Illicium floridanum

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Distribution Map: Based on vouchered plant specimens only. View county names by placing the mouse cursor over a particular county.

Species Distribution Map
Family:SCHISANDRACEAE
Species:Illicium floridanum J. Ellis
Common Name:Florida Anise Tree; Florida Star Anise; Anise Stinkbush
Habitat:Along streams and in moist woods often in hardwood forests. Common in the Coastal Plain and sometimes just above the fall line in adjacent districts.
Associated Ecological Communities:**
Growth Habit:Tree
Duration:Perennial
Category:Vascular
USDA Symbol:ILFL
Plant Notes:Florida Anise Tree is a native evergreen shrub or small tree in the Starvine family (Schisandraceae). It is native to the southern two thirds of Alabama. Florida Anise Tree is found in thickets along streams and in moist woods. It is a multi-trunked shrub or small tree reaching 15 feet in height. The stems have thin, smooth, glabrous, brownish gray bark. The leaves are petiolate, alternate (sometimes appearing whorled at branch tips), elliptic to lanceolate in outline, thick and leathery in texture, and glabrous. The leaves have a distinct “anise” odor when crushed. Flowers are solitary on recurved peduncles. Each flower has 21-33 strap shaped maroon-red tepals, 25-50 stamens, and 11-21 postils. The fruit is a star shaped woody aggregate of follicles. The seed are dispersed by explosive dehiscence. Florida Anise Tree is sometimes cultivated. Plants can be grown from seed, cuttings, or divisions. It prefers a moist, organic rich soil and partial shade. White and pink flowered forms, and plants with variegated foliage are also available. This is not the species that gives us the edible culinary anise. Do not use Florida anise as a spice – it is poisonous if ingested.—A. Diamond.
Taxonomic Notes:**
Status:Native, FACW (NWI)
References:**
Specimen: View specimen details in the Alabama Herbarium Consortium Specimen Database

** Not applicable or data not available.

Classification

FamilySCHISANDRACEAE - Starvine family
Genus Illicium
Species Illicium floridanum J. Ellis - Florida Anise Tree; Florida Star Anise; Anise Stinkbush

Citation

Citation Illicium floridanum J. Ellis, Philos. Trans. 60: 524, t. 12. 1770.
Basionym: **
Type: USA: FLORIDA: Escambia Co.: Near Pensacola in Ellis, Philos. Trans. 60: tab. XII, A-L (excluding L1- M) (lectotype). Lectotypified by Franck, Rhodora 119: 196. 2018.

** Not applicable or data not available.

Synonyms

SynonymFull CitationBasionymType
Badianifera floridana Badianifera floridana (J. Ellis) Kuntze, Revis. Gen. Pl. 1: 6. 1891.Illicium floridanum J. Ellis 1770. 
Illicium mexicanum Illicium mexicanum A. C. Smith, Sargentia 7: 39. 1947. MEXICO: Veracruz: Sierra Madre between Misantla and Naolinca, Aug 1912, Purpus 6137 (holotype: UC; isotypes: GH, M, NY, US).

Specimens and Distribution

This species has been reported in the following counties by the herbaria listed. An overview of the individual specimens are provided in the table that follows. Click on the accession number to view details; click on column headers to sort; choose a county or herbaria to filter the specimen data.

Counties included on distribution map: Autauga, Baldwin, Barbour, Bibb, Butler, Chilton, Choctaw, Clarke, Coffee, Conecuh, Coosa, Covington, Crenshaw, Dale, Dallas, Elmore, Escambia, Fayette, Geneva, Hale, Henry, Houston, Lamar, Lee, Macon, Marengo, Marion, Mobile, Monroe, Montgomery, Perry, Pickens, Pike, Randolph, Sumter, Tallapoosa, Tuscaloosa, Wilcox

Counties represented by specimen data listed below:

Herbaria represented by specimen data listed below: ALNHS, AUA, JSU, SAMF, TROY, UNA, UNAF, UWAL

Range of years during which specimens were collected: 1878 - 2023

Barcode / Accession No.
County
Coll. Date
Collector &
Collection No.
Herbarium &
Herbarium Name Used
Image
AUA_ACC_789 Autauga Apr 1908 ANDREWS, ELIZABETH F.
 AUA
ILLICIUM FLORIDANUM J. ELLIS
AUA000043079 Autauga Aug 1933 SCHNEIDER, A.
 AUA
ILLICIUM FLORIDANUM J. ELLIS
AUA_ACC_7355 Autauga 10 Apr 1958 DAVIS, DONALD E.
 AUA
ILLICIUM FLORIDANUM J. ELLIS
TROY000031423 Autauga 10 Apr 1958 Davis, Donald E.
s.n.		 TROY
Illicium floridanum Elliott
AUA_ACC_44803 Autauga 27 Sep 1975 DUPREE, W.G.
2		 AUA
ILLICIUM FLORIDANUM J. ELLIS
AUA_ACC_35143 Autauga 2 May 1979 TEAFORD, J.
 AUA
ILLICIUM FLORIDANUM J. ELLIS
UNA00029835 Autauga 16 Apr 1980 Haynes, Robert R.
7746a		 UNA
Illicium floridanum Ellis
UNA00029845 Autauga 09 Jul 1987 Haynes, Robert R.
9222		 UNA
Illicium floridanum Ellis
UWAL0018905 Autauga 05 Apr 1993 Kral, Robert
81933		 UWAL
Illicium floridanum J. Ellis
UWAL0034388 Autauga 31 Mar 1996 Kral, Robert
85723		 UWAL
Illicium floridanum J. Ellis
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