Geobalanus oblongifolius

gopher-apple

Chrysobalanaceae

Plant Specifics

Form:

shrub

Size:

0.5 to 1 (3 rarely) ft.  Spreads by rhizomes to form large colonies.

Life Span:

long-lived perennial

Flower Color:

white

Fruit Color:

yellow

Phenology:

Evergreen in the southern part of its range; deciduous to the north. Typically blooms late spring-mid summer.

Noted For:

Showy Flowers

Landscaping

Recommended Uses:

Groundcover in dry, sunny settings.  Can also make a good soil stabilizer.

Considerations:

Light:

Full Sun, Part Sun

Moisture Tolerance:

Not wet but not extremely dry ---- to ---- Very long very dry periods

Salt Water Flooding Tolerance:

Unknown

Salt Spray/Salty Soil Tolerance:

Moderate. Tolerant of salty wind and may get some salt spray.

Soil or Other Substrate:

Sand

Suitable to Grow In:

9A,9B,10A,10B,11

Ecology

Wildlife:

Pollinators, Butterflies, Mammals

Butterflies including buckeyes, rattlebox moths, wasps, ants and bees use the flowers.  Bees are the primary pollinators. Documented bees include   Colletes sp. A, Agaposternon splendens, Augochlorella aurata, Augochloropsis metallica, A. sumptuosa, Dialictus nyinphalis, Sphecodes heraclei, Megachile brevispseudobrevis, Epeoluszonatus and Apis inellifera (Deyrup et al. 2002)

 Fruits are eaten by small mammals and gopher tortoises. 

Native Habitats:

Scrub, scrubby flatwoods, sandhill, dry secondary woods. Pine rocklands.