Seacoast marsh-elder (Iva imbricata) is a perennial, semi-woody shrub in the sunflower family (Asteraceae).It is also called dune marsh-elder or beach elder.This plant is a common native to coastal areas of the southeastern United States from Texas to Virginia.It also occurs as a native in the Bahamas and Cuba.
Iva imbricata inhabits the harsh “coastal strand zone,” that is, the sandy shore between the high tide line and the sand dunes closest to the ocean. It often grows as a sparce mat over a mound of sand.Its stems reach about three feet (100 cm) in height.
Seacoast marsh-elder has fleshy (succulent) leaves with a thick outer cuticle layer.These adaptations allow it to store water and protect it from the abrasive winds of its dry environment.The young stems are red in color and fade to tan as the plant grows older.Between late summer and early fall, Iva imbricata produces stalks bearing numerous subtle, non-showy flower heads wrapped in a whorl of leaves.Each flower head is a composite of tiny blooms (as are sunflowers), with slightly purple petals.
Seacoast marsh-elder can withstand hot sun, salt spray and occasional flooding by ocean tides.It is one of just a few pioneer species in its harsh environment.Other plants that it grows alongside include:
• sea oats (Unica paniculata)
• coastal panicgrass (Panicum amarum)
• seaside primrose (Oenothera humifusa)
• coast searockets (species of Cakila).
Together, these plants play an important role in capturing and stabilizing blowing sand and forming new dunes.
The mounds of sand formed by seacoast marsh-elder create habitat and food for small mammals and birds.This plant is an important part of the diet of beach mice, Peromyscus polionotus including the endangered subspecies P. p. leucocephalus (the Santa Rosa beach mouse).
Where Iva imbricata grows further back from the ocean, in swales and on the backs of dunes, it grows well from seed.Closer to the ocean, however, sand and tidal inundation and dessication destroy seedlings, so here it spreads mainly by asexual propagation. Seacoast marsh-elder is easily grown from cuttings.Partly because of this it is cultivated as a plant valuable for restoring degraded dune environments.
(Colosi and McCormick 1978; Cook 2013; Smith 2003; Thetford and Miller 2002, 2004; Wikipedia 2015)
Iva imbricata is a North American species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae known by the common names dune marsh-elder and seacoast marsh elder. It is native to Cuba, the Bahamas, and coastal areas of the United States from Texas to Virginia.[2][3] It is a low shrub, found on sand dunes and the upper beach. It is a highly salt tolerant plant, and is often the perennial plant closest to the ocean.
Iva imbricata is an important species for dune stabilization and can easily be propagated by cuttings.[4] It sometimes grows up to 100 cm (40 inches) tall. It produces numerous flower heads in elongated arrays, each head with 2-17 disc flowers but no ray flowers.[5]
Iva imbricata is a North American species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae known by the common names dune marsh-elder and seacoast marsh elder. It is native to Cuba, the Bahamas, and coastal areas of the United States from Texas to Virginia. It is a low shrub, found on sand dunes and the upper beach. It is a highly salt tolerant plant, and is often the perennial plant closest to the ocean.
Iva imbricata is an important species for dune stabilization and can easily be propagated by cuttings. It sometimes grows up to 100 cm (40 inches) tall. It produces numerous flower heads in elongated arrays, each head with 2-17 disc flowers but no ray flowers.
