less then 3 feet,
Delta shaped with 3 leaves per stem, light to dark green veins present
Long stalked dark purple flowers, flowers may look black
N/A
Hairy seedpods that are 8-10 inches long and several inches wide.
Brought in as cattle fodder, wind spread seeds found on disturbed edges and
coastal berms.
http://www.pr.nrcs.usda.gov/technical/plants/legu.html#le2
http://www.geocities.com/morwell
park/plants/atropurpureum.html
57

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Macroptilium lathyroides
Phasey Bean
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
2-4 feet tall
3 leaflets per stem, oval to delta shaped
Red to pink, three petal with many flowers per stalk
N/A
8-10 inch long hairy pod with 15-20 seeds per pod ( see picture)
Used as cattle fodder world wide, and have been found at disturbed egdes
and can move to coastal berms
http://www.archbold-station.org/abs/landmanage/ExoticsGrant03/ExoticsMain/phasey_bean.htm
Flowers
Seed Pods
58

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Melia azedarach
Chinaberry
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
50 feet
Leaves alternate, large, 2 or 3 times compound up to 1.5ft long. Leaflets
pungent when crushed, dark green above, lighter green below. Deciduous.
Small, fragrant, with lilac petals.
Twigs stout with purplish bark, dotted with buff-colored lenticils
A stalked, single seeded drupe, yellow or greenish at maturity
Deciduous
Basal treatment with Garlon 4 10% and oil, or cut surface with Garlon 3a
50% or foliar at 1%
Identification & Biology of Non-Native
Plants in Florida’s Natural Areas by
K.A Langeland, K. Craddock Burks
Identification & Biology of Non-Native Plants in Florida’s
Natural Areas by K.A Langeland, K. Craddock Burks
59

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Merremia tuberosa
Wood rose
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
N/A
Lobed leaves divided into seven segments.
Very showy, trumpet-shaped, 2 inch long bright yellow flowers are produced
several times a year.
N/A
Fruits are dry capsules that superficially resemble rose flowers.
A high-climbing woody vine.
Basal treatment Garlon 4 at 10% with oil or cut surface at 50% Garlon 3a.
University of HI Botany Dept
www.co.miami-dade.fl.us/derm/badplants.htm
60

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Murraya paniculata
Orange-Jessamine, jasmine
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Small tree or shrub to 20 feet tall.
Evergreen pinnately compound, glabrous and glossy; elliptic.
Fragrant white to cream colored, petals 12-18 mm long.
Smooth brown, gray.
Oblong, red to orange.
Photo by Kaita Frank
61

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Ochrosia parviflora
Kopsia
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
A large shrub or small spreading tree 15 to 30 feet tall
Leathery dark green elliptic to obovate leaves up to 3-7inches long
and 2 to 3 inchwide. The leaves occur in whorls of 3 or 4.
Flowers occur in axilliary clusters and are small, yellow/white and
fragrant
Pairs of striking red fruit 1 ½ inches long by ½ inch in diameter, which
resemble elongated tomatoes or a pair of red horns. The fruit are
poisonous
The fruit are poisonous, and plants bleed white sap copiously when
wounded.
Treatment:
Australian National Botanical Gardens
62

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Oeceoclades maculata
Ground orchid
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
To 40cm
Sheathed pseudobulb, single 22cm, mottled green and dark green leaf
40cm. lax raceme of ~12 pinkish green flowers, lip white with red lines on
lateral lobes, pink center, blooms in fall
N/A
Small seeds in capsule.
Habitat, light woods, hammocks; low montane rainforest; hot, humid
lowlands; savannahs and prairies, often self-pollinating. Still being debated
about exotic status.
Hand pulling is the best option.
APIRS- http://aquat1.ifas.edu
www.plantatlas.usf.edu/
63

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Paspalum notatum
Bahia grass
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Slightly folded, and generally smooth, if hairiness occurs, it usually appears
at the base of the weed
Seedhead branches in clusters of two or three, and generally found in pairs
N/A
Seedhead branches in clusters of two or three, and generally found in pairs
Aggressive perennial weed with reddish-purple rhizomes. Growth pattern is
mat-like. Sometimes used as a turfgrass in Florida.
Foliar with high concentration of Roundup Pro
APIRS- http://aquat1.ifas.edu
APIRS- http://aquat1.ifas.edu
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Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Phoenix spp.
Date Palm
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
20 feet
Leathery arching fronds, form a dense crown
Small, whitish, fragrant, clustered in axillary spadices up to 3 ft cm long
Heavy-trunked palm
commonly known as dates, are oblong berries, dark-orange when ripe, up to
1 ½ ft long
commonly known as dates, are oblong berries, dark-orange when ripe, up to
1 ½ ft long , some may have long and hard spikes.
Manual removal
http://community.webshots.com
http://community.webshots.com
65

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Rhynchelytrum repens
Natal grass
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
12-24 in.
Pink, blooms summer – fall
N/A
Small grass like seeds
Short-lived perennial grass with billowy clouds of soft pink flowers. May be
grown as an annual in cold climates. Rampant self-sower.
Foliar with 2% Roundup Pro
www.plantatlas.usf.edu/
www.plantatlas.usf.edu/
66

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Stenotaphrum secundatum
St. Augustine grass
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
To 6 inches
Flattened, branching stems bear glaucus green, linear leaves
Greenish brown, spikelike, racemes of flowers bloom in late summer and
early fall
N/A
Small grass seeds
Prostrate, evergreen perennial grass that spreads by stolons.
Treatment:
www.plantatlas.usf.edu/
www.plantatlas.usf.edu/
67

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Tabebuia spp.
Pink shower tree
Height: Up to 45 or more in height.
Leaves: Palmately compound, opposite, leaflets 3-5, blades elliptic 2 /12 – 6 in long,
leathery, acute to blunt at the tip, acute to rounded at the base; surfaces
glabrous; margins entire; petiole 1-8 inches long.
Flowers: One to several flowers borne in short terminal clusters. 2 /12 in long, with 5
rounded lobes at the tip, pink yellow, or lavender with a pale yellow throat.
Bark: Grey to brown, thin and patchy.
Fruit: A narrow cylindrical capsule 2-5 in long, opening along two seams to release
the numerous winged seeds.
Other:
Treatment:
University of HI Botany Dept
University of HI Botany Dept
68

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Tamarindus indicus
Tamarind
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
Large tree 25-45 feet tall
Pinnate compound, may lose leaves in the dry season
Small yellow
Grey / brown furrowed with age
2-8 inch long fruit, large brittle shell covering sticky pulp
In the legume family, starting to be found in the Key Largo hammocks, fruit
used in many herbal remedies
http://bibliofile.mc.duke.edu/gww/Berenty/Plants/
69

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Tradescantia spp.
Wandering Jew
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
N/A
Leaves parallel-veined, alternate, simple, can be green or purple depending
on species
Flowers white, in small clusters at stem tips
N/A
Fruits small capsules containing small black seeds
Creeping, trailing, subsucculent perennial herb, much branched, with branch
tips erect; often forming dense ground cover
Treatment:
Identification & Biology of Non-Native Plants in Florida’s
Natural Areas by K.A Langeland, K. Craddock Burks
www.plantatlas.usf.edu/
70

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Turnera ulmifolia
Yellow alder, Cuban Buttercup
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
2-3 feet tall shrub
Dark green, shiny, egg-shape with a dentate (toothed) edge. Alternate on
branch
Bright yellow-white 5 petals, bloom throughout spring, summer, fall.
Nondescript green
N/A
Blooms only last one day, likes disturbed shady areas. When crushed the
leaves give off a strong odor.
Easily hand pulled
http://www.greenbeam.com/features/plant011402.stm
http://www.csdl.tamu.edu/FLORA/cgi/gallery_query?q=Turnera+ulmifolia+campus
71

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Vitex rotundifolia
Beach Vitex
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
1-3 feet, ground cover
Opposite, oval , semi-waxy leaves, dies back in winter
Small clusters of purple to white flowers in summer
Grey-brown
Small round fruit ¼ inch in diameter. Purple to black when ripe
Likes coast, may crowd out native dune plants. Pest problem found mainly
in south east coast of South Carolina but making its way south.
http://www.northinlet.sc.edu/resource/vitex_pictures/bv_in_bloom.jpg
72

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Vivitex trifolia
Chastetree, three leafed chaste tree
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Treatment:
10 –12 feet tall shrubby tree
3 leaflets per leaf,
Purple, white clustered at the ends of slender green stems
¼ round berries, purple to black when ripe
Coastal plant found on dunes in Key Largo and Long key
Hand pulling, foliar treatment with rodeo
http://mobot.mobot.org/cgi-bin/search_vast?w3till=MOA-04184_001.jpg
http://www.anbg.gov.au/images/photo_cd/732131822178/010.html
73

Scientific Name:
Common Name(s):
Zoysia japonica
Zoysia grass
Height:
Leaves:
Flowers:
Bark:
Fruit:
Other:
Up to 12 inches high
Leaf-sheath hairy at the throat, leaf-blade lanceolate, up to 3 in x ¼ in when
expanded
A terminal, spike-like raceme, up to 4 cm long, rachis somewhat wavy
N/A
N/A
A mat-forming perennial, often stoloniferous, rarely rhizomatous
Treatment:
Foliar with 2% Roundup Pro
Photo by Kate Hadden
74