Frogfruit

Description

Botanical Name:  Phyla nodiflora

Common Name:  Turkey Tangle Fogfruit, Frogfruit, Fog Fruit

Description:  Cool little perennial groundcover native to Florida with a funky little name. Grows only 3-8″ tall x 2-4′ wide, with its tiny white/pink/purple/red flowers blooming May through November. I love this groundcover. Great alternative to grass in your sun, part sun, or part shade areas. Moderate deer resistance. Drought tolerant, but also tolerates occasional flooding.

It is a good nectar source for bees and small butterflies such as hairstreaks, and is the larval host for the White peacock (Anartia jatrophae), Phaon crescent (Phyciodes phaon), and Common buckeye (Junonia coenia) butterflies. It occurs naturally in hammocks, beaches, lawns, and along roadsides. This evergreen perennial is low-growing and creeping, often forming a dense mat of green foliage. Its distinct white and purple flowers are small but very showy, particularly when planted in mass.

Frogfruit makes a great groundcover as it can form dense mats in the right conditions. It also works well in a hanging basket. Because the plant spreads and roots at leaf nodes, it can be easily grown from cuttings or by division. Is in the verbena family.

Plant Lore:  In the Middle Ages, farmers knew that after they hayed their meadows, low-growing plants would pop up. Because meadows often have fog on them in the mornings, these low-growing plants were collectively known as “fog fruit.” Jump forward hundreds of years later until fog fruit is now called Frogfruit simply because someone along the way misunderstood the pronunciation.

Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Some tolerance to salty wind but not direct salt spray.

This plant in 1-gallon containers is 1-3″ tall x  3-10″ long.

Florida Hardiness Zones 8 – 10