A Florida-friendly tree is either native to our ecosystem or an adaptive non-native species.Florida-friendly trees are drought-tolerant, require less maintenance, and resist diseases and insects.
Which trees are Florida-friendly?
Planting Florida-friendly trees often eliminates the need for irrigation, special soil, fertilizer, and pesticides. You should follow standard tree buying guidelines, but when you select your trees look for those identified as Florida-friendly. Use our GYR Tree Directory and these resources.
- Florida Friendly Landscaping Guide to Plant Selection and Landscape Design
- Native Shrubs for South Florida
- Native Trees for South Florida
- Florida-friendly plant database (Click on the photo of the main screen in the slide show below.)
Follow Florida-friendly landscaping principles with your trees, such as planting the right tree in the right place, mulching, fertilizing appropriately, watering efficiently, managing pests responsibly by not misusing pesticides, recycling fallen leaves or pine needles as mulch for your trees, and protecting the waterfront by establishing "no fertilizer" and "no pesticide" zones within 10 to 30 feet of the shoreline.