Click on any image to open the slideshow
Planera aquatica
Waterelm
Planertree
Florida native
A small deciduous tree occasional of riverbanks, floodplains and swamps of north Florida, particularly along the Suwannee, Apalachicola and Choctawhatchee Rivers. The range includes the southeastern United States west into Texas and Oklahoma and north into Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky and North Carolina.
Growing up to 18m high, trunks are often short with spreading branches. Outer bark is grayish-brown, scaly and flaky, inner bark is reddish. Leaves are alternate and two-ranked along the branch. The leaves are typically ovate with rounded bases, tapered tips and serrate margins. Dark green on top, each leaf is from 2-8.5cm ( ~3/4 to 3-1/3 in.) long and 2-4cm (~3/4 to 1-1/2 in.) wide. The small flowers appear as dense clusters in the leaf axils.
Distinguished from the elms by leaves that are nearly symmetrical at the base and fruit that is a dry, bur-like drupe.
Planera aquatica is a member of the Ulmaceae - Elms and Zelkovas family.
Atlas of Florida Vascular Plants (Institute for Systemic Botany) profile for this species
USDA Plant Profile for this species
Date record last modified: Dec 26, 2019
