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Daily Bucket: Some Tampa Bay Flowers [1]
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Date: 2025-06-18
The Daily Bucket is a regular series from the Backyard Science group. Here we talk about Mother Nature in all her glory, especially the parts that live nearby. So let us know (as close as you are comfortable) where you are and what's going on around you. What's the weather like? Seen any interesting plants, bugs or critters? Are there birds at your feeders? Deer, foxes or snakies in your yard? Seen any cool rocks or geological features? Post your observations and notes here. And photos. We like photos. :)
“La Florida” means “the flowered place”, and was the name given to Florida by Juan Ponce de Leon back in 1513. In something of an oddity, though, peninsular Florida does not really have many large showy flowers, and most of the ones we see here today are non-native imports that were brought here by the garden trade. De Leon actually named “Florida” after the Easter “Festival of Flowers”, which happened to be around the time he reached the peninsula.
Florida usually has flowers of some sort blooming at virtually any time, though, since we essentially have a year-round growing season. But now that it is summer and the rainy season is in full swing, the flowers are really popping up.
So, here are some flowers that I have seen lately. (This being “Florida”, many of these are not actually native.)
Buttonbush, a native. My sister from Pennsylvania called it a “Coronavirus Bush”.
Calliandra. An escaped garden plant from South America.
Swamp Primrose. There are several species here in Tampa Bay, which all look alike to me. Some are native and some are not.
Water Hyacinth. Gorgeous, but a non-native invasive
Beach Sunflower. An endangered native resident of coastal sand dunes.
Blanket Flower, a Florida native
Hibiscus. The familiar garden flower is not native to Florida ...
… but several other members of the genus are—they are known as “Marsh Mallows”
Frangipani. Another non-native ornamental that got here through the garden trade.
And now it is your turn: what’s blooming in your neck of the woods?
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