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Polygala violacea Aubl.
Candyweed, Showy milkwort

Polygala violacea
Copyright by: Roger L. Hammer

Family: Polygalaceae

Group: Dicot

Substrate: Terrestrial

Habit: Herb

Perennation: Perennial

Native Range: Southeastern United States, the West Indies, Mexico, Central America and South America.

Map of select IRC data for peninsular Florida

IRC SOUTH FLORIDA Status: Secure

SOUTH FLORIDA Occurrence: Present

SOUTH FLORIDA Native Status: Native

SOUTH FLORIDA Cultivated Status: Cultivated

Comments: Visit our Natives For Your Neighborhood website for more information and images.

Synonyms: P. corallicola, P. grandiflora, P. grandiflora var. angustifolia.

Other data on Polygala violacea available from :

Atlas of Florida Vascular Plants
Polygala violacea has been found in the following 145 conservation areas :
Occurrence Native Status
Andrew Dodge Memorial Pineland Present Native
Arch Creek Addition Present Native
Arch Creek Park Present Native
Atlantic Dunes Park Present Native
Babcock Ranch Preserve Present Native
Bahia Honda State Park Present Native
Big Cypress National Preserve Present Native
Big Torch Hammocks, Florida Keys Wildlife and Environmental Area Present Native
Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park Present Native
Bill Sadowski Park Present Native
Black Creek Forest Present Native
Blowing Rocks Preserve Present Native
Boystown Pineland Present Native
Caloosahatchee Creeks Preserve Present Native
Camp Owaissa Bauer Present Native
Camp Owaissa Bauer Addition Present Native
Cayo Costa State Park Present Native
Cedar Point Environmental Park Present Native
Collier-Seminole State Park Present Native
Coral Reef Park Present Native
Corkscrew Regional Ecosystem Watershed (CREW) Present Native
Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary Present Native
County Line Scrub, Miami-Dade County Present Native
Crandon Park Present Native
Crocodile Lake National Wildlife Refuge Present Native
Curry Hammock State Park Present Native
Danforth Park Present Native
Deering Estate at Cutler Present Native
Delray Beach Municipal Beach Present Native
Dolphin Center and Dolphin Center Addition Present Native
Don Pedro Island State Park Present Native
Doris Davis Forman Wilderness Preserve Natural Area Present Native
Dr. Von D. Mizell-Eula Johnson State Park Present Native
Dupuis Reserve Present Native
Eachus Pineland Present Native
Everglades and Francis S. Taylor Wildlife Management Area Present Native
Everglades National Park Present Native
Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park Present Native
Fern Forest Nature Center Present Native
Florida Atlantic University Ecological Site Present Native
Florida City Pineland Assumed to be Present Native
Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge Present Native
Fred C. Babcock-Cecil M. Webb Wildlife Management Area Present Native
Frenchman's Forest Natural Area Present Native
Frog Pond/L-31 N Transition Lands Present Native
Fuchs Hammock Preserve Present Native
Gasparilla Island State Park Present Native
George N. Avery Pineland Present Native
Gold Coast Railroad Museum Present Native
Goulds Pineland Present Native
Grassy Waters Preserve Present Native
Greynolds Park Present Native
Hickey Creek Mitigation Park Wildlife and Environmental Area Present Native
High Ridge Scrub Natural Area Present Native
Highlands Scrub Natural Area Present Native
Hillsboro Pineland Natural Area Present Native
Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge Present Native
Hobe Sound Sandhill Present Native
Hugh Taylor Birch State Park Present Native
Ingram Pineland Present Native
J.N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge Present Native
J.W. Corbett Wildlife Management Area Present Native
John D. MacArthur Beach State Park Present Native
John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park Present Native
Jonathan Dickinson State Park Present Native
Juno Dunes Natural Area Present Native
Jupiter Ridge Natural Area Present Native
Koreshan State Historic Site Present Native
Larry and Penny Thompson Park Present Native
Loggerhead Park Present Native
Long Key State Park Present Native
Loxahatchee River Natural Area Present Native
Loxahatchee Slough Natural Area Present Native
Lucille Hammock Present Native
Ludlam Pineland Present Native
Luis Martinez United States Army Reserve Station, Richmond Pine Rocklands Present Native
Matheson Hammock Park Present Native
Middle Torch Hammocks Anderson, Lipchak, 3112 Parcels, Florida Keys Wildlife and Environmental Area Present Native
Middle Torch Hammocks Parcel 3063, Florida Keys Wildlife and Environmental Area Present Native
Military Trail Natural Area Present Native
Milton E. Thompson Park Present Native
Miramar Pineland Present Native
Mound Key Archaeological State Park Present Native
National Key Deer Refuge Present Native
Navy Wells Pineland 39 Native
Navy Wells Pineland Preserve Present Native
Ned Glenn Nature Preserve Present Native
Nicodemus Slough Present Native
Nixon Smiley Pineland Addition Present Native
Nixon Smiley Pineland Preserve Present Native
Ocean Ridge Hammock Park Present Native
Okaloacoochee Slough State Forest, Okaloacoochee Slough Wildlife Management Area Present Native
Okaloacoochee Slough Wildlife Management Area - FWC, Okaloacoochee Slough Wildlife Management Area Present Native
Oleta River State Park Present Native
Palm Drive Pineland Present Native
Pal-Mar Present Native
Pal-Mar Natural Area Present Native
Peck Lake Park Present Native
Picayune Strand State Forest Present Native
Pine Jog Environmental Sciences Center Present Native
Pine Ridge Sanctuary Present Native
Pine Shore Preserve Present Native
Pond Apple Slough Natural Area Present Native
Porter-Russell Pineland Present Native
Prairie Pines Preserve Present Native
Quail Roost Pineland Present Native
R. Hardy Matheson Preserve Present Native
Railhead Scrub Preserve Present Native
Red Reef Park, including Gumbo Limbo Nature Center Present Native
Rock Pit 39 Possibly Extirpated Possibly Extirpated
Rockdale Pineland Present Native
Rocky Point Hammock Present Native
Ron Ehmann Park Present Native
Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve Present Native
Rosemary Ridge Preserve Present Native
Rosemary Scrub Natural Area Present Native
Royal Palm Beach Pines Natural Area Present Native
Savannas Preserve State Park Present Native
School Board Property (Moody Drive and Turnpike) Native
Scrub Oak Park Present Native
Seabranch Preserve State Park Present Native
Seminole Wayside Park Present Native
Silver Palm Groves Present Native
Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve Present Native
SOCSOUTH Present Native
South Beach Park Present Native
South Dade Wetlands Present Native
Spoonbill Sound Hammocks, Florida Keys Wildlife and Environmental Area Present Native
St. Lucie Inlet Preserve State Park Present Native
Stump Pass Beach State Park Present Native
Sugarloaf Hammocks, Florida Keys Wildlife and Environmental Area Present Native
Sunny Palms Pineland Present Native
Tamarind Private Dune Present Native
Tamiami Pineland Complex Addition Present Native
Tigertail Beach County Park Present Native
Tree Island Park Present Native
Trinity Pineland Present Native
Tropical Park Present Native
Virginia Key Beach Park and Marine Stadium Present Native
West Biscayne Pineland Present Native
Wild Turkey Strand Preserve Present Native
Windley Key Fossil Reef Geological State Park Present Native
Yamato Scrub Natural Area Present Native
Yellow Fever Creek Preserve Present Native
Zoo Miami Present Native

Polygala violacea has been found in the following 11 counties :
Occurrence Native Status
Broward County Native
Charlotte County Native
Collier County Native
Glades County Native
Hendry County Native
Lee County Native
Martin County Native
Miami-Dade County Native
Monroe County (Keys) Native
Monroe County (Mainland) Native
Palm Beach County Native

Polygala violacea has been found in the following 15 habitats :
Beach Dune
Coastal Berm
Coastal Grassland
Coastal Strand
Disturbed Upland
Dry Prairie
Marl Prairie
Mesic Flatwoods
Pine Rockland
Sandhill
Scrub
Scrubby Flatwoods
Shell Mound
Wet Flatwoods
Wet Prairie

All Images:

Polygala violacea
Copyright by: Roger L. Hammer
Polygala violacea
Copyright by: James L. Lange, 2014
Wide-leaved form from barrier islands
in southeastern Florida
Polygala violacea
Copyright by: Shirley Denton
Polygala violacea
Copyright by: Shirley Denton
Polygala violacea
Copyright by: Keith A. Bradley
Narrow-leaved form from pine rocklands
in Miami-Dade County
Polygala violacea
Copyright by: George Gann, 2021.
In habitat at Red Reef Park in Palm Beach County.