Fan flower (Inkberry)

Description:

The common name of fan flower comes from the arrangement of the petals, which are fused at the base and spread like a fan in a halfcircle. Inkberry is a slow-growing, small shrub up to 4 feet in height with trailing succulent stems. Stems root as they touch the ground and can be detached and transplanted. The foliage is clustered toward the tips of the branches. Leaves are 2 to 4 inches long, thick, fleshy, and have a glossy dark green color. The flowers are white or very light pink, to 1 inch across, with 5 petals.

Habitat:

Scaevola plumieri is a beach colonizer, trapping sand and stabilizing the dunes on which other plants can become established. Inkberry grows in full sun and is highly drought, wind and salt tolerant.

Notes:

@ Shell Key Preserve. In Florida it is considered a threatened species. Native to Florida and the Caribbean. However, drifting seeds of the Scaevola plumieri have made their way to Africa, the Pacific Islands, around the Gulf of Mexico and into Brazil and Ecuador.