Cyrilla arida

Once thought lost to time and development, Cyrilla arida, known as Scrub Titi, is a botanical rarity with a story as striking as the summer bloom. The famed botanist J.K. Small first described this shrub in the early twentieth century from the desert-like scrub of central Florida. For decades the identity of Scrub Titi was debated and any wild presence uncertain, until a dedicated search led to rediscovery by Kenneth Wurdack and the Woodlanders team in Highlands County, Florida. That tiny remnant population may now be gone, and Cyrilla arida may no longer exist in the wild, which makes every plant in cultivation all the more precious.

Unlike the wetland-loving relatives in the genus, Cyrilla arida thrives on deep, nutrient-poor, xeric sandhills, the kind of ground where few plants dare to persist. That toughness carries into the garden, where Scrub Titi has proven surprisingly adaptable, performing well even in more temperate settings such as Atlanta, Georgia.

In summer, Scrub Titi puts on a graceful show of creamy white racemes, slender arching flower clusters that stand out against the fine-textured foliage. The blooms are ornamental and also beloved by pollinators, giving this shrub real ecological value alongside the good looks.

Deciduous to semi-evergreen, drought-tolerant, and low-maintenance once established, Cyrilla arida belongs in native plant gardens, dry borders, and sandy woodland edges, where the plant carries a piece of rare Florida scrub into the cultivated landscape.