Best Flowering Trees for South Florida
A landscape architect’s top picks for bringing breathtaking color to tropical landscapes.
South Florida (growing zones 10-11) has a stunning array of flowering plants available. I built this list of top five flowering trees for their low maintenance and overall beauty. I am always drawn to these species when designing home gardens. I find them irresistible!
Cordia sebastena, Geiger Tree
Zones 10-11. 25-30' tall, 20-25' wide. Florida native.
Geiger tree is very drought and salt tolerant and makes a great courtyard tree or small space garden tree due to its slow growth and small size. It has extremely showy orange flowers in summer and deep green foliage. Plant this tree with a mass of dwarf Sabal palms underneath for a lush, native Florida style garden.
Bauhinia blakeana, Hong Kong Orchid Tree
Zones 9-11. 20-30' tall, 30-40' wide.
I first encountered this tree on the New College Sarasota campus where it forms a stunning Allee (double row) between the Cafe and Anthropology Lab. Walking through those trees in spring when they are bursting with purple-blue flowers is an amazing experience. Plant Hong Kong Orchid Tree as a grove or Allee.
Tabebuia sp. Trumpet Tree
Zones 10-11. 12-20' tall and wide.
Tabebuia caraiba has lovely trumpet-shaped yellow flowers and is one of the most striking flowering trees for south Florida. It is drought and salt tolerant and develops a twisted thick trunk over time. It is a great sculptural tree that is best used as a specimen in the home landscape. Other species such as T. hereophylla andT. impetiginosa bloom pinkish white or pink and are smaller in size than T. caraiba. Fun fact: Trumpet trees are harvested and sold as a lumber called Ipe. Perhaps you might plant a Trumpet tree next to a beautifully designed deck of eco-certified Ipe lumber.
Delonix regia, Royal Poinciana Tree
Zones 10-11. 35-40' tall, 40-60' wide.
The spreading form of Royal Poinciana Tree makes it a stunning specimen for a front yard or entry court. In bloom, it is like a massive living umbrella of bright red flowers. It is best placed on a lawn so that flower petals can decompose or be raked away after falling from the tree. (The background photo featured on this page is of a Royal Poinciana Tree blooming in Sarasota.)
Guaiacum sanctum, Lignum Vitae.
Zones 10b-11. 10-20' tall and wide. Florida Native
Lignum Vitae is a small tree that is endangered in the wild, but is being cultivated in South Florida nurseries. This rare tree has high drought and salt tolerance and delicate blue star-shaped flowers. Buy only from reputable nurseries who propagate the plants themselves and never buy plants collected from the wild. Lignum Vitae is a fantastic small flowering tree for coastal areas and is a great addition to a small beach cottage garden, planted among native Muhly grass, Seagrape and Cabbage Palms.
