FNPS Plant Database

Melanthera nivea

snow squarestem, salt & pepper
  • Photo by: Mark Hutchinson, Hernando Chapter, FNPS
  • Photo by: Mark Hutchinson, Hernando Chapter, FNPS
  • Photo by: John Lampkin, Nature Coast FNPS
  • Photo by: John Lampkin, Nature Coast FNPS
  • Photo by: Shirley Denton, Suncoast Chapter FNPS
  • Photo by: Shirley Denton, Suncoast Chapter FNPS
  • Photo by: Ginny Stibolt, Ixia Chapter FNPS
  • Photo by: Ginny Stibolt, Ixia Chapter FNPS
  • Photo by: Ginny Stibolt, Ixia Chapter FNPS

Nomenclature

Common Name:

snow squarestem, salt & pepper

Synonym(s):

Genus species:

Melanthera nivea

Family:

Asteraceae (Compositae)

Plant Specifics

Form:

flower

Size:

2-5 ft tall by 2-4 ft wide

Life Span:

Long-lived perennial

Flower Color:

white

Fruit Color:

NA

Phenology:

winter dormant

Noted For:

Showy Flowers

Landscaping

Recommended Uses:

Use in a butterfly garden or informal wildflower garden.

Considerations:

Can get rangy and may need pruning. Reseeds, so plant it where that's not a problem.

Availability:

Seed

Propagation:

Seed.

Light:

Full Sun, Part Sun

Moisture Tolerance:

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

Coming Soon!

Somewhat moist, no flooding ---to--- Somewhat long very dry periods

Salt Water Flooding Tolerance:

Unknown

Salt Spray/Salty Soil Tolerance:

Some tolerance to salty wind but not direct salt spray

Soil or Other Substrate:

Sand, Loam, Lime Rock

Soil pH:

adaptable (usually acidic)

Suitable to Grow In:

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

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



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Ecology

Wildlife:

Pollinators, Butterflies

Heavily used by butterflies, skippers, bees, and wasps for nectar.  This plant is an insect magnet.

Native Habitats:

Edges of upland hardwood forests, hydric hammocks, maritime hammocks, pine flatwoods, pine-oak-hickory woods, calcareous hammocks, coastal hammocks, open areas.

Natural Range in Florida:

Comments:

Ethnobotany:

General Comments:

Although it has square stems and opposite leaves like members of the mint family (Lamiaceae), this is a member of the daisy family, but it has no ray florets that look like petals. All the florets in the flower head are fertile.

Citations:

Hammer, Roger. 2015.  Attracting hummingbirds and butterflies in tropical Florida.  University Presses of Florida.



Huegel, Craig, N.  2012.  Native wildflowers and other ground covers for Florida landscapes. University Press of Florida, Gainesville, FL.



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



Tras, Pamela.  2001.  Gardening for Florida's butterflies.  Great Outdoors Publishing, St. Petersburg, FL.



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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