Black ironwood, also called leadwood, grows as a large shrub or small tree in the hammocks of Central and South Florida and the Keys. It often grows in sites near coastal waters. Black ironwood is found in Central Florida on the east coast from Cape Canaveral southward and across South Florida. It is a common tree in many parts of the West Indies.

All over the world, more than 100 species of trees and shrubs share the common name of 'ironwood'. They have earned this name as a result of their very hard, dense, and heavy wood. South Americans call these trees 'quebracho', which means 'axe

breaker'. These ironwood trees have wood that does not float in water but sinks. Black ironwood has the densest, heaviest wood of any native tree in the United States. Despite this claim to fame, the wood of the black ironwood has no commercial value.

Black ironwood has clusters of greenish yellow flowers that bloom from late spring to early summer.

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