Tropical Flowers Native to Florida

Flowering Maples

• The flowering maple is a bell-shaped flower that hangs down from the vine after blossoming. The hanging of the flower and the paper-like texture of the petals gives the flower the nickname Chinese lantern. The official name, flowering maple, was given because of the maple leaf-shaped leaves accompanying the flowers. The flowering maple lives best in warm, temperate areas with very low chance of frost. This flower can be found in hot areas that are overgrown with vines and large-leafed plants.

Gaillardia

• The gaillardia is better known as the blanket flower because of its resemblance to the bright woven blankets Native Americans made. The blanket flower is a sub-shrub; it does not grow tall, but grows wide, and has many flowers on one plant. Once the blanket flower is established, and has lived through year of a growing cycle, it is drought-tolerant, which means it does not need water often to stay alive. This flower needs full sunlight and attracts butterflies. The gaillardia is found along highways and in fields.

Black-eyed Susan

• The black-eyed Susan is a yellow flower with a thick, black, cone-shaped receptacle. The scientific name of this flower is Rudbeckia after the botanist who discovered it, Olaf Rudbeck. The leaves of the black-eyed Susan are diamond-shaped and grow rough and hairy closest to the flower. The petals of the flower grow out from under the black or purple cone and are long, thin petals. It is a wildflower, so it does not have a specified procedure for planting, as the seeds establish themselves anywhere they land. The black-eyed Susan is found in prairies and fields.

Chapman's Gayfeather

• Chapman's gayfeather is a shrub flower that is drought-tolerant. This flower has purple-blue, star-shaped flowers in bunches on long stalks. The leaves are basil-shaped and resemble grass. The gayfeather species are uncommon and a wild flower. The wildflower status means it is easy to establish the plant in the garden and repopulates itself when the seeds are blown off the stalk. Though this flower is not as attractive as others, it does provide a smell that attracts butterflies. This flower grows wild along the edges of sandy beaches.