Lyonia lucida (Lam.)K.Koch

Fetterbush
Fetterbush Lyonia

Florida native

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A common shrub of flatwoods, bogs and cypress ponds throughout nearly all of Florida. The range extends through the southeastern coastal states from Louisiana into Virginia, plus Cuba.
While fetterbush can grow to 4-5 m (13 to 16-1/2 ft.) tall, it is often much shorter. For instance, the plants pictured here were less than 6 dm (2 ft.) tall and a large patch of Lyonia lucida seen the day before in another area of the same county were all about 1.2 m (4 ft.) tall.
Flowers are urn shaped, varying from white through shades of pink to almost red and borne in clusters at the leaf axils. Leaves are alternate, simple, elliptic, 2-8 cm (3/4-3 in.) long and 1-4 cm (~1/2 - 1-1/2 in.) wide. The margin is closely paralleled by a distinctive vein that gives the leaves the appearance of being slightly revolute. Fruit is a capsule, either rounded or urn-shaped, about 5mm (<1/4 in.) long. Characteristics of this species are corollas only 2-2.5 times longer than the calyx, and the submarginal vein on the leaves.

Lyonia lucida is a member of the Ericaceae - Heath family.

Other species of the Lyonia genus in the Wild Florida Photo database:
  Lyonia ferruginea - RUSTY LYONIA
  Lyonia fruticosa - COASTALPLAIN STAGGERBUSH

Atlas of Florida Vascular Plants (Institute for Systemic Botany) profile for this species

iNaturalist profile for this species

USDA Plant Profile for this species

Date record last modified: May 31, 2023