Argusia gnaphalodes (L.) Heine

Sea lavender, bay lavender, sea rosemary, iodine bush, beach heliotrope

Sea-lavender is a long-lived evergreen perennial shrub. It prefers dunes and thickets on the Atlantic coast of central and south Florida, where it is listed as an endangered species. It is native to Bermuda, parts of the Caribbean, southern Mexico, Belize, Honduras, and Puerto Rico. It has become naturalized in Hawaii and California.

Plants: Forms mounding or sprawling shrubs 3–6′ tall ⨉ 3–10′ wide (91–182 ⨉ 91–304 cm). Trunks can reach 8″ (20 cm) in diameter. Stems are yellow-green and softly hairy.

Leaves: Succulent, and linear or spatulate, and alternate, with smooth margins. Each leaf is 2–4 ⨉ ¼″ (5–10 cm ⨉ 6.3 mm) in size. They are covered with downy white hairs, producing a soft silvery gray look, like sage. Dead leaves hang down below the live ones, persisting for long periods.

Flowers: Flowers are terminal, appearing on the ends of branches, and they form a helicoid cyme: the flowers appear along one side of a curved or coiled spike. Each flower is white, pink, or lavendar, with a pink or greenish-yellow throat. It is about ⅛″ (3.2 mm) around, and has a 5-lobed corolla. Flowers have a mild, sweet fragrance. Blooms in fall and winter, and sometimes at other times of year.

Fruits: Roughly oval drupes with conical tips are about ¼″ (6.3 mm) around. They mature to black or brown in color.

Habitats: Dunes and thickets on tropical coasts.

Online References:

Argusia gnaphalodes description by Thomas H. Kent, not updated.

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