Flora of North America species comparison

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Clethra acuminata

cinnamon clethra, mountain sweet pepperbush
Habit Shrubs to 6 m. Stems ± terete; young shoots glabrous.
Leaves

petiole (2–)2.3–3.5(–4.5) cm;

blade ovate, elliptic, or slightly obovate (widest at or near midpoint), (5–)11–13(–15) × (3–)5–7(–9) cm, base narrowly cuneate to rounded, margins distinctly toothed (proximalmost tooth averaging 2.4 cm distal to base), apex acuminate, surfaces glabrous or with few stellate hairs and glabrescent abaxially, glabrous adaxially.
Inflorescences

solitary, (8–)10–16(–20) cm, axis densely stellate-hairy.
Pedicels

2–6(–11) mm, proximalmost averaging 4.5 mm, stellate-hairy;

bract longer than flower, stellate-hairy.
Flowers

sepals 3.5–5 × 1–1.5 mm, stellate-hairy;

petals white, 6–8(–8.5) × 4–5 mm;

filaments 4–6 × 0.2–0.3 mm, glabrous or with scattered, simple, straight or crinkled hairs to 0.7 mm;

anthers ca. 2 mm;

style 7–9 mm, glabrous.
Capsules

subglobose, 2.5–4 × 3.5–5.3 mm.
Seeds

0.7–1 mm.
2n

= 32.

Clethra acuminata
Phenology Flowering summer.
Habitat Deciduous montane woods, usually in moist sites
Elevation 500-1400 m (1600-4600 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AL; GA; NC; PA; SC; TN; WV
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Clethra acuminata is known from the mountains of adjacent Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia; it may yet be found in the mountains of western Maryland; no specimens have been seen from that state.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 8, p. 365.
Parent taxa Clethraceae > Clethra
Sibling taxa
C. alnifolia, C. tomentosa
Name authority Michaux: Fl. Bor.-Amer. 1: 260. 1803 ,
Web links 
Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).



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