Flora of North America species comparison

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Gaultheria shallon

Gaultheria pyroloides

salal, shallal

Miquel's spicy or Japanese wintergreen
Habit Shrubs, creeping, not mat-forming, rhizomatous. Shrubs, erect or, rarely, creeping, not mat-forming, rhizomatous, with adventitious roots.
Stems

erect to partially erect, (greenish), 50–200+ cm, ± glandular-hairy, glabrescent.

(slender to stout), 10–30 cm, glabrous.
Leaf

blades oval to ovate or orbiculate to reniform, 4–8+ cm, base rounded or cordate, margins serrulate (teeth fimbriate apically), apex mucronate/apiculate or aristate, surfaces glabrous.

blades oval to obovate or elliptic, 1.5–3.5 cm, base cuneate to rounded, margins serrate to ± crenate (teeth usually tipped with minute, glandular bristles), apex obtuse, surfaces glabrous.
Inflorescences

axillary, drooping, secund racemes;

peduncle deep pink to red, 7–15+ cm, densely glandular-hairy;

bracts white to light pink, deltate, 4–6 mm, not exceeding sepals, glandular-hairy marginally.

axillary, drooping, secund racemes;

peduncle reddish, 2–6 cm, sparsely hairy;

bracts light green, oblanceolate, 2.5–3.5 mm, not exceeding sepals, glabrous.
Pedicels

white, 7–10 mm, densely glandular-hairy;

bracteoles 1–5, pinkish white, parallel-veined, oblanceolate, 3–5 mm, densely glandular-hairy.

green, 4–8 mm, sparsely hairy;

bracteoles 1–3, pink to reddish, narrowly oblanceolate to subulate, 1–2 mm, glabrous.
Flowers

sepals 5, distinct nearly to base, dark pink to red, narrowly deltate, 3.5–5 mm, glandular-hairy (hairs reddish);

petals 5, connate nearly their entire lengths, white to light pink, 7–8 mm, densely glandular-hairy, corolla narrowly urceolate, lobes 1 mm;

filaments widest proximally, glabrous, papillose;

anthers with 2 apical, bifurcating awns, dehiscent by subterminal pores proximal to awns.

sepals 5, connate ca. 1/2 their lengths, dark green, deltate, 1.5–2 mm, glabrous;

petals 5, connate nearly their entire lengths, cream to light pink, 5–6 mm, glabrous, corolla urceolate, lobes 0.5 mm;

filaments broadest proximally, tapering distally, minutely ciliate marginally;

anthers with 2 bifurcating awns, dehiscent by subterminal pores proximal to awns.
Fruits

black-purple, 6–8 mm wide.

white, 6–8 mm wide.
2n

= 22, 44.

Gaultheria shallon

Gaultheria pyroloides
Phenology Flowering May-early Jul; fruiting late Jul–Sep. Flowering Jun–Aug; fruiting Sep–Oct.
Habitat Woods and transition zones, moist soils, rocky or sandy cliffs, coastal bluffs Alpine heath and rocky soils on mountain slopes
Elevation 0-1300 m (0-4300 ft) 400-2900 m (1300-9500 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AK; CA; OR; WA; BC [Introduced in nw Europe]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AK; e Asia (Japan)
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Fruits of Gaultheria shallon are a food source for animals, and the evergreen leaves provide additional food throughout the winter. This species has been used as a vegetative cover in disturbed areas because it spreads aggressively. The fresh and dried or smoked fruits were an important food of native peoples throughout its range. The evergreen leaves are used commercially in floral arrangements.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Gaultheria pyroloides is native on Honshu Island, Japan, and has been collected from a restricted location in Alaska, on the northeast corner of Kiska Island in the western Aleutians.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 8, p. 514. FNA vol. 8, p. 514.
Parent taxa Ericaceae > subfam. Vaccinioideae > Gaultheria Ericaceae > subfam. Vaccinioideae > Gaultheria
Sibling taxa
G. hispidula, G. humifusa, G. ovatifolia, G. procumbens, G. pyroloides
G. hispidula, G. humifusa, G. ovatifolia, G. procumbens, G. shallon
Synonyms G. miqueliana
Name authority Pursh: Fl. Amer. Sept. 1: 283, plate 12. (1813) Hooker f. & Thomson ex Miquel: Ann. Mus. Bot. Ludguno-Batavi 1: 30. 1863 ,
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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