These morning glory vines run all over the dunes
south of Sarasota's Turtle Beach.
They are not in bloom in the July heat.
"Beach Morning Glory or Goat's Foot is a common tropical creeping vine belonging to the family Convolvulaceae. It grows on the upper parts of beaches and endures salted air. It is one of the most common and most widely distributed salt tolerant plants and provides one of the best known examples of oceanic dispersal. Its seeds float and are unaffected by salt water." "The sprawling runners spread out from the woody rootstock but the large 2-lobed leaves are sparse and a dense cover on the sand is rarely achieved except in protected situations. This plant is a primary sand stabilizer being one of the first plants to colonise the dune. It grows on almost all parts of the dune but is usually found on the seaward slopes sending long runnersspinifex grass and is a useful sand binder thriving under conditions of sand blast and salt spray." - Wikipedia.com
