FNPS Plant Database

Styrax americanus

American snowbell

PHOTOS COMING SOON!

Nomenclature

Common Name:

American snowbell

Synonym(s):

Genus species:

Styrax americanus

Family:

Styracaceae

Plant Specifics

Form:

tree

Size:

6-10 (12) ft tall by 6-10 ft wide

Life Span:

Long-lived perennial

Flower Color:

white

Fruit Color:

Phenology:

Deciduous. Blooms in spring. Life span likely >50 yrs (Nelson 2003).

Noted For:

Showy Flowers, Aroma/Showy Fruitsagrance

Landscaping

Recommended Uses:

Understory tree. Specimen plant in moist areas.

Considerations:

Availability:

Native Nurseries

Propagation:

Seed (stratified), layering, softwood cuttings.

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:

Acidic

Suitable to Grow In:

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

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



Don't know your zone? Click here to search by zip code.

Ecology

Wildlife:

Pollinators, Butterflies, Birds, Mammals

Attracts pollinators.





Attracts butterflies.





Host plant for promethea moth ( Callosamia promethea ).

Birds and other animals eat the fruit. 

Native Habitats:

Understory of floodplain and wet forests, swamps, shoreline thickets, cypress-gum depressions. Most frequently where annually inundated or where water stands at or above the soil surface for extended periods.

Natural Range in Florida:

Comments:

Ethnobotany:

General Comments:

Prolific bloomer: very showy. Fragrant.

Citations:

General: https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=stam4



https://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?taxonid=287280&isprofile=1&gen=Styrax



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 ( https://florida.plantatlas.usf.edu /).  Institute for Systematic Botany, University of South Florida, Tampa.

Request an update