FNPS Plant Database

Calycanthus floridus

Carolina allspice, sweetshrub

PHOTOS COMING SOON!

Nomenclature

Common Name:

Carolina allspice, sweetshrub

Synonym(s):

Calycanthus floridus var. glaucus

Genus species:

Calycanthus floridus

Family:

Calycanthaceae

Plant Specifics

Form:

shrub

Size:

6-9 ft tall by 6-12 ft wide

Life Span:

Long-lived perennial

Flower Color:

dark red

Fruit Color:

brown

Phenology:

Deciduous. Flowers in spring. Has yellow fall color.

Noted For:

Showy Flowers, Aroma/Showy Fruitsagrance, Fall Color

Landscaping

Recommended Uses:

Informal settings where it can be a low hedge plant or specimen. Plant forms small clusters by suckering, so give it room.

Considerations:

In the right conditions, the suckering will be aggressive.

Availability:

FNPS Plant Sales, Seed

Propagation:

Transplant suckers, layer, seed.

Light:

Part Sun, Shade

Moisture Tolerance:

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

Coming Soon!

Stays wet ---to--- Not wet but not extremely dry

Salt Water Flooding Tolerance:

Unknown

Salt Spray/Salty Soil Tolerance:

Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray

Soil or Other Substrate:

Sand, Loam

Soil pH:

Slightly acidic to neutral

Suitable to Grow In:

8A,8B,9A,9B,10A,10B

USDA zones are based on the average annual extreme minimum winter temperature.



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Ecology

Wildlife:

Pollinators

Mostly pollinated by sap beetles. The beetles are drawn by the scent of fermentation, and they work their way into the shade of the overlapping tepals to find food. The flowers are easy to enter but difficult to depart. Once trapped inside, the beetle picks up pollen. After the flower is pollinated, the inner parts of the flower fold back to release the beetle. By that point, the stigmas will have withered, and the beetle will move on to another flower in search of more food, ensuring cross-pollination ( Arnold Arboretum )

Native Habitats:

Mesic-wet mesic sites. Slope forests, bluffs, riverine floodplain, upland hardwood forest, slope forest, bottomland forest. Found on stream banks.

Natural Range in Florida:

Comments:

Ethnobotany:

General Comments:

Citations:

Arnold Arboretum. http://arnoldia.arboretum.harvard.edu/pdf/articles/2018-75-4-shrubs-and-the-pollinators-who-love-them.pdf



Haehle, Robert G. and Joan Brookwell.  1999.  Native Florida Plants.  Gulf Publishing Company.  Houston, TX.



Nelson, Gil.  2003.  Florida's Best Landscape Plants. Association of Florida Native Nurseries.



Osorio, Rufino. 2001. A gardener's guide to Florida's native Plants.  University Press of Florida, Gainesville, FL.



University of Tennessee Extension Service.  Desired Ph Range and salt tolerance of common nursery plants.    https://extension.tennessee.edu/mtnpi/Documents/handouts/Fertility/Desired-pH-Range-List.pdf   accessed 2021.



Wunderlin, R. P., B. F. Hansen, A. R. Franck, and F. B. Essig. 2021. Atlas of Florida Plants ( http://florida.plantatlas.usf.edu /).  Institute for Systematic Botany, University of South Florida, Tampa.

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