Landscape Uses:
	Primarily recommended for natural landscapes and habitat restorations. Also an accent open groundcover in shady areas. Identified by Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden as a native that does especially well in shade in this brochure.
Ecological Restoration Notes:
Availability:
	Rarely grown by native plant nurseries.
Description:
	Large herbaceous, almost woody grass.
Height:
	About 3-6 feet in height, sometimes more when climbing into other vegetation. Taller than broad.
Growth Rate:
	Moderate.
Range:
	Monroe County Keys north, mostly along the coasts, to Brevard and Lee counties; West Indies, Mexico, Central America and South America. Very rare north of the Miami River in southeastern Florida. Perhaps never present or extirpated in Broward County; perhaps extirpated in Palm Beach County; known from one location in Martin County.
Habitats:
	Hammocks.
Soils:
	Moist, well-drained limestone or sandy soils, with humusy top layer.
Nutritional Requirements:
	Moderate; can grow in nutrient poor soils, but needs some organic content to thrive.
Salt Water Tolerance:
	Low; does not tolerate flooding by salt or brackish water.
Salt Wind Tolerance:
	Low; salt wind may burn the leaves.
Drought Tolerance:
	Moderate; generally requires moist soils, but tolerant of short periods of drought once established.
Light Requirements:
	Light shade.
Flower Color:
	Greenish inflorescence.
Flower Characteristics:
	Inconspicuous.
Flowering Season:
	Summer-fall.
Fruit:
	Shiny black caryopsis.
Wildlife and Ecology:
Horticultural Notes:
	Can be grown from seed.
Comments:
	Looks like a miniature bamboo.