FLORIDA’S WORST WEEDS
The Florida Invasive Species Council’s FLEPPC Category 1 Invasive Plant Species List
NOTE: FANN has made a few minor editorial changes for publication clarity, including, for example, using the header “FL regions”
instead of “Zones” in presenting the list.
THE LIST IS GROWING. When FANN published the FLEPPC list 11 years ago,
there were 68 Category 1 plants. Now, there are 81. Economic interests in
importing and selling these plants continue to override environmental interests.
Only YOU can make the difference by not specifying, growing or
planting these weeds.
CATEGORY I PLANT SPECIES
are listed are invasive exotics that are altering native plant communities
by displacing native species, changing community structures or ecological
functions, or hybridizing with natives. This definition does not rely on the
economic severity or geographic range of the problem, but on the documented
ecological damage caused.
ABOUT THE FLORIDA INVASIVE SPECIES COUNCIL
The Florida Invasive Species Council (FISC, formerly known as Florida Exotic
Pest Plant Species or FLEPPC) is a non-profit organization founded in 1984
by scientists and land management professionals from federal, state and
local government agencies as well as private industry. FISC’s mission is to
reduce the impacts of invasive plants in Florida through the exchange of scientific,
educational, and technical information. FISC is not a regulatory
agency. Learn more: floridainvasivespecies.org
ABOUT THE LIST
Purpose: to provide a list of plants determined by the council to be invasive
in natural areas of Florida and to routinely update the list based on information
of newly identified occurrences and changes in distribution over
time. Also, to focus attention on:
the adverse effects exotic pest plants have on Florida’s biodiversity
and native plant communities,
the habitat losses in natural areas from exotic pest plant infestations,
the impacts on endangered species via habitat loss and alteration,
the need for pest-plant management,
the socio-economic impacts of these plants (e.g., increased wildfires
or flooding in certain areas),
changes in the severity of different pest plant infestations over time,
providing information to help managers set priorities for research and
control programs.
**Plant names are those published in Guide to Vascular Plants of Florida
Third Edition. Richard P. Wunderlin and Bruce F. Hansen. University of
Florida Press. 2011. Plant names in parentheses are synonyms or misapplied
names that have commonly occurred in the literature and/or indicate
a recent name change. Not all synonyms are listed.
DEFINITIONS
Exotic: a species introduced to Florida, purposefully or accidentally, from
a natural range outside of Florida. Native—a species whose natural range
includes Florida.
Naturalized exotic: an exotic that sustains itself outside cultivation (it is still
exotic; it has not “become” native). Invasive exotic—an exotic that not only
has naturalized, but is expanding on its own in Florida native plant communities.
ABBREVIATIONS
Gov. List (Government List): Possession, propagation, sale, and/or
transport of these plants is regulated by:
F Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services;
U United States Department of Agriculture
FL regions: N = north, C = central, S = south, referring to each
species’ general distribution, not its potential range in the state.
56 | FANN WHOLESALE NATIVE PLANT AND SERVICE DIRECTORY | 2022
GOV FL
BOTANICAL NAME COMMON NAME LISTS REGIONS
Abrus precatorius rosary pea F C, S
Acacia auriculiformis earleaf acacia C, S
Albizia julibrissin mimosa, silk tree N, C
Albizia lebbeck woman’s tongue C, S
Ardisia crenata coral ardisia F N, C, S
Ardisia elliptica shoebutton ardisia F C, S
Asparagus aethiopiacus asparagus-fern N, C, S
(A. sprengeri, A. densiflorus)
Bauhinia variegata orchid tree C, S
Bischofia javanica bishopwood C, S
Calophyllum antillanum Santa Maria, mast wood S
(C. calaba)
Casuarina equisetifolia Australian-pine F N, C, S
Casuarina glauca suckering Australian-pine F C, S
Cenchrus purpureus elephantgrass, Napier grass N,C,S
Cinnamomum camphora camphor tree N, C, S
Colocasia esculenta wild taro N, C, S
Colubrina asiatica lather leaf F S
Cupaniopsis anacardioides carrotwood F C, S
Deparia petersenii Japanese false spleenwort N, C
Dioscorea alata winged yam F N, C, S
Dioscorea bulbifera air-potato F N, C, S
Dolichandra unguis-cat cat’s-claw vine N,C,S
Macfadyena unguis-cati
Eichhornia crassipes water-hyacinth F N, C, S
Eugenia uniflora Surinam cherry C, S
Ficus microcarpa1 laurel fig C,S
(F. nitida and F. retusa var. nitida)
Hydrilla verticillata hydrilla F, U N, C, S
Hygrophila polysperma green hygro F, U N, C, S
Hymenachne amplexicaulis West Indian marsh grass N, C, S
Imperata cylindrica cogon grass F, U N, C, S
Ipomoea aquatica water-spinach F, U C
Jasminum dichotomum Gold Coast jasmine C, S
Jasminum fluminense Brazilian jasmine C, S
Lantana strigocamara2 lantana, shrub verbena N,C,S
Ligustrum lucidum glossy privet N, C
Ligustrum sinense Chinese privet F3 N, C, S
Lonicera japonica Japanese honeysuckle N, C, S
Ludwigia peruviana Peruvian primrosewillow N, C, S
Lumnitzera racemosa black mangrove S
Luziola subintegra tropical American watergrass S
Lygodium japonicum Japanese climbing fern F N, C, S
Lygodium microphyllum Old World climbing fern F, U N, C, S
Manilkara zapota sapodilla S
Melaleuca quinquenervia melaleuca, paper bark F, U C, S
Melinis repens Natal grass N, C, S
(Rhynchelytrum repens)
Microsorum grossum4 serpent fernt, wart fern S
Microstegium vimineum Japanese stiltgrass, N
Mimosa pigra catclaw mimosa F, U C, S
Nandina domestica nandina, heavenly bamboo N, C
/floridainvasivespecies.org