Sansevieria hyacinthoides

Non-Native to Florida

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Sansevieria is a non-native plant from Africa now invading Florida's wildlands. It is also found in Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands. This plant is occasionally found growing in disturbed hammocks of Putnam County to the central and southern peninsula of Florida (Wunderlin, 2003).

Appearance: Erect, herbaceous perennial; grows from thick rhizomes, to 1 m (3.3 ft) tall.

Leaves: Basal, tufted, flat, erect, waxy, thick, 0.4–1 m (1–3 ft) long; mottled with light- and dark-green cross bands, margins yellowish to orange-red.

Flowers: Greenish-white; about 4 mm (0.02 in) long; in a cylindrical spike-like raceme.

Fruit: A roundish, fleshy berry, to 8 mm (0.3 in) in diameter; red.

Ecological threat: FLEPPC Category II – Invasive exotics that have increased in abundance or frequency but have not yet altered Florida plant communities to the extent shown by Category I species.

Distribution: C, SW, SE

Text from Invasive and Non-Native Plants You Should Know, Recognition Cards, by A. Richard and V. Ramey, 2007. UF/IFAS Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants, Publ. No. SP 431.

Download the Recognition Card (PDF 505 KB).

 

See the UF/IFAS Assessment, which lists plants according to their invasive status in Florida.

View the herbarium specimen image of the University of Florida Herbarium Digital Imaging Projects.