Low-maintenance landscape plants for south Florida

Annuals

Notes:

¨ indicates plants commonly available in nurseries and/or garden centers in south Florida
© indicates Florida native plants
indicates plants that can tolerate wet soils or occasional flooding.

Click on underlined scientific names for photos and/or more information.

Common name *Scientific name*	Size	Light	Salt tolerance	Comments
Scarlet milkweed ¨ Asclepias curassavica (Click here for UF Fact Sheet )	36-48	Full sun to partial shade	Low	Erect, evergreen, perennial with narrow, elliptical leaves and terminal clusters of scarlet and orange flowers—spring to fall. Attracts butterflies. Can tolerate wet soil.
Orach, French spinach Atriplex hortensis	2-6’	Full sun	Unknown	Usually grown for its tender, spinach-like leaves. Leaves can be green, yellowish-green, red or purple. Sometimes grown as bedding plant.
Strawflower Brachteantha bracteatum	36	Full sun	Low	Annual or short-lived perennial with erect habit. Weak, hollow stems. Thin green leaves bear golden yellow blooms up to 2” in diameter at branch tips—summer to early fall. Good groundcover or small shrub.
Calliopsis, tickseed ¨© Coreopsis tinctoria (Click here for UF Fact Sheet )	2-3’	Full sun	Moderate	Somewhat hairy leaves and stems form a loose mound. Bright, golden-yellow daisy blooms—June to September. Relative of the sunflower.
Cosmos ¨ Cosmos bipinnatus (Click here for UF Fact Sheet )	5-6’	Full sun	Low	Feathery-leafed annual from Mexico and far southern USA. Showy, daisy-like flowerheads in summer and fall, in shades of pink, red, purple or white. May require staking. May not survive rainy season.
Dwarf crown-of-thorns ¨ Euphorbia milii (Click here for UF Fact Sheet )	1-3	Full sun	High	Small Thai dwarf varieties used as bedding plants and groundcovers. See full description in “Shrubs & Hedges” below.
Indian blanket ¨© Gaillardia *pulchella* (Click here for UF Fact Sheet )	12-24	Full sun	High	Colorful native annual or perennial. As easily grown as it is beautiful. Considerable variation in flower color; typical variety bears red flowers with yellow-tipped petals. Plant in open site with good drainage. Good for beach-front plantings.
Gazania ¨ Gazania rigens (Click here for UF Fact Sheet )	6-24”	Full sun	Moderate	Mat-forming plant with crowded rosettes of mostly unlobed leaves that are green above and whitish beneath. Orange flowerheads with a black eye spot at petal bases.
Moss verbena Glandularia puchella	12	Full sun to partial shade	Unknown	Freely branching, sprawling perennial with 3-lobed, finely dissected, aromatic leaves and clusters of pink, lilac, purple or white flowers. Requires well-drained soil. Attracts butterflies. Good bedding plant.
Tampa verbena ¨© Glandularia tampensis	18-24	Full sun	Low	Native, sprawling, short-lived perennial. Sometimes treated as annual. Flowers purplish-pink. Also known as Verbena tampensis.
Globe amaranth ¨ Gomphrena globosa (Click here for UF Fact Sheet )	1-2’	Full sun	Low	Small, branching annual with hairy leaves and bright purple, pink, or white, clover-like flowers. Benefits from mulching.
Sunflower ¨ Helianthus annuus (Click here for UF Fact Sheet )	3-10’	Full sun	Low	Fast-growing, upright annual. Large, daisy-like, 12” wide yellow flowerheads with brown centers borne in summer. Coarse, leggy plants with heavily veined leaves.
Annual lion’s ear Leonotis nepetifolia	8’	Full sun to light shade	Low	Course-textured, rather gangly, erect, loosely branching summer annual. Smooth leaves with toothed margins. Bright red, tubular, downward curving flowers encircle stem at intervals. Self-seeds easily, but not considered invasive. Attracts butterflies.
Butter daisy ¨ Melampodium divaricatum	6-24”	Full sun	Low	Small, summer annual with small, yellow flowers and bright green foliage. Prolific self-seeder. Great bedding and border plant. Also known as M. paludosum.
Moss rose ¨ Portulaca grandiflora (Click here for UF Fact Sheet )	4-8”	Full sun	High	Small, annual, low-growing succulent with small, lance-shaped, fleshy, bright green leaves on reddish stems. Yellow, pink, red, or orange flowers in summer; close at night and on cloudy days. Suitable as groundcover, in rockery, or as border.
Black-eyed Susan ¨© Rudbeckia hirta (Click here for UF Fact Sheet )	3’	Full sun to light shade	Low	Typical daisy-like perennial or annual (depending on variety). Large, yellow-orange to reddish-orange flowers with darker centers. Attracts butterflies. Does not tolerate prolonged, wet, humid weather.
Ornamental sages ¨ Salvia spp. (Click here for UF Fact Sheet )	1-5’	Full sun	Low	Semi-woody, mostly herbaceous shrubby annuals with fuzzy leaves and spikes of blue, red, pink, or white flowers. Wilt and lose leaves during drought, but recover when rain returns. Attract butterflies and hummingbirds. Will not tolerate prolonged wet, humid weather.
Dusty miller ¨ Senecio cineraria (Click here for UF Fact Sheet )	8-12”	Full sun to partial shade	Low	Mound-forming, evergreen, shrubby. Daisy-like flowers range from pink, red, purple and crimson through to white, as well as traditional blue. Very tolerant of heat, salt air and poor soil, but does poorly in high humidity or excessive rain.
Dahlberg daisy Thymnophylla tenuiloba	6-12”	Full sun	Low	Bushy, highly-branched annual with small, yellow, daisy flowers. Foliage has lemony scent. Good border plant. Also known as Dyssodia tenuiloba. Does not tolerate prolonged, wet, humid weather.
Mexican sunflower ¨ Tithonia rotundifolia	60-72	Full sun	Low	Warm-season annual or perennial. Leaves course, 3-lobed, and covered in soft, downy fuzz. Flowers orange to red-orange.
Purpletop verbena ¨ Verbena bonariensis (Click here for UF Fact Sheet )	36-72	Full sun to light shade	Low	Erect, clump-forming perennial with stiff, widely branched stems. Small, purple flowers in clusters held high above foliage. Best when densely planted. Attracts butterflies.
Zinnia ¨ Zinnia elegans (Click here for UF Fact Sheet )	30”	Full sun	Low	Course, upright, bushy annual with lance-shaped leaves and daisy-like flowers—available in a rainbow of colors. Requires well-drained soil and good air circulation. Powdery mildew occasional problem when humid; newer varieties resistant. Leaf spot during rainy season possible problem. Also known as Zinnia violacea.
Mexican zinnia ¨ Zinnia haageana (Click here for UF Fact Sheet )	1-2’	Full sun	Low	Upright, bushy annual. Small, narrow leaves. Daisy-like flowers in white, orange, yellow, red, mahogany, or bicolor (gold, maroon, purple, brown, cream, and pink). Good annual groundcover.

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