Yes a list of what's available would be a big help since you all don't have traditional shade trees. Although I would highly suggest seeking out American Elm and also Sugarberry, both of which are native to your area if you can believe it and grow around 6' feet a year. Bald cypress would be another choice of mine if I lived in south florida.

South Florida Slash Pine (Pinus elliottii var. densa)

Resin

Here is a list of trees that grow here. However, i don't know if i can find all of them down in Coral Springs nurseries.

Skyline locust

acacia auriculiformis (earleaf acacia)

Bursera simaruba (Gumbo limbo)

buttercup tree

royal poinciana

Loquat

Strangler fig

Cuban laureal

Jamaican dogwood

African tulip

yellow elder

murray red gum

Slash pine (cuban pine)

Bald cypress

Sugarberry

The poinciana will give a dappled shade, but not a heavy shade. In exchange, you would get the glorious flowers!

I would avoid the strangler fig - it has escaped cultivation in a few areas, and lives up to its name. Cuban Laurel is a fig too, despite the laurel name, and invasive. Earleaf acacia is another now classified as invasive.

I believe the red gum has also escaped into the wild, so probably should be avoided also.

If you want an evergreen, the slash pine or a sand pine (P. clausa, to 30'), the loquat or the African tulip tree are probably the best bets. Deciduous trees that could work include bald cypress, sugarberry, gumbo limbo and locust (although the last will give dappled shade as well).

I hope I've included a link to a list of FL invasives. Here's the address if the link doesn't work: http://plants.ifas.ufl.edu/photos.html

Here is a link that might be useful: invasives in FL

Supertyphoon, I have a couple of great links for you.

First link... www.afnn.org
You can search inventories at nurseries and growers in the state. Unfortunately most are up in the panhandle or nw florida but there is one nursery in Davenport florida (calle the natives) that carries a lot of stuff and I remember speaking to a guy in WPB that was growing sugarberry and american elm.
Bald cypress is an easy one to find in garden centers if you are willing to drive about an hour north.

Check against the Florida exotic pest plant council list.
www.fleppc.org

I agree on that FL slash pine. And another one I highly recommend is Southern Red cedar (Juniperus silicola) my spelling might be off.

I'm pretty sure you could grow a local native red maple there and also I have seen sycamores growing in zone 10 southwest florida near Ft myers.

"Southern Red cedar (Juniperus silicola) my spelling might be off"

Southern Juniper (Juniperus virginiana subsp. silicicola)

Resin

Although the trees listed are appealing, i am afraid to say that they are the general 'high quality' trees that just aren't available at local nurseries where i am. So far, i haven't found any of the trees listed here (except the slash pine). They seem to be only common in the northern regions of the country and Florida. It seems as if South Florida has its own distinct set of trees. It's because so few trees can grow in the humid and hot climate all year round.

Would it be possible for you guys to find a list of south florida common trees, and then tell me?

Also, the land here is so swampy that most trees look like they belong in swamps. In addition, according to this website, invasive plants account for as much as 31 percent of all plant species. That seems like a good reason for the lack of variety.

http://news.ufl.edu/2004/07/21/melaleuca-2/

North American common names reported in 1996 by Jacobson, NORTH AMERICAN LANDSCAPE TREES for Juniperus virginiana silicicola are Southern redcedar, sand cedar and coast juniper.

plants.usda.gov calls it southern redcedar.

Googling "southern juniper" results in hits for the name scattered among longer-than-usual listings of common names for the species. It does not appear in numerous hits as a prevailing or predominant common name.

Here is a link that might be useful: Juniperus virginiana var. silicicola

"From an ornamental view, it is very lovely and semi-pendulous, yet less cold-hardy, so has been planted almost exclusively within its native range."

OK, I can understand the problem. I lived in Broward county for 3 years, a number of years ago, and felt as though there were no more than 8 or 10 varieties of trees growing there, including the orange groves! It was pretty monotonous.

Here's a link to a nursery north of Homesteead: http://www.zoneten.com/, but you might double check their listings against the invasive plant list, as I think a couple I saw on my quick glance might have made both lists.

Here's another site listing native trees to plant - don't know about availability, http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/EH157. They might not give you the rapid growth you want.

What about something like an avocado tree? They get prety big, are evergreen, and I think will grow fairly fast. I know they will grow in Dade County, so assume further south is safe.

I got both by googling for "tropical trees, FL", and both came up in the first 10 or so listings - you might do better taking a bit more time than I did. Good luck.

I vote for the South Florida Slash Pine. They need replanting in southern FL, most have been logged out or cleared for development.

I had looked at that site prior to making my list, but i revised it.

I really am limited to under 10 varieties, with top choices currently going to Gumbo limbo, wild tamarind, slash pine, and bald cypress. I can guarantee that i will be able to find the first two, but note the second.

Thanks for your help, it is appreciated! All these good trees are being mentioned but i can't get any without travelling hours to homestead or northern florida.

When i get the next chance to go to the nursery again, i will take pictures of all the trees that i can find! Sounds like a good idea?

Another endangered South Florida native that might be worth considering (not sure how fast it grows, though) is Swietenia mahagoni (Mahogany).

Resin

Here is a link that might be useful: Mahogany info sheet (pdf file)

"North American common names reported in 1996 by Jacobson, NORTH AMERICAN LANDSCAPE TREES for Juniperus virginiana silicicola are Southern redcedar, sand cedar and coast juniper.
plants.usda.gov calls it southern redcedar.

Googling "southern juniper" results in hits for the name scattered among longer-than-usual listings of common names for the species. It does not appear in numerous hits as a prevailing or predominant common name"

I'm in favour of calling a spade a spade . . . it really doesn't help to call a spade a rake, nor even a redrake.

As it is a juniper, for heaven's sake, call it a juniper!

Resin

Yes super... I know how frustrating it is because I lived down there and had to drive hours away to get something as simple as a red maple. The customers down there seem to want tropical trees. Tropicals are inexpensive to propagate.

People think elms and maples do not grow there. They assume they are northern trees. But that isn't true. Elms, hackberries and maples are native to south florida and definitely do grow there. You can find out more at http://plantatlas.usf.edu where you can search for trees and see a map of where they are found.

Recently people down there have been suggesting to plant longleaf pine instead of slash pine. I forget why.

Oh one more thing. I only make this offer to people in florida... If you will pay for shipping I will pick up and ship a tree from a local nursery here in GA or dig one out of the area behind my house (What I have behind my house that I'm willing to part with is sweetgum, red maple, sycamore, or loblolly pine.) I don't know how this stuff will do down in your area as opposed to locally adapted plants but I'll be happy to help you out.

Another thing that I would recommend for your area that I can probably find in the woods here is water oak. (quercus nigra). An oak that I used to see around orlando was Turkey oak (Quercus laevis) and would give that one a try for sure if you could source it.
Realistically, if you don't want this to be a major hassle, Bald Cypress from a Lowes garden center a bit to the north of you will be the answer. Southern Magnolia is something you could likely find in a decent size but it isn't a fast grower.

If you want a really desirable, albeit slower growing tree that many of us in the rest of the country would like to grow also, Nyssa sylvatica is one to consider.

Nyssa sylvatica/black gum grows fast here - maybe it'd grow fast in south Florida, too.
I see red maples/acer rubrum growing along I-75 when I head south into Florida to visit my daughter in Tampa - of course, I don't go as far south (or east) as Broward County. They grow fast, also water oak - maybe those would do in se Fla?
Sherry

The southernmost range of Longleaf Pine in Florida is around Osceola County. If you can find some in that area it would be worth a try in Broward Co. Mine have been growing faster than expected. You could call the forestry department for recommendations on where to find some, sometimes they will give them away.

I googled for 'Broward County FL plant nurseries', and it looked like there were more than 3 or 4 listed - I didn't look too hard. I would think that if you took a bit more time than I did, you might well find something locally, at the least, in Davie or Ft. Lauderdale, maybe Plantation. Since I don't know what would be close to you, but I asssume you are inland a bit, I can't say which would be really close by. I do know that there were a number of basic nurseries back when I was there, and assume that there should be some there still, along a few of the less settled roads and streets.

Actually the southernmost native range of Longleaf Pine is in northwest Lee County, which extends down to USDA zone10a and they could probably easily grow in Broward Co (10a/10b)
Longleaf Pine should be planted much more than other pines because before European settlement the longleaf pine forest dominated as much as 90 million acres stretching from Virginia south to Florida and west to eastern Texas. Its range was defined by the frequent widespread fires that occurred throughout the southeast. This rich ecosystem has now been regulated to less than 5% of its presettlement range or about 3 million acres. Its range has decreased a lot over time. And their conservation status is now in the Threatened range (Vulnerable). They are much more resistant to pest and diseases than many other native pines which in turn they reach their full size at age 150 years old and they can live up to 300 or 400 years.
The Longleaf Pine also has the largest cones of any eastern U.S. Pine, which can be up to 10 inches long and some reach about the size of a football.
The needles of young trees can reach up to 18 inches long which are the longest needles of any pine tree in the world.
They grow slow for about 3 to 8 years while in the "grass stage" in this stage, longleaf pine seedlings resemble a clump of grassÂand hence the name. But after that they shoot up like a rocket and can equally reach or exceed the growth of a loblolly pine during the "rocket stage".

Here is a link that might be useful: The Longleaf Alliance

Hi Treeguy,

"... has the largest cones of any eastern U.S. Pine, ... reach about the size of a football"

Naah . . . maybe as long as one is wide, but nowhere near as broad (nor anything like as heavy!!). "Law 2 of the game specifies that the ball is an air-filled sphere with a circumference of 68Â70 cm" [= diameter 22cm].

"The needles of young trees can reach up to 18 inches long which are the longest needles of any pine tree in the world"

There's a couple of pines in Mexico which can get slightly longer needles.

As for planting one in Supertyphoon's garden - nice idea, but it doesn't meet his/her need for urgent shade, with that several years' wait for the grass stage to finish. It also tends to be very sparse on the branching even after it takes off, so the shade produced isn't very much until it is something like 20 years old. I'm all in favour of more Longleaf Pine planting in principle, but it doesn't fulfil the requirements well in this particular case.

Resin

Wow, this thread has soooo many replies! I really need the shade quickly, within a few years, and pine and oak trees (from prior knowledge) don't grow very fast...

Also, i can't go very far to get them... I am talking about finding them at a home depot/lowes or local roadside nursery.

It looks as if my choices are limited to about 4 tropical-ish trees, which when i go to the place tomorrow, i will take pictures.

The size of a college football is 11 inches long and a high school football is 9 1/2 inches long and 8.5 inches wide.
Yes I did not say anything about the width or the weight of the football it was just something that was roughly similar in size of the longleaf Pine cone that most people could get an easy picture of. The cones can be 6" - 10" long, and 5" wide at base, so they can at least reach the length of a football.

Yes there are some pines in Mexico that reach similar needle length as the longleaf pine. The top are as follows: PerryÂs Pine that can reach a max of 43 cm (17 inches long), and the Apache Pine and Michoacan Pine which can reach 35 cm (14 inches long) and several others that are 30cm or less. But none are stated too reach 45cm (18 inches) which the longleaf pine can reach. There was an old citation of Pinus palustris near Rockingham, NC as having needles up to 24 in. long, which is 60 cm but it canÂt be confirmed because the longleaf Pine has seen a huge reduction in the past 200 years from logging etc. So the record of the worldÂs longest needles goes to the Longleaf Pine (Pinus palustris).

Hi Treeguy,

I was going on the basis of a standard football, specifications here

I've seen a citation of 48cm for Pinus devoniana (Michoacan Pine) needles.

Resin

I was talking about an American football. I guess you were talking about a Europe football (It's called a soccer ball here).

Christopher J. Earle of www.conifers.org believes that Pinus palustris has the longest needles see link below where I got some of my info:
Christopher Earle

treeguy123---- you nailed it... All miniscule details aside, you addressed the reasons to plant LLP. and thanks for clearing that up for me.

Super... If you can find cassia, they are nice. They've got yellow spring flowers.
Bald Cypress is going to be your best bet for rapid growth and ease of sourcing in a decent size to start out.

By the way, one you can find very easily that is very fast growing is Ficus benjamina but try to resist planting one as their roots can spread a considerable distance from the tree and cause problems to foundations plumbing and they are shallow rooted and topple over in tropical disturbances. Also prone to disease and get very big. Although you can't find a better tree for climbing and building tree houses.

If you're going to plant a pine tree, long leaf pine holds up much better in hurricane winds that loblolly or slash pine.
Sherry