Thespesia Species, Aden Apple, Indian Tulip Tree, Milo, Pacific Rosewood, Portia Tree

The Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council has listed this species as a Category I invasive. It forms dense thickets which impoverish natural ...Read Morehabitat.

This is also a listed invasive species in the Bahamas and in Puerto Rico.

I planted thespesia from seed in 2003 thinking it was baby hawiian woodrose, they mislabled the seed and I didn't know what it was. Anyw...Read Moreays I stuck with the plant and kept repotting it year after year and this plant does grow fairly quickly for a tree!
I planted it in the ground summer 2007, by then it was about 3 feet tall. This is the first summer it has flowered. The flowers are like small Hibiscus, they start out yellow and change color to pinkish orange before they die. All in all it is a beautiful tree and is growing like crazy this past summer . It is now around 7 feet tall and has a nice trunk 3 1/2 inch diameter. Nice round canopy. It's deciduous in winter. Has survived 27 degrees with just tip die back but it sure bounced back this past summer doubling its size in 6 months. I'm fortunate to have this tree, Ive never seen any like it around here....

I am in mid central Florida, well away from coasts or swamps, with the exception of being flooded for weeks this year due to heavy rains ...Read Moreand hurricanes. My plant is 3 years old, kept pruned to about 5ft, it is very ful and beautiful. I love the blooms. While I will not go against those knowledgable that have made it a #1 invasive and will not trade it with anyone, my own plant has not spread itself anywhere. In two years of blooming, it is still the only one of its kind around here. I would hate to give it up. DR

Aden Apple, Seaside Mahoe, Portia Tree or Indian Tulip Tree (Thespesia populnea) is very invasive in mangrove swamps, mangrove swamp edge...Read Mores and disturbed coastal areas in central and southern Florida, from around Brevard County on the east coast and Sarasota and near Tampa Bay on the west coast southward through the Keys. It grows as a large shrub or small to medium tree, spreading quickly and forming thickets, crowding out native species such as mangroves and forms sandy ridges in mangrove swamps and mangrove swamp edges, prohibiting the growth of mangroves and other native species and allowing other non-native invasive species to spread! It is native to the Old and New World Tropics worldwide and is widespread and invasive in central and southern Florida, the Bahamas, and throughout the Caribbean. It is now listed on the Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council's Pest Plant List Category One for it's invasiveness in coastal habitats in central and southern Florida. It is found as a weed in many tropical areas, including in Hawaii. It has beautiful, round, light yellow to yellowish flowers with a reddish and bright yellow center. Despite it's attractiveness, it is very invasive in many coastal tropical and subtropical areas, including in central and southern Florida and may area and is should not be planted in central and southern Florida, for seeds wash up on shores or are dispersed by birds and other factors, and grow quickly where they are dispersed, such as in coastal mangrove swamps and coastal disturbed habitats, spreading quickly and forming thickets crowding out native vegetation.

MORE FACTS - Widely found in many tropical and subtropical areas worldwide, especially in coastal areas such as mangrove swamps, shorelines and coastal disturbed areas and other coastal habitats. It loves salty areas such as sandy shorelines where conditions are appropriate. However, since it is invasive in many areas, in areas where it is invasive, including in my area, please DO NOT PLANT THIS PLANT, even though it appears attractive!

Listed by the Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council (FLEPPC) as a Category One Invasive. Grows well in zones 9a through 11.