EPA Level III Ecoregion
Southern Coastal Plain
1247 native plants for the Southern Coastal Plain ecoregion (Orlando area).
The Southern Coastal Plain runs across northern and central Florida and up into the Georgia and Carolina low country, taking in Orlando, Jacksonville, Tampa, and Savannah. Sandy soil, a high water table, heavy summer rain, and winters with little or no frost set the rules. Natives such as scarlet sage, white wild indigo, and sweetbay magnolia handle the wet summers and fast drainage that rot out plants shipped down from cooler places.
Conditions: Sandy, fast-draining soils over a high water table, 50–60 inches of rain concentrated in summer, mild winters with little or no frost.
Cities and areas: Orlando, Jacksonville, Tampa, Savannah, Gainesville, Ocala.
1247 Native Plants for the Southern Coastal Plain
HOA-friendly picks listed first. Pet-safety status varies by species; each plant page shows its sourced ASPCA status. Native range data from vouchered herbarium specimen records and regional native plant society lists.
Little Bluestem
Schizachyrium scoparium
Swamp Milkweed
Asclepias incarnata
Cardinal Flower
Lobelia cardinalis
Black-eyed Susan
Rudbeckia hirta
Butterfly Milkweed
Asclepias tuberosa
Dense Blazing Star
Liatris spicata
Rattlesnake Master
Eryngium yuccifolium
Blue Lobelia
Lobelia siphilitica
Common Yarrow
Achillea millefolium
Common Sneezeweed
Helenium autumnale
Golden Alexanders
Zizia aurea
Switchgrass
Panicum virgatum
Lanceleaf Coreopsis
Coreopsis lanceolata
New Jersey-tea
Ceanothus americanus
Perennial Black-eyed Susan
Rudbeckia fulgida
Purple Lovegrass
Eragrostis spectabilis
Mallow-rose
Hibiscus moscheutos
Blue Woodland Phlox
Phlox divaricata
Whorled Milkweed
Asclepias verticillata
Inland Sea Oats
Chasmanthium latifolium
Smooth Spiderwort
Tradescantia ohiensis
Soft rush
Juncus effusus
American Fox Sedge
Carex vulpinoidea
Indiangrass
Sorghastrum nutans
Sevenbark
Hydrangea arborescens
Spicebush
Lindera benzoin
Narrowleaf Blue-eyed Grass
Sisyrinchium angustifolium
Coral Honeysuckle
Lonicera sempervirens
Azure Sage
Salvia azurea
Gulf Muhly
Muhlenbergia capillaris
Black-alder
Ilex verticillata
American Beautyberry
Callicarpa americana
Eastern Red Cedar
Juniperus virginiana
River Birch
Betula nigra
Southern Blue Flag Iris
Iris virginica
Summersweet
Clethra alnifolia
White Oak
Quercus alba
Blue-stemmed Goldenrod
Solidago caesia
White Wild Indigo
Baptisia alba
Hornbeam
Carpinus caroliniana
Black Chokeberry
Aronia melanocarpa
Christmas Fern
Polystichum acrostichoides
Carolina-allspice
Calycanthus floridus
Red Chokeberry
Aronia arbutifolia
Lyre Leaf Sage
Salvia lyrata
Eastern Bluestar
Amsonia tabernaemontana
Red Maple
Acer rubrum
Black Gum
Nyssa sylvatica
Showing 48 of 1247. Enter your ZIP for the natives matched to your yard.
Fall care in the Southern Coastal Plain
What to do right now for plants commonly grown here. Each links to the full regional care guide for that species, with sources.
- Brazilian tea
Fall flowers keep going, so enjoy them and watch the forecast.
- Climbing hydrangea
Fall in Orlando stays mild, and this is when the vine starts easing off for the year. Blooming tapers, growth slows, and the plant drifts toward winter dormancy, though Central Florida's fall rarely brings the sharp cold that triggers a fast leaf drop farther north.
- Halberd leaf hibiscus
Blooming tapers off into fall and seed pods form. Orlando usually does not see its first frost until December, so the plant often keeps some green growth well into autumn.
- Texas star hibiscus
Fall stays warm in Orlando well into November, so scarlet hibiscus keeps blooming into early fall before slowing down as nights cool and days shorten.
- White wild indigo
As Orlando's rains taper off in fall, this plant's foliage darkens and starts heading into dormancy. It's also a reasonable planting window for a new one.
- Phlox subulata
Orlando's fall stays warm and humid longer than it does farther north in the state, but the drop from peak summer heat still gives moss phlox a chance to recover if it made it through summer. Fall here is a reasonable window for a fresh planting.
- Bushy st johnswort
Fall in Orlando means the rain tapers off and this shrub shifts toward its dormant look, with fall color and seed pods to watch for.
- Anisescented goldenrod
Fall is when this goldenrod does its main job, covering itself in gold flowers that pollinators depend on.
- Blue stemmed goldenrod
Fall is bloom season for this goldenrod even in Orlando's warmer climate, with small yellow flowers along arching stems continuing into the cooler months since a hard frost rarely arrives early here.
- Starry rosinweed
Starry Rosinweed often keeps blooming into fall around Orlando, then starts winding down as nights turn cooler.
Build a plan for the Southern Coastal Plain
The Pollinator Patch App turns plants like these into a front-yard plan tuned for the soil, climate, and HOA expectations of the Orlando area.