These listed are some of the native plants of Florida that I found at Silver Springs. Native plants are adapted to Florida's acidic soil and attract native pollinators such as bees, butterflies and bats.
Some helpful websites: https://flawildflowers.org/category/flower-friday/ https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=saaz
Sometimes I add the website where I found information of the plant in the description.
Skyblue Lupine (Lupinus diffusus)
A herbaceous perennial, this plant occurs in sandhills, pine flatwoods, coastal strands, and in sand and oak scrub. It can be found throughout Florida except in Miami-Dade and Monroe counties.
It has lavender to blue flowers and leaves that have fine hairs. Flowers bloom in spring and it likes to be planted in well-drained, sandy soil. It is also known for being a difficult plant to propagate. You may be able to spot some on the Sandhill Trail at Silver Springs State Park.
Blazing star (Liatris spp.)
A U.S. native, this beautiful perennial is green throughout the summer and changes to brown as the season changes to fall, along with growing purple flowers.
There are 30 species of them which can be found in scrubs, sandhill, upland pines, and flatwoods. It can endure drought conditions when established and its flowers attract pollinators such as bees and butterflies.
It can planted in gardens as an ornamental and to attract pollinators.
Butterfly milkweed/Butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa)
One of the many native milkweed of Florida, this species can be found throughout the state. It is a perennial that likes sandy soil such as in sandhill and pine flatwood ecosystems.
This species do not contain the milky latex sap that characterizes other milkweed plants and was used by Native Americans to treat pleurisy. Its beautiful blooms which comes spring through fall attract butterflies and other pollinators.
Pinewoods Milkweed (Asclepias humistrata)
A perennial wildflower that occurs in sandhill, scrub and dry ruderal areas.
It is a larval host plant of Queen and Monarch butterflies and it blooms in the spring and summer.
Purple Thistle (Cirsium horridulum)
A native Floridian perennial plant with purple to white flowers. It is known for its thorns and its rosette foliage.
A larval host plant for the Little Metalmark and the Painted Lady butterflies. It attracts pollinators with its nectar and seeds.
Spotted beebalm/dotted horsemint (Monarda punctata)
A herbaceous perennial, this species can be identified with its showy purple or white or pink bracts that are often mistaken for its flowers. Its flowers grow on top of the plant into spikes and are white with purple dots.
It blooms from late spring to early fall and can be found in many areas such as coastal dunes, pine flatwoods, in meadows and areas with well-drained sandy soil.
It is not only a good pollinator attractant but it has medicinal properties due to its thymol content.
For more information:
https://flawildflowers.org/flower-friday-monarda-punctata/
https://www.floridamuseum.ufl.edu/wildflowers/flowers/dotted-horsemint/
Yellow Button (Balduina angustifolia)
A beautiful and bright wildflower, each plant produces twenty flowers in which the petals eventually fall, revealing the disk floret (pic 3). It is also called honeycombhead due to the disk floret's appearance, especially as it dries up.
It can be found throughout Florida in sandhills, dunes, scrub and pine flatwoods.
Summer Farewell (Dalea pinnata)
A perennial wildflower, it blooms in late summer to early fall. It has white flower buds which are concealed by red bracts (pic 2). It can be found in sandhills, scrub, and dry flatwoods where there is dry sandy soil. Its native ranger is North to Central Florida.