Native Florida Was Not Manicured

Native Florida Was Not Manicured

By Linda Smock, Master Gardener Volunteer

Drive down many streets in contemporary Florida and you will see lawns that have been mowed, edged, and look like carpet. For others, you may perceive that the owner wants it to look like carpet because of the watering system, the apparent use of fertilizer, or the landscaping truck parked along the street with a variety of lawn equipment.  That’s not what native Florida looked like, however.

So what do we perceive native Florida to look like?  That depends on the part of Florida and the elevation.  Let’s focus on the Pinellas County peninsula, named for the pine tree, which was common in much of our county.  There were several kinds of pine trees, with longleaf (Pinus palustris), and slash (Pinus elliottii) dominant in the uplands, with sand pines (Pinus clausa) in the sandy soils, and some pond pines (Pinus serotina) in the lower areas. 

The higher landscape also included many sabal palms (Sabal palmetto) and saw palmetto (Serenoa repens).  These were sometimes interspersed among the pines but may have dominated an area.  There were patches of sawgrass (Cladium jamaicense), gall berry bushes (Ilex glabra).  Interspersed throughout the higher elevations were beautyberry (Solidago L.), pokeberry (Phytolacca americana), and broom sedge (Andropogon virginicus), with occasional gopher apple (Geobalanus oblongifolius), spiderwort (Tradescantia), and prickly pear (Opuntia humifusa).  Fogfruit (P. nodiflora) and other low-growing plants were plentiful.  Vines including Virginia creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia), bamboo vine (Smilax laurifolia), and muscadine grapes (Vitis rotundifolia Michx) grew upwards and outwards, covering whatever was near them, often palmettos and pine trees.  Passion vines (Passiflora incarnata) attracted Gulf Fritillary and Long-winged Zebra butterflies. 

Low areas and ponds had a different landscape.  Live oak trees (Quercus virginiana) helped form a transition between the higher elevation and the ponds, where water collected in rainy seasons, some staying year-round, but most evaporating away at times.  Laurel oaks (Quercus Laurifolia) could also be found in these areas, often a little closer to the water.  Spanish moss (Tillandsia usneoides) hung from the limbs and resurrection fern (Pleopeltis polypodioides) appeared green on the trunks and branches. 

Ponds often had the white-water lily (Nymphaea odorata) floating around the edge in the shallow water, and Native Americans ate these as a delicacy.  Cattails (Typha ) also surrounded the edges in the shallow water.  Occasionally the yellow water lily (Nymphaea Mexicana) could be spotted.  Many other plants lined the edges of these ponds and wetlands, and deeper waters had submersed plants, all of which provided fish and wildlife habitat.  Swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata) welcomed monarch butterflies to lay their eggs and produce a crop of caterpillars that would munch on its leaves and stems.  Marsh rabbits enjoyed both the water and the slightly higher elevation around the edge and could be seen at dusk and dawn. 

Cypress trees grew around the edges of the ponds and in the creeks and branches that ran through the area.  The knees of the bald cypress (Taxodium distichum)) grew in the water and along the banks, providing stability to the trees.  Red maples (Acer rubrum) were in the surrounding swampy areas, often uprooted by strong winds of storms that came through in summers and falls.

The Tampa Bay area is also known as the lightning capital of the world.  Therefore many of the pine forests showed evidence of fire started by lightning.  This provided a natural habitat for the gopher tortoise, a keystone species that provided habitat for many other animals and insects.  Indigo snakes and Easter diamondback rattlesnakes lived in the gopher tortoise “rooms” that bordered the tunnel.  Cottontail rabbits bounded through the areas while hawks and eagles looked from perches on snags and tall trees to spot their next meal.  Deer were common among the pine trees and down into swamps and wetlands. Dark brought out the opossums, raccoons, bobcats, skunks, and larger mammals. 

No, Pinellas County was not well-manicured in its native state.  There were no streets but there were trails created by wildlife and used by humans.  There were no exotic invasive plants or animals, only those that were native to the habitat before European occupation. 

We can never return to that habitat, to that environment, and most of us don’t want to.  But we can encourage people to do less manicuring of their lawns and use more of our native plants that will become host to our native insects, birds, and wildlife.