Shrub

Viburnum Foliage Not Like Elderberry

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Comparing elderberry shrubs to viburnum shrubs in the previous post would have made a lot more sense if a photo of Viburnum leaves were included for proper identification.

The compound leaves of elderberry have 5-9 serrated leaflets.

Elderberry leaves have several pairs of leaflets with serrated edges.
Elderberry leaves have several pairs of leaflets with serrated edges.

I found a Viburnum species blooming at Boyd Big Tree Preserve near Halifax, PA. We can tell that this little shrub is a type of Arrowwood by the shape of the toothed leaves.

The simple leaves of Viburnum spp. are opposite and entire, toothed or lobed.

An Arrowwood shrub blooming at Boyd Big Tree Preserve Conservation Area.
An Arrowwood shrub blooming at Boyd Big Tree Preserve Conservation Area. Photo taken 26 Jun 2014.

If the foliage were more closely inspected perhaps we would know if this is Northern or Southern Arrowwood. The one feature that distinguishes the two is that twigs are hairless in Northern Arrowwood, Viburnum recognitum, and velvety-hairy in Southern Arrowwood, Viburnum dentatum.

Details for identifying shrubs, like their leaf shapes, degree of leaf hairiness, or the absence of hairs on small twigs, can be found in Peterson’s Field Guide to Trees and Shrubs.

Close-up views of the twigs suggest that the specimen photographed above was an example of Southern Arrowwood.

So remember, if you’re seeking elderberries the compound leaves will verify that you’ve got an elderberry shrub, while simple leaves will tell you it’s a viburnum.

Deerberry Blooms Light up the Wood’s Edge

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This rainy year produced some spectacular flower displays. One that we see in the forest is called Deerberry, Vaccinium stamineum. It’s a member of the Heath Family, Ericaceae, as are the blueberries and huckleberries, and it’s also native to the eastern United States.

Small deerberry shrubs at the edge of the woods are 2-3 feet tall.
Small deerberry shrubs at the edge of the woods are 2-3 feet tall. Photo taken 13 May 2011.

The foliage looks a lot like that of the lowbush blueberry, but the flowers are distinct. Each bell-shaped flower is white to pinkish-white with many stamens that protrude beyond the edge of the short bell. The five lobes at the edge of the bell do not flare outward as the blossoms of the blueberries do.

The flowers are arranged in loose clusters where each blossom dangles just below a small leaf on the main stem. This ‘leafy-bracted raceme’ is a character worth noting to identify deerberry.

Three leafy bracted racemes are present in this closeup of deerberry flowers with their long stamens.
Three leafy bracted racemes are present in this closeup of deerberry flowers with their long stamens. Photo taken 13 May 2011.
By holding up a branch of the deerberry, you can see how the flowers dangle below their stem.
By holding up a branch of the deerberry, you can see how the flowers dangle below their stem. Photo taken 13 May 2011.
Mass blooming of deerberry. Note how the flowers are tucked behind the new growth of light green leaves.
Mass blooming of deerberry. Note how the flowers are tucked behind the new growth of light green leaves. Photo taken on 23 May 2011.

(Click on any of the photos to see larger images.)

Deerberry blooming at the edge of the woods.
Deerberry blooming at the edge of the woods on 23 May 2011.

Maple-Leaved Viburnum Blooms Pink and White

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Maple-leaved Viburnum, Viburnum acerifolium, started to bloom around the middle of May here in South-central PA. It’s a woody shrub that can flower from a single stalk as a young plant. When this viburnum gets a little older, it may flower profusely with clusters at the ends of each branch on the larger plants.

Clusters of maple-leaved viburnum flowers.
Clusters of maple-leaved viburnum flowers.
Flower cluster and leaf of maple-leaved viburnum.
Flower cluster and leaf of maple-leaved viburnum.

Flowers occur in flat-topped clusters at the branch tips. Leaves are similar in shape to maple tree leaves, thus giving this understory shrub its name.

Maple-like leaves in pairs.
Maple-like leaves in pairs.

Flower buds are pink to white in color, while the inner flower parts are mostly creamy white.

Pink flower buds of maple-leaved viburnum.
Pink flower buds of maple-leaved viburnum.

Pink flower buds of Maple-leaved Viburnum open up into white flowers with long stamens projecting upward. Anthers on the tips of the stamens make the flower clusters looked dotted.

A few viburnums listed in Peterson’s Edible Plant Guide are edible, but others in the Viburnum genus have bitter fruit. No medicinal qualities were noted in Peterson’s Medicinal Plants Guide.

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Privet Shrub Smells Like Spring

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Early in the day during my walk at the Box Huckleberry Natural Area I was stopped in my tracks by nice sweet smell. It smelled like a spring day and that’s about all I can say to describe the lovely scent.

I looked around and the thing was I couldn’t find the source of the smell. I did see some pinxter flower, the wild pink azalea. It was barely blooming yet with flower buds formed and only one of them open. It looked like they may even open later in the day but only one of them was opened so far and I can’t think the scent that I smelled was due to a single flower down the trail.

Smokey says the pinxter flower doesn't have a lovely scent.
Smokey says the pinxter flower doesn't have a lovely scent.

There was hardly any of the box huckleberry still blooming so I wasn’t sure where this lovely scent came from. The neat thing was it stopped me in my tracks, so I took a moment to look all around me. I couldn’t find what was blooming to make such a nice scent and then I spotted them – I saw a whole bunch of moccasin flowers or Pink Lady’s Slippers. They don’t have any smell of their own, but I was truly appreciative of the pretty scent having helped me find them.

Later in the same day I was over on the Middle Ridge Trail at Little Buffalo State Park when I came across the same lovely smell. This time it was easy to find the scent producer. A Privet shrub, Ligustrum vulgare, had taken up residence some years ago right next to the trail and now it was tree-sized, probably twenty feet tall.

A branch of the privet hedge tree.
A branch of the privet hedge tree.

Privet shrub blooming with 3-4 inch long oval pointed leaves. The four pointed trumpet-like blooms were opening in all their glory.

Trumpet-like four-pointed blooms of Privet.
Trumpet-like four-pointed blooms of Privet.

Tubular blossoms open to show four points. Note there are still some unopened flowers in the bud stage.

A couple years ago I saw a privet shrub right next to a stop sign. In the adjacent meadow there were a dozen or more privet shrubs that you could readily see during their bloom time in mid-Spring. The white blossoms just about cover the little shrubs. Well, being at a stop sign I guess it was noticed by someone else. When I went during the autumn to collect the scented shrub, it was gone. Perhaps the road crew beat me to it.

It was stopping at the stop sign and smelling the lovely privet blossoms that introduced me to Privet. Even though it can be invasive, I will continue to enjoy its scent when I smell it.

Privet is a shrub native to Europe and alien to the U.S. Most wildflower guides don’t have information on Privet, due to its being a shrub and not an herbaceous plant, except the Newcomb Wildflower Guide which does cover some shrubbery.

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Honeysuckle That Doesn’t Smell Sweet

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Honeysuckle flowers and leaves
Image by Martin LaBar via Flickr

Honeysuckle is a sweet treat that many of us remember from our childhoods. Taking the blooms off the plant and sucking the honey-sweet nectar was fun and exciting. The scent of honeysuckle is heavenly and used to our delight in perfumes, soaps and air fresheners.

Nature is peculiar in all its variety. Did you know that there are some honeysuckle plants that don’t even smell? The blossoms look practically the same as the deliciously scented Japanese Honeysuckle, Lonicera japonica. The Japanese honeysuckle is a vine with pairs of white flowers that fade to yellow.

A group of honeysuckles, called Fly Honeysuckles, are shrubs that are related to the Japanese Honeysuckle. The flowers are tubular with five lobes and they project from the leaf axils. The evenness and length of the flower lobes helps to separate the species of honeysuckle. Also, the habitat where the plant lives will help to distinguish it from its relatives.

The Newcomb Field Guide indicates that fly honeysuckles can be found in swamps and bogs, on alpine slopes, in cool woodlands, in thickets and along roadsides.

Morrow’s Honeysuckle, Lonicera morrowi, is the fly honeysuckle in the photos shared here. A few examples were seen flowering at the spillway of Lake Holman along Little Buffalo Road a couple weeks ago.

First flowers of a fly honeysuckle blooming.
First flowers of a fly honeysuckle blooming.

Fly honeysuckle starting to bloom. Photo taken 18 April 2010. White blossoms are freshly open. Note the pairs of flower buds at each leaf node.

Another example of Morrow’s Honeysuckle (on Little Buffalo Road near the intersection with Route 34) was flowering profusely on 30 April 2010. The symmetry of this plant is remarkable with its pairs of opposite leaves and two flowers per leaf axil. The oval leaves themselves are quite symmetrical. Finding this fly honeysuckle along roadsides shows its invasive character.

Fly honeysuckle shrub at the side of a road.
Fly honeysuckle shrub at the side of a road.
Flowers on a fly honeysuckle at the road side.
Flowers on a fly honeysuckle at the road side.

Honeysuckle flowers practically coat this woody shrub.

Blooms of the fly honeysuckle.
Blooms of the fly honeysuckle.

Close-up view of the flowers of dry honeysuckle shows the older blossoms have turned yellow and new ones in the bud stage are creamy white.

Seeing this honeysuckle and getting close enough to realize that it was the scentless kind makes me want for summer. That’s when the Japanese honeysuckle will be blooming and filling the air with its wonderful fragrance.

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