Large coastal shrub or small tree, less then 5 m tall. Stem covered by soft hairs. Leaves opposite, compound (composed of 3 linear leaflets which range between 1-12 cm in length). Upper surface of the leaves is green, lower surface grayish green. Flowers born in clusters up to 18 cm in length. Individual flowers purple to violet, two-lipped, approx. 5 mm long.

Native along coastlines from tropical East Africa as far east as French Polynesia.

Simpleleaf chastetree is related (same family) to many herbs like basil, rosemary, mint etc.

Evergreen perennial, up to 1 m tall, forming colonies of stalks with lance-shaped leaves (15-30 cm long, 2 cm wide), opposite. Flowers trumpet-shaped, metallic blue to purple, with five petals.

Native to Mexico, the Caribbean and South America. Grown around the world as an ornamental. It has become a widespread invasive plant in Florida, where it was introduced as an ornamental.

No known.

The risk of introduction of Mexican Ruellia is very high. Even though this species has been listed as invasive in many areas of the world, it is still widely commercialized as an ornamental.

Shrub, up to 4 m tall. Typical of littoral zones where it grows very close to the sea exposed to the salt spray, usually on sandy soil. Leaves slightly succulent, about 20 cm long, crowded at the stem tips, glabrous. Flowers, white, bloom whole year round, flowers fan-like shape. Fruits, white, float in seawater and are propagated by ocean currents. Beach cabbage is one of the pioneer plants in new sandbanks and atolls in tropical areas.

Native to coastal locations in the tropical areas of the Indo-Pacific. It is a common beach shrub throughout the Arabian Sea, the Indian Ocean and the tropical islands of the Pacific Ocean

No known.

In some islands of the Pacific, Beach cabbage is used to prevent coastal erosion as well as for landscaping. It is also planted on the beach crests to protect other cultivated plants from the salt spray.

Evergreen vine, growing up to 20 m long, with stems up to 4 cm in diameter. Leaves alternate, heart-shaped, entire on juvenile plants but irregularly pinnate on mature plants, up to 100 cm long and 45 cm broad, juvenile leaves much smaller (< 20 cm). The flowers arranged along a spadix are produced in a spathe. However, it rarely flowers without artificial hormone supplements. It can be cultivated from a cutting, a part of a plant used in plant propagation.

Native to Society Islands of French Polynesia. It is a popular houseplant in temperate regions but has also become naturalized in tropical and subtropical forests worldwide, including Australia, SE-Asia and the Pacific Islands.

No known.

“Golden Pothos” is also called “Devil’s vine” because it is almost impossible to kill, and it stays green even when kept in the dark.

Cycas is a very ancient genus of trees. The group achieved its maximum diversity in the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods, when it was distributed almost worldwide. At the end of the Cretaceous, when the non-avian dinosaurs became extinct, so did most of the Cycas species in the Northern Hemisphere.

Native to Japan. Widespread as an ornamental plant. The genus Cycas is native to the Old World, with the species concentrated around the equatorial regions.

The juice of tender leaves is useful in the treatment of flatulence and vomiting.

It is one of several species used for the production of sago (starch extracted from the spongy center of various tropical stems, mostly of palms, especially those of Metroxylon sagu – “true sago palm”).

Perennial herbs, up to 1m tall, grow from an elongated corm or a rhizome. Leaves linear, grow from the base of the plant. Flowers yellow. The six tepals are arranged in two series: The outer tepals (sepals) are larger than the inner ones (petals), both have brown-purple markings at the base. The style is divided into three branches.

Native to the warmer parts of southern Mexico, Central America, South America, Florida and the West Indies. Grown around the world as an ornamental.

No known.

Shrub or small tree, up to 3 m tall with a spread of about 5 m. typically growing in littoral zones. Senescent leaves contain rosmarinic acid and derivates, which are known for its antiviral, antibacterial, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. It may remove ciguatoxins produced by microscopic Gambierdiscus algae (dinoflagellat), which cause ciguatera fish poisoning.

Native to tropical Asia, Madagascar, Northern Australia and the Pacific Islands.

No known.

Historically in the Maldives, the leaves were often used as famine food. In the Pacific Islands, the wood was commonly used to make handicrafts, tools and frames for swim goggles.

Mostly terrestrial ferns, usually with a single tall, woody stem, up to 20 m. Rarely, the trunk may be branched or creeping. Many species also develop a fibrous mass of roots at the base of the trunk. The family Cyatheaceae appears in the fossil record in the late Jurassic and are therefore very ancient plants, though the modern genera (like Cyathea) likely appeared in the Cenozoic.

The genus has a pantropical distribution, with over 470 species. They grow in habitats ranging from tropical rain forests to temperate woodlands.

No known.

Evergreen shrub, rounded habit, dense branches. Bark greyish. Leaves dark green, shiny, leathery, with prominent veins, opposite. Flowers white, up to 10 cm in diameter, matte texture in contrast to the glossy leaves, among the most strongly fragrant of all flowers.

Native to India, Southern China and Southeast Asia. With its shiny leaves and heavily fragrant white flowers, it is widely used in gardens in warm temperate, subtropical and tropical climates, and as a houseplant in temperate regions.

The fruits are used against jaundice and diseases of the kidneys and lungs.

Related (same family) to coffee (Coffea arabica, # 6).

Robust palm tree, up to 30 m tall. Trunk grey, ringed with leaf scars (old leaves remain attached to the trunk for several years before falling cleanly). Leaves fan-shaped and 3 m long. Dioecious (male and female flowers on separate plants). Fruits black to brown with sweet, fibrous pulp and each seed is enclosed within a woody endocarp. Young palmyra seedlings grow slowly, producing only a few leaves each year (establishment phase), but at an as yet undetermined time, they grow rapidly, producing a substantial stem.

Native to the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. Naturalized in Pakistan and parts of China. The Palmyra palm has a growth pattern, very large size, and clean habits that makes it an attractive ornamental tree, cultivated for planting in gardens and parks around the world as landscape palm species.

Nearly all parts of this palm tree can be used: The fruit to eat, the sap for sugar production, the sprouts to eat, the leaves for baskets and writing material, the trunk for construction works, etc.