FNPS Plant Database

Nolina brittoniana

scrub beargrass, Britton's beargrass
  • Photo by: Shirley Denton, Suncoast Chapter FNPS

Nomenclature

Common Name:

scrub beargrass, Britton's beargrass

Synonym(s):

Genus species:

Nolina brittoniana

Family:

Ruscaceae

Plant Specifics

Form:

flower

Size:

ft

Life Span:

Long-lived perennial

Flower Color:

white

Fruit Color:

brown

Phenology:

winter dormant

Noted For:

Showy Flowers, Showy Fruits

Landscaping

Recommended Uses:

Wildflower garden.

Considerations:

Availability:

Seed, Friends

Propagation:

Seed.

Light:

Full Sun

Moisture Tolerance:

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

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Not wet but not extremely dry -to- 1Stays wet

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

Soil pH:

Suitable to Grow In:

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



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Ecology

Wildlife:

Pollinators

The following Hymenoptera families and species were observed visiting flowers of  Nolina brittoniana  at Archbold Biological Station: 







  • Apidae:  Apis mellifera


  • Leucospididae:  Leucospis robertsoni, L. slossonae


  • Sphecidae:  Ammophila pictipennis, Bicyrtes quadrifasciata, Cerceris fumipennis, C. rufopicta, Sphex ichneumoneus


  • Vespidae:  Pachodynerus erynnis






Note:  this study only looked at hymenoptera.

Native Habitats:

Scrub, sandhilll.

Natural Range in Florida:

Comments:

Ethnobotany:

General Comments:

This is listed by the USFWS as Endangered and may require landowner permission and/or permits to transplant. Please do not disturb this species unless this is a plant rescue.

Citations:

Chapin, Linda.  2000.  Field guide to the rare plants of Florida.  Florida Natural Areas Inventory, Tallahassee, FL.  



Deyrup, M.A. and N.D. 2015. Database of observations of Hymenoptera visitations to flowers of plants on Archbold Biological Station, Florida, USA. http://coastalplainplants.org/wiki/index.php/Nolina_brittoniana https://www.fnai.org/FieldGuide/pdf/Nolina_brittoniana.pdf.



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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