10 December 2023.
Santa Rosa County, Florida, United States
Locality: Along the Florida Trail, accessed from Miller Bluff Road. Plants were found infrequently but regularly along the trail over 1 kilometer or more.
Coordinates: 30.6199, -86.8652
(Map it)
Elevation: 4m.
Georeference protocol: Lat/lon determined by GPS
Habitat: Wild Habitat
Environment description: Plants are growing primarily in shade to dappled shade, above a small stream in moist mesic conditions along and below the Florida Trail. The mixed evergreen and deciduous forest is quite diverse with an excellent litter layer. Slope: 2 to 8 percent. Aspect: South. The underlying geology of this area is classified as Alluvium, of Pleistocene/Holocene origin and consists of undifferentiated Quaternary sediments of varying thickness including siliciclastics, organics and freshwater carbonates. The siliciclastics are light gray, tan, brown to black, unconsolidated to poorly consolidated, clean to clayey, silty, unfossiliferous, variably organic-bearing sands to blue green to olive green, poorly to moderately consolidated, sandy, silty clays. Organics occur as plant debris, roots, disseminated organic matrix and beds of peat. Freshwater carbonates, often referred to as marls in the literature, are scattered. (Source: USGS Florida Geologic Map Data.) The surface soil profile of this area is primarily Bibb-Kinston Series Association. Bibb Series soils are coarse-loamy, sandy, acid soils that are poorly drained. They are soils of flood plains and streams subject to frequent flooding. These are found in association with Kinston Series soils that are fine-loamy, sandy, acid soils of flood plains and stream subject to frequent flooding. The Bibb-Kinston association ranges from 1-1.5 meters thick and is strongly acid. (Source: NRCS Web Soil Survey.)
Number of plants sampled: 20
Associated species: Pinus palustris; Magnolia virginiana; Vaccinium corymbosum; Clethra alnifolia; Cyrilla racemiflora; Smilax sp.; Lyonia lucida; Arundinaria tecta; Callicarpa americana; Pinus elliottii; Symplocos tinctoria; Ilex coriacea; Ilex opaca; Ilex vomitoria; Cartrema americana; Quercus laurifolia; Smilax laurifolia; Hypericum sp.; Magnolia grandiflora; Sphagnum sp.; Acer rubrum; Liquidambar styraciflua; Smilax pumila; Taxodium distichum; Pieris phillyreifolia; Hamamelis virginiana; Illicium floridanum; Vaccinium corymbosum [listed as V. fuscatum]; Viburnum nudum; Rhododendron viscosum Serrulatum Group [originally listed as R. serrulatum]; Woodwardia areolata; Vitis rotundifolia [originally listed as Muscadinia rotundifolia]; Quercus nigra; Oxydendrum arboreum; Chamaecyparis thyoides; Itea virginica; Morella caroliniensis; Carex sp.
Comment: This species is a multi-stemmed, deciduous, upright, irregularly oval-rounded shrub, approximately 3-4.5 meters tall x 3 meters wide. Leaves have multicellular stipitate-glandular- and unicellular-hairs on the petiole; the blade is ovate to obovate, 3-11 cm long × 1.5-4.5 cm wide with entire margins. Fruits are capsules borne on erect pedicels and approximately 14-26 mm long; they are sparsely to densely stipitate-glandular-hairy, especially on the pedicel and lower portion of the capsule. They have a somewhat unique banana-shaped, curving appearance. Plants are occasional but regularly seen above a stream along the Florida Trail. Seeds collected form 20 plants.
Collector(s):