Florida Ethnobotany

Winner of the 2005 Klinger Book Award Presented by The Society for Economic Botany. Florida Ethnobotany provides a cross-cultural examination of how the states native plants have been used by its various peoples. This compilation includes common names of plants in their historical sequence, weaving together what was formerly esoteri

This is a local study of wild medicinal plants in the Greater Green Swamp, what is changing, and why. It looks at what has happened to drained and logged swampland, where soil at the top of Bone Valley, recovering from an extended hydroperiod has become home to a number of pan tropical medicinal plants. Eight of the common wild medicinal plants in Kathleen, FL are looked at from a point of view of their value in history, how these plants are treated in the United States, and how they are used all around the world.

Paleo-Indians lived more than 14,000 years ago in the land we now call Florida, and later came tribes of indigenous people known as the Ais, Calusa, Mayaimi, Tequesta, Timucua, and others. Still later came the Seminole and Miccosukee. These people were hunter-fisher-gatherers who lived off the bounty of what nature had to offer. Today, foraging wild fruits, nuts, grains, and other edible plant parts has become an active pastime for outdoor enthusiasts throughout the country, but Florida is a forager’s paradise due to the wealth of both temperate and tropical native plants. In Foraging Florida, local naturalist Roger Hammer highlights edible and medicinal native and naturalized plants found throughout the state, from the far western Panhandle to the island chain of the Florida Keys. The book is organized by plant family so foragers can learn which species are closely related, and it includes a poisonous plant section so novices will know which plants to avoid. Recipes, identification tips, and how to prepare herbal and medicinal teas are offered throughout this forager’s guidebook. Detailed description and photos of each plant, including its uses Information on toxic lookalikes and cautions Recipes to prepare at home and on the trail A glossary of botanical terms

This guide features stunning color photographs of 300 common wildflowers from Ocala National Forest, Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge, the Disney Wilderness Preserve, Archbold Biological Station, and Paynes Prairie State Park among others. Detailed descriptions and full-color photos aid the reader in identifying plants in the field.

Fully revised and updated, Wildflowers of the Florida Keys is the ultimate field guide to wildflowers, trees, and shrubs of the ecoregion that extends from Soldier Key to Key West. Whether you are looking for the endemic Big Pine Partridge Pea, the elusive Keys Passionflower, or the fragrant Princewood, this guide will aid in plant identification for botanists and novice enthusiasts alike. Packed with vivid color photos and informative text, this valuable reference will help you identify and appreciate the unique and varied flora of this lush, tropical region. INSIDE YOU’LL FIND: Detailed descriptions and color photos of more than 350 plants An introduction to the habitats and ecology of the Florida Keys Plants arranged by color and family A glossary of botanical terms A primer on plant characteristics

Florida is home to an entire library of native plants that evolved to thrive in its range of climate regions. Native Plants for Florida Gardens profiles 100 Florida native wildflowers, shrubs, vines and trees that can transform typical Florida landscapes. Striking color photography showcases species and flowering characteristics. With the expertise of the Florida Wildlife Foundation, anyone can create lovely, low-maintenance gardens that will tolerate Florida’s roughest conditions, resist disease, and support biodiversity.

Given its pivotal location between the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico, its numerous islands, its abundant flora and fauna, and its subtropical climate, Florida has long been ideal for human habitation. Yet Florida traditionally has been considered peripheral in the study of ancient cultures in North America, despite what it can reveal about social and climate change. The essays in this book resoundingly argue that Florida is in fact a crucial hub of archaeological inquiry. New Histories of Pre-Columbian Florida represents the next wave of southeastern archaeology. Contributors use new data to challenge well-worn models of environmental determinism and localized social contact. Indeed, this volume makes a case for considerable interaction and exchange among Native Floridians and the greater Southeastern United States as seen by the variety of objects of distant origin and mound-building traditions that incorporated extraregional concepts. Themes of monumentality, human alterations of landscapes, the natural environment, ritual and mortuary practices, and coastal adaptations demonstrate the diversity, empirical richness, and broader anthropological significance of Florida’s aboriginal past.

The natural and cultural history of an iconic plant The palmetto, also known as the cabbage palm or Sabal palmetto, is an iconic part of the southeastern American landscape and the state tree of Florida and South Carolina. In The Palmetto Book, Jono Miller offers surprising facts and dispels common myths about an important native plant that remains largely misunderstood. Miller answers basic questions such as: Are palms trees? Where did they grow historically? When should palmettos be pruned? What is swamp cabbage and how do you prepare it? Did Winslow Homer’s watercolors of palmettos inadvertently document rising sea level? How can these plants be both flammable and fireproof? Based on historical research, Miller argues that cabbage palms can live for more than two centuries. The palmettos that were used to build Fort Moultrie at the start of the Revolutionary War thwarted a British attack on Charleston—and ended up on South Carolina’s flag. Delving into biology, Miller describes the anatomy of palm fronds and their crisscrossed leaf bases, called bootjacks. He traces the underground “saxophone” structure of the young plant’s root system. He explores the importance of palmettos for many wildlife species, including Florida Scrub-Jays and honey bees. Miller also documents how palmettos can pose problems for native habitats, citrus groves, and home landscapes. From Low Country sweetgrass baskets to Seminole chickees and an Elvis Presley movie set, the story of the cabbage palm touches on numerous dimensions of the natural and cultural history of the Southeast. Exploring both the past and present of this distinctive species, The Palmetto Book is a fascinating and enlightening journey.