Rocky Brushy Creek Watershed Mgmt. Plan (2007) -- Part 2

EXISTING NATURAL SYSTEMS CONDITIONSsimple, elliptic, and have smooth margins. Flowers grow on stalks and are whitish and papery, andbloom during the warm months.Australian PineSeveral species of Australian pine were introduced into Florida prior to1920 (Morton, 1980). The three species of Australian pine in Florida areCasuarina equisetifolia, C. glauca, and C. cunninghamiana. Hybridizationof these species is extensive and complicates identification (Schardt andSchmitz, 1990). The tree is an emersed hardwood, native to Australia andMalaysia, and occurs along rocky coasts, dunes, sand bars, and islands.The Australian pine was primarily planted to form windbreaks along coastalareas. The trees can reach 35-m heights and grow at a rate of 1.0 to 1.5 ma year. In southern and central Florida, Australian pines typically producedense stands and form thick carpets of needles on the ground prohibiting the growth of nativevegetation. In dune communities, Australian pine's dense shade and leaf-litter retard the growth ofnative coastal vegetation (Schardt and Schmitz, 1990). Dense monospecific stands of Australianpine crowd out native vegetation in coastal areas and affect habitat for several listed and non-listedspecies. It is prevalent on the margins of the saltmarsh in the Rocky Creek - Brushy Creek estuary.Air PotatoIt is believed that air potato was introduced to Florida as an ornamental and food plant around1905. It was already recognized as a pest plant throughout thestate by the 1970s. It is a non-native, invasive vine covered withlarge handsome leaves. It can quickly grow 60-70 feet in length,which is long enough to overtop (and shade-out) tall trees. Amember of the yam family (Dioscoreaceae), air potato produceslarge numbers of aerial tubers, (potato-like growths attached tothe stems) that grow into new plants and is a particular problem inthe margins of the Stream and Lake Swamp (FLUCFCS 615) landcover type.Water HyacinthThe water hyacinth is a floating plant that grows in all types offreshwaters. It has inflated petioles and forms large floating matsthat can completely cover lakes, ponds, and streams. It is a prolifictropical weed now naturalized in waterways throughout the stateand the frost-free coastal areas of the Southeast (Bell and Taylor,1982). Water hyacinths vary in size from a few inches to over threefeet tall. It has showy lavender flowers. The leaves are roundedand leathery, attached to a spongy and sometimes inflated stalk,and the roots are dark and feathery. It is a problem in backwaterareas of Rocky Creek - Brushy Creek in its upper reaches, on the margins of some lakes, and over8-38Rocky/Brushy Creek Watershed Management Plan