Licani michauxii Gopher Apple1
Edward F. Gilman2
Introduction
Gopher apple is an upright, evergreen plant that attains a height of 3 to 12 inches. This Florida native has stout, underground stems from which arise slender aerial shoots. The stiff leaves are a lustrous green color and have an oblong, spatulate shape. The undersides of these leaves are glabrous or felty-pubescent, and the leaf margins are shallowly undulate to entire. Inconspicuous, green flowers appear on this plant in the summer and are followed by ellipsoid drupes that are .5 to 1 inch long. Gopher apple has a very high salt spray tolerance and is ideal for coastal landscapes.
General Information
Scientific name: Licania michauxii
Pronunciation: lye-KAY-nee-uh miss-SHOW-ee-eye
Common name(s): gopher apple, ground oak
Family: Chrysobalanaceae
Plant type: shrub; ground cover
USDA hardiness zones: 8B through 11 (Fig. 1)
Figure 1.
Shaded area represents potential range.
[Click thumbnail to enlarge.]
Planting month for zone 8: year round
Planting month for zone 9: year round
Planting month for zone 10 and 11: year round
Origin: native to Florida
Uses: ground cover
Availability: grown in small quantities by a small number of nurseries
Description
Height: 0 to 1 feet
Spread: depends upon supporting structure
Plant habit: upright
Plant density: moderate
Growth rate: moderate
Texture: medium
Foliage
Leaf arrangement: alternate
Leaf type: simple
Leaf margin: undulate
Leaf shape: spatulate
Leaf venation: reticulate
Leaf type and persistence: evergreen
Leaf blade length: 2 to 4 inches
Leaf color: green
Fall color: no fall color change
Fall characteristic: not showy
Flower
Flower color: green
Flower characteristic: summer flowering
Fruit
Fruit shape: oval
Fruit length: .5 to 1 inch
Fruit cover: fleshy
Fruit color: unknown
Fruit characteristic: inconspicuous and not showy
Trunk and Branches
Trunk/bark/branches: not particularly showy; typically multitrunked or clumping stems
Current year stem/twig color: not applicable
Current year stem/twig thickness: not applicable
Culture
Light requirement: plant grows in full sun
Soil tolerances: acidic; slightly alkaline; sand; loam
Drought tolerance: high
Soil salt tolerances: unknown
Plant spacing: 36 to 60 inches
Other
Roots: usually not a problem
Winter interest: no special winter interest
Outstanding plant: not particularly outstanding
Invasive potential: not known to be invasive
Pest resistance: no serious pests are normally seen on the plant
Use and Management
Gopher apple can be used as a ground cover along the coast. It tolerates a wide range of soil pH in any well-drained soil.
Gopher apple will grow well in full sun on well-drained, sandy soils. It is quite drought tolerant but may not transplant well. Plants should establish well from containers.
Pests and Diseases
No pests or diseases are of major concern.
Footnotes
This document is FPS-342, one of a series of the Environmental Horticulture Department, Florida Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida. Original publication date October,1999. Reviewed May, 2007. Visit the EDIS Web Site at http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu.
Edward F. Gilman, professor, Environmental Horticulture Department, Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, 32611.
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