Ardisia crenata
Ardisia escallonioides
Christmas berry, coral ardisia, coral-berry, hen's eyes, spice-berry
island marlberry
petiole 6–10 mm, glabrous;
blade elliptic, narrowly lanceolate, or oblanceolate, 7–15 × 2–4 cm, margins crenulate or undulate, subrevolute, (bearing large vascularized nodules), apex acute or acuminate, surfaces minutely reddish glandular-papillate.
petiole 5–12 mm, glabrous;
blade elliptic to oblanceolate, 3.2–17.5 × 1.3–6.2 cm, margins entire, flat, (without vascularized nodules), apex acute, surfaces glabrous.
terminal, on specialized, 2- or 3-leaved lateral branches, umbels or cymes, 5–18+-flowered.
terminal, panicles of racemes, 6–18-flowered.
sometimes erect, 7–10 cm, minutely reddish glandular-papillate.
erect, 0.4–0.6 cm, sparsely to densely rufous-papillate.
sepals (4–)5(–6), oblong-ovate, 1–1.5(–2.5) mm, margins entire, apex rounded or obtuse, glabrous;
petals (4–)5(–6), white or rarely pinkish, ovate, 4–6 mm, margins entire, apex acute, punctate, glandular-papillose adaxially near base;
stamens shorter than petals;
anthers triangular-lanceolate, apex acute, punctate abaxially;
ovary glabrous;
ovules ca. 5, uniseriate.
sepals 5–6, ovate, 1.8–2 mm, margins entire, (glandular-ciliolate), apex acute, minutely papillate;
petals 5–6, white to pink, lanceolate, 6.7–6.9 mm, margins entire, (hyaline, membranous), apex acute, punctate, with dense, yellow papillae adaxially at base, glabrous;
stamens shorter than petals;
anthers ovate to lanceolate, apex apiculate, punctate abaxially;
ovary pellucid-punctate, glabrous;
ovules 39–44, multiseriate.
red, 6–8 mm diam., punctate.
red, becoming black, 4–7 mm diam., punctate.
Ardisia crenata
Ardisia escallonioides
Ardisia crenata has naturalized from cultivation and does not appear invasive; it is included in some Florida invasive plant lists. It has often been misidentified as A. crispa (Thunberg) A. de Candolle in the horticulture trade. Ardisia crispa, while also belonging to subg. Crispardisia, may be easily recognized by the bacterial leaf nodules in the crenations of the leaf margins. It is often used in living potted flower arrangements; it needs little attention if planted in acidic soil. Its bacterial leaf nodule symbiosis with Phyllobacterium myrsinacearum has been well documented (B. Lambert et al. 1990); the significance of this symbiosis remains controversial (N. R. Lersten and H. T. Horner 1976; C. D. Nakahasi et al. 2005). Ardisia crenata may be easily distinguished from A. crispa by its taller habit, 1–3 (versus shorter than 1) m tall, lack of creeping rhizomes (versus rhizomes present), adaxially canaliculated (versus flat) petioles (6–)8–10 (versus 5–8) mm long, its leaf margin nodules ellipsoid (versus rounded), and obviously vascularized (versus obscurely so). We have seen A. crispa in greenhouses and in horticultural catalogs; we have not seen it cultivated in gardens or escaped from cultivation.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
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