Cabbage Palm Flatwoods
 This range site is characterized by having nearly level land and a high alkaline pH. Water movement is very gradual to and through the natural drainageways, swamps, ponds, and marshes associated with this range site. During the rainy season, usually June through September, the water table is on or near the soil surface.
Soil
The soils are most often nearly level, poorly to somewhat poorly drained, shallow to deep, and coarse textured to fine textured in the subsoil. Some parts of the subsoil are calcareous or it is neutral to moderately alkaline. The surface and subsurface layers are coarse textured. Representative soil series are Broward, Ft. Drum, Matmon, and Pinellas.
Vegetation
Scattered slash pine and cabbage palm are characteristic overstory trees of this range site. In excellent range condition, vegetation is dominated by creeping, chalky, and south Florida bluestem, toothachegrass, blue maidencane, and lopsided indiangrass. However increaser species such as saw-palmetto, wax myrtle, gallberry, and pineland threeawn are present when poor or fair range condition exists.
The relative percentages of annual plant production (air dry) by weight are grasses and grass likes 70%, woody plants and trees 15%, and forbs 15%. The plants which characterize this community are:
- GRASSES AND GRASS LIKES - creeping, south Florida, and chalky bluestem, other bluestem sp., lopsided indiangrass, switchgrass, toothachegrass, wiregrasses, panicums, sedges, and rushes.
- FORBS - gayfeather, deerstongue, grassleaf goldaster, creeping beggarweed, and annual forbs.
- TREES AND SHRUBS - cabbage palm, pine sp., oak sp., gallberry, fetterbush, saw-palmetto, tarflower, wax myrtle.
Grazing Value
This range site has the potential for producing significant amounts of high quality forage.
Annual plant production (air dry) from all plant groups averages 7500 lb/A on sites in excellent range condition. The suggested stocking rates are as follows:
Range Condition Classes (acres/animal unit)
| Excellent |
Good |
Fair |
Poor |
| 4-7 |
6-12 |
11-16 |
15+ |
Wildlife
Cabbage palm flatwoods offer good food and cover to many species of wildlife. Food value comes from palm and saw-palmetto fruit, pine mast, and acorns from associated oaks. Legumes and grasses furnish good food sources to quail and other small birds. Habitat is well suited for deer and turkey and offers refuges to migrating birds during winter months.
Endangered and threatened plants, animals, and species of special concern.
- MAMMALS - Florida panther, mangrove fox squirrel.
- BIRDS - southeastern american kestrel, bald eagle.
- REPTILES - eastern indigo snake.
Adapted from "Range Sites of Florida" by
J. Jeffrey Mullahey, George W. Tanner,
and Stephen Coates
IFAS Extension Circular 951
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