PlantFiles: Jamaican Capertree
Capparis cynophallophora

Jamaican Capertree or Capertree or Caper (Capparis cynophallophora) is native to the tropical hardwood and coastal hammocks and coastal habitats of central and southern Florida, the Keys, and through the Caribbean and West Indies. It is a great tree that thrives in sun or shade and provides food and shelter for wildlife. It is great for landscaping in central and southern Florida, where it is native, and the showy, near white to maroon-purple flowers are quite attractive. It grows in zones 9a through 11, the same zones as the other species of caper found in central and southern Florida that occurs in the same habitats (which is Capparis flexuosa AKA Limber or Bayleaf Caper). The Jamaican Capertree, like the Bayleaf or Limber Caper, has a small to medium hight usually. The leaves of this species are usually more glossy and shiny than those of the Bayleaf or Limber Caper. Also, the leaves of the Bayleaf Caper are usually smaller. The attractive and unusual fruits this species bears are bright red or red to red-pink. The fruits provide food for wildlife and the foilage provides shelter for birds and other wildlife. It should be encouraged for use in the central and southern Florida landscape, including for native plant or wildlife gardens! This species, like the Bayleaf Caper, is also found in the hammovks on the southern mainland of Florida in Everglades National Park (Miami-Dade and Monroe counties). This species, in Florida, is found in Brevard, Indian River, St. Lucie, Martin, Palm Beach, Broward, Miami-Dade, Monroe (mainland and the Keys), Collier, Lee, Charlotte, Sarasota, Manatee, Hillsborough, and Pinellas counties, in zones 9a through 11. The Bayleaf Caper, meanwhile, in Florida, is found in Volusia, Brevard, Indian River, St. Lucie, Martin, Palm Beach, Broward, Miami-Dade, Monroe (mainland and the Keys), Collier, and Lee counties. Both species are found in central and southern Florida and the Keys, into the Caribbean, in zones 9a through 11.