Arbutus menziesii |
Arbutus |
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Pacific madrone |
madrone |
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Habit | Shrubs and trees to 35 m; bark red and smooth to reddish brown and exfoliating. | Shrubs to medium trees evergreen; bark smooth when young, fissured and exfoliating with age. |
Leaves | ovate to elliptic, 7–15 cm, pale green abaxially, dark green and shiny adaxially; margins entire to minutely serrate; petioles 1–2.5 cm. |
alternate; leathery. |
Inflorescences | 5–15 cm, pubescent; bracts ovate, 4–6 mm; whitish. |
terminal panicles. |
Flowers | sepals ovate, 0.5–1.5 mm; thin; corollas urceolate, 5–8 mm, white to pinkish; lobes very short, reflexed. |
sepals 5 fused basally; petals 5, fused; stamens 10, included; anthers opening by slit-like pores; ovaries superior. |
Fruits | globose, 8–12 mm in diameter, orange to bright red, roughened by glandular-warty projections. |
berries. |
Seeds | 2–3 mm, light brown. |
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2n | =26. |
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Arbutus menziesii |
Arbutus |
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Distribution | ||
Discussion | Coniferous and mixed forests, rocky meadows. Flowering Mar–Jun. 0–1600 m. Casc, CR, Sisk, WV. CA, WA; north to British Columbia. Native. The largest of the ericaceous species in Oregon, Arbutus menziesii is easily identifiable by its size and exfoliating bark. This tree is popular in cultivation throughout the Northwest and is often seen in parks and gardens. Native Americans found a variety of uses for the fruits, bark, and leaves. Its fragrant flowers and brightly colored fruit are attractive to wildlife as well. |
Mediterranean regions in the Northern Hemisphere. ~20 species; 1 species treated in Flora. |
Source | Flora of Oregon, volume 2, page 617 Stephen Meyers |
Flora of Oregon, volume 1 |
Subordinate taxa | ||
Web links |
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