Lyonia
Lyonia ferruginea
maleberry, staggerbush
crooked-wood, dragon-wood, poor-grub, rusty staggerbush, staggerbush, tree lyonia
erect to arching;
twigs hairy, sometimes glabrescent (sometimes also lepidote).
deciduous or persistent;
blade elliptic, obovate, or ovate, membranous to coriaceous, margins entire, undulate, or serrulate [irregularly serrate], plane or revolute, surfaces multicellular, peltate-scaled or short-stalked stipitate-glandular-hairy, often unicellular-hairy on major veins or abaxial surface;
venation brochidodromous (or reticulodromous).
persistent;
blade elliptic to obovate or ovate, 1–9 × 0.5–4.5 cm (those of branch apices equaling or only slightly smaller than those on lower portion of branches), coriaceous, base attenuate to narrowly or widely cuneate, margins entire or undulate, usually revolute distally, sometimes strongly so, apex acute or obtuse to mucronate, less commonly rounded, abaxial surface ferrugineous-lepidote, otherwise usually densely hairy, scales often of 2 sizes, at least smaller ones persistent, midvein and secondary veins usually at least slightly depressed, adaxial surface lepidote (scales caducous), hairy along midvein.
axillary fascicles, panicles, or racemes, (2–)5–8(–12)-flowered, sometimes flowers solitary, (produced just before flowering).
fascicles, developing from buds beyond or intermixed with vegetative buds on branches of previous year;
bracts 1 per flower, linear-lanceolate, 1–2 mm.
bracteoles 2, at or near base.
peltate-scaled, lepidote.
sepals usually [4–]5[–8], slightly connate, ovate-deltate to lanceolate;
petals usually [4–]5[–8], connate nearly their entire lengths, white to red, corolla cylindric to urceolate, lobes much shorter than tube, (sparsely stipitate-glandular-hairy or peltate-scaled);
stamens usually [8–]10[–16], included;
filaments geniculate, flattened, roughened or hairy, with or without spurs;
anthers without awns, dehiscent by elliptic pores;
pistil usually [4–]5[–8]-carpellate;
ovary [4–]5[–8]-locular; (style slightly longer than stamens);
stigma capitate-truncate.
calyx lobes 1–2 × 0.5–1.2 mm, glabrous, lepidote;
corolla white, urceolate, 2–4 × 2–4 mm;
filaments 1–2.3 mm, roughened, without appendages or with 2 minute spurs.
capsular, globose to ovoid or ellipsoid, dry, (with [4–]5[–8] pale, decidedly thickened, whitish sutures).
ovoid to ellipsoid, 3–6 × 3–4.5 mm, apex not constricted, lepidote, otherwise hairy;
sutures separating as unit from adjacent valves;
placentae subapical.
ca. 100–300, ellipsoidal, narrowly oblong, obovoid to angular-obovoid or narrowly conic, (sometimes tailed);
testa cells elongate.
= 12.
Lyonia
Lyonia ferruginea
Arsenococcus Small; Desmothamnus Small; Neopieris Britton
Species 36 (5 in the flora).
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Lyonia ferruginea is occasionally used as an ornamental; its stems are used in the manufacture of artificial foliage plants for use in interior design; it and L. fruticosa are most closely related to the lepidote species of Mexico and the West Indies. This species is probably reproductively isolated from L. fruticosa due to its flowering time (mainly February through May versus mainly March through July) and habitat preference (usually well versus poorly drained soils).
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
1. Abaxial surface of leaf blades, pedicels, and calyx lepidote | → 2 |
1. Abaxial surface of leaf blades, pedicels, and calyx nearly glabrous or hairy, not lepidote | → 3 |
2. Ultimate branchlets spreading, flowers nearly always restricted to previous year’s branches; leaves not conspicuously reduced toward branch tips, blade margins usually revolute distally, sometimes strongly so, major veins usually depressed; shrubs or trees to 6(-12) m. | L. ferruginea |
2. Ultimate branchlets rigidly ascending, flowers frequent on current year’s branchlets (some flowers also borne on branches of previous year); leaves conspicuously reduced toward branch tips, blade margins at most slightly revolute distally, major veins not depressed; shrubs to 1.5(-3) m. | L. fruticosa |
3. Leaf blades scattered, multicellular long-headed-hairy abaxially, margins serrulate; corollas urceolate, 2-4(-4.5) mm; calyx lobes 0.5-1.5 mm. | L. ligustrina |
3. Leaf blades scattered, multicellular short-headed-hairy abaxially, margins entire; corollas cylindric, 5-14 mm; calyx lobes 2-9.5 mm | → 4 |
4. Leaves persistent, blade rigidly coriaceous, intramarginal vein present; corollas usually pink, sometimes red or white, 2-5 mm wide, base swollen; filaments roughened; capsules ovoid to ovoid-globose | L. lucida |
4. Leaves deciduous, blade membranous, intramarginal vein absent; corollas usually white, rarely pink, 4.5-9 mm wide, base not swollen; filaments long-hairy, especially near base; capsules ovoid. | L. mariana |
WildflowerSearch
iNaturalist
USDA Plants Database
