Description

Sea Grape Bush – Coccoloba Uvifera Overview

Coccoloba Uvifera Bush (Sea Grape) is a Florida Native medium-sized evergreen shrub or multi-trunk tree, reaching 25 to 30 feet in height or taller. In its natural bush form it develops a variable, typically vase-shaped crown spreading as wide as the tree is tall — one of South Florida’s most iconic coastal hedge plants and a key element of beachfront landscapes throughout the region.

Sea Grape – Description

Branches tend to droop with age, and the attractive smooth, pale gray, mottled bark peels off in thin plates. Leaves are green, shiny, alternate, simple, entire, and nearly circular, measuring 8 to 12 inches across — among the largest and most recognizable leaves of any Florida Native shrub. Male and female flowers are borne on separate trees; blooms are small, white to ivory, arranged in long narrow clusters up to 12 inches long and rich in nectar, attracting bees, butterflies, and other insects.

Fruits on female trees are fleshy, elliptical to egg-shaped, about ¾ inch long, ripening from green to purple. They attract birds and mammals and are edible, though sour — commonly used to make juice, jelly, or wine.

Coccoloba Uvifera – Cultivation & Landscape Use

Sea Grape grows best in moist, well-drained soils and benefits from regular pruning. Its high salt and drought tolerance make it one of the most reliable plants for coastal landscape design in South Florida — thriving in sandy shoreline soils where many other species struggle. Its extensive root system also plays an active role in stabilizing beachfronts and reducing erosion, adding ecological value to coastal plantings.

In its bush form, the Sea Grape hedge is an excellent screening plant for property boundaries, seaside gardens, parks, conservatories, and xerophytic gardens. It also performs well in large planters. As a windbreak hedge, it tolerates coastal wind exposure reliably. Note that fruit and leaf litter from female trees requires some maintenance — avoid planting near walkways to minimise clean-up.

Looking for the single-trunk tree form? See our Sea Grape Tree. Available at our Homestead nursery in sizes from 25 to 300 gallons, suitable for residential, coastal, and wholesale landscape projects.

Other names: Bay Grape

🌳 More popular and beautiful plants: Powder Puff Tree