Common Name:

groundsel tree, sea myrtle, salt bush

Synonym(s):

Genus species:

Baccharis halimifolia

Family:

Asteraceae (Compositae)

Form:

shrub

Size:

7-15 ft tall by 5-7 ft wide

Life Span:

long-lived perennial

Flower Color:

white, yellow

Fruit Color:

white

Phenology:

Deciduous in northern Florida and evergreen from the central peninsula south. Blooms in late summer and fall. Dioecious. Showy fruits on female plants in late fall.

Noted For:

Recommended Uses:

Specimen plant in casual settings.  Also useful as a natural screen or buffer plant. Rain gardens or bioswales. The primary horticultural feature is the silvery, plume-like achenes which appear in the fall on female plants. The fruits can provide a white haze for several weeks in the fall.

Considerations:

Weak wood. Seed is wind disbursed and may become weedy.

Availability:

Propagation:

Seed. Salt bush is dioecious, that is, both a male and female plant are necessary for seed production.  Readily self seeds.

Light:

Moisture Tolerance:

Always Flooded------------------------------------------------Extremely Dry

Usually moist, occasional inundation ---to--- Not wet but not extremely dry

Salt Water Flooding Tolerance:

Tolerant of inundation with brackish water

Salt Spray/Salty Soil Tolerance:

Some tolerance to salty wind but not direct salt spray

Soil or Other Substrate:

Loam, Sand

Soil pH:

Slightly acidic to calcareous

Suitable to Grow In:

8A, 8B, 9A, 95, 10A, 10B, 11

Wildlife:

Seeds are wind dispersed but also eaten by small birds and other wildlife.

Although primary wind pollinated, it attracts bees including Colletes mandibularis, C. simulans, C. thysanellae, Agapostemon splendens, Augochlorella aurata, Augochloropsis metallica, Dialictus miniatulus, D. nymphalis, Halictus ligatus, Sphecodes heraclei, Apis mellifera (honeybee) (Deyrup et al. 2002).  Also said to attract butterflies.

Native Habitats:

Coastal uplands and disturbed moist inland areas

Natural Range in Florida:

Visit the USF Libraries Atlas of Florida Plants

Ethnobotany:

General Comments:

Fruiting late in the fall, the fruits during the fall add substantial interest to a casual garden. Baccharis glomerulifolia is similar in appearance and in potential cultural uses.