Monthly Archives: April 2016

Douglas Spiraea, Spiraea douglasii

Douglas Spiraea                                                                     The Rose Family–Rosaceae

Spiraea douglasii Hook.

(spy-REE-uh  duh-GLASS-ee-i)

Spiraea douglasii flower clusterNames: The word Spiraea comes from a Greek plant that was commonly used for garlands.  Douglas Spiraea is named after David Douglas.  It is also commonly known as Hardhack, Steeplebush, or as Western, Pink or Rose Spiraea.  There are two recognized varieties, var. douglasii, which has grayish wooly hairs on the undersides of its leaves; and var. menziesii, (sometimes known as S. menziesii) which has smooth or only slightly hairy leaves.

Relationships:  Spiraeas are collectively known as Meadowsweets.  There are about 80-100 species of spiraea in the temperate regions of the northern hemisphere-the majority in eastern Asia. Many are grown for ornamental landscaping and there are several cultivated varieties, mostly of the Japanese species.

Distribution of Douglas Spiraea from USDA Plants Database

Distribution of Douglas Spiraea from USDA Plants Database

Distribution: Douglas Spiraea is native from southeast Alaska to northern California.  Although it mostly occurs west of the Cascade Mountains, it is also found in eastern Washington, Idaho and western Montana.  Douglas Spiraea has also been found growing in isolated counties of Colorado, Missouri, and Tennessee.

Growth: Spiraea douglasii grows 3-6 ft (1-2 m). It spreads by rhizomes, and is very aggressive, It often forms dense colonies and can quickly become the dominant species in a wetland habitat.

Spiraea douglasii

 

Spiraea douglasii2Habitat: Douglas Spiraea grows in open areas of wet meadows, bogs, streambanks, and lake margins. Labrador Tea, Ledum groenlandicum, is often a companion of Douglas Spiraea in bogs.  It can withstand drier periods in areas that are only seasonally wet.  Wetland designation: FACW, It usually occurs in wetlands, but is occasionally found in non-wetlands.

Diagnostic Characters:  This species has oblong to oval leaves that are toothed above the middle.  The undersides of the leaves are paler than the upper sides and are often covered with wooly, gray hairs.  The flowers are purplish-pink clustered in an upright plume or “steeple.”  The fruits are pod-like follicles (dry one-celled seed capsules, which split open one side).

Spiraea douglasii bushIn landscapes: Douglas Spiraea is especially useful in Rain Gardens, but care should be taken not to introduce it to an area where it is likely to overtake other desirable plants.  It is a good choice for revegetation projects along streamsides.  Its attractive purplish-pink flower plumes create a “sea of pink” in “Hardhack bogs” when in bloom.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Phenology:  Bloom time:  July-August; Fruit ripens: September-October.

Propagation:  Douglas Spiraea is easy to start from seed.  Fresh seed does not require stratification; dry seed may require 1-2 months cold stratification.  Douglas Spiraea may also be propagated from stem or root cuttings, or division.  After a fire or burial, it readily sprouts from the stem base and rhizomes. Douglas’ spirea showed extensive rhizome and adventitious root development in tephra after the 1980 Mt. St. Helen’s volcanic eruption.

Use by people: Some natives used Douglas Spiraea for spreading and cooking salmon and for making tools to collect dentalia shells for trade and decoration.  The flowers are can be dried and used in floral arrangements.

Use by Wildlife: Douglas Spiraea is sometimes browsed by Black-tailed Deer.  Flowers are pollinated by insects.  In bogs, it provides cover for many water birds, such as Marsh Wrens, but alternatively may provide good hunting habitat for raptors.

Links:

USDA Plants Database

Consortium of Pacific Northwest Herbaria

WTU Herbarium Image Collection, Plants of Washington, Burke Museum

E-Flora BC, Electronic Atlas of the Flora of British Columbia

Jepson Eflora, University of California

Calphotos

Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center

USDA Forest Service-Fire Effects Information System

Virginia Tech ID Fact Sheet

Plants for a Future Database

Native American Ethnobotany, University of Michigan, Dearborn

Pacific Ninebark. Physocarpus capitatus

Pacific Ninebark                                             The Rose Family–Rosaceae

(Pursh) Kuntze

(Fy-zoe-KAR-pus  kap-ih-TAY-tuss)

Ninebark flowersNames: Physo means bladder, carpus means fruit, referring to the inflated fruits.  Capitatus means having a head, referring to its dense flower or fruit cluster.  Ninebarks are so called because it was believed there are nine layers (or nine strips) of peeling bark on the stems.  In the past it has been lumped in with P. opulifolia, Common Ninebark (an eastern species); along with this species, it was also known as Opulaster capitatus and Neillia opulifolia, Opulaster and opulifolia mean rich in flowers (asters) or in leaves (folia)–they may also refer to its similarity to Viburnum opulus.  Because of its close association to spiraeas, it has also been known as Spiraea capitata.  Western Ninebark is another common name.

Relationships: There are about 8-10 species of Physocarpus, with all but one (which is native to northeastern Asia), are native to North America.

Distribution of Pacific Ninebark from USDA Plants Database

Distribution of Pacific Ninebark from USDA Plants Database

Distribution: Pacific Ninebark is native from Southeast Alaska to the coast ranges of Santa Barbara County in California, mostly in the coastal states and British Columbia.  Its frequency decreases with increasing elevation and eastward progression, with a few found in Alberta and Idaho.

Ninebark

 

 

 

 

 

 

Growth: Pacific Ninebark grows to about 12 feet (4m), sometimes reaching 18 feet (6m) in the wild.  It is moderately short-lived.

Habitat: it is found along streams, in wet meadows, coastal marshes and at the edges of moist woods. Wetland designation: FACW-, It usually occurs in wetlands, but is occasionally found in non-wetlands.

The peeling brown bark on its stems.

The peeling brown bark on its stems.

Diagnostic Characters: Pacific Ninebark is most easily recognized by the brown shredding bark on its branches.  Its toothed leaves are 3-5 lobed, similar to a maple leaf.  At a glance it can easily be confused with salmonberry which has toothed leaves with 3 leaflets.  Its flowers are small and white with yellow centers and pink stamens, tightly packed in a hemispherical cluster.  Its fruits are small, reddish, inflated follicles (dry one-celled seed capsules or pods, which split open one side).

 

 

Pacific Ninebark

 

In the Landscape: Pacific Ninebark is a valuable shrub in a wild garden but could also be used at the back of a shrub bed in a more traditional landscape.  Its attractive buds, white flower clusters and reddish fruit extend its beauty through much of the summer and into fall.  Its eastern cousin, P. opulifolia, has several cultivated varieties with purple or yellowish leaves.

Cluster of red seed capsules.

Cluster of red seed capsules.

 

 

 

 

 

Phenology: Bloom time:  April-June. Fruit ripens: September-October.

Physocarpus capitatus dried seed headsPropagation:  Pacific Ninebark is easy to start from cuttings, or live stakes (direct planting of a cutting into its desired location).  Seed propagation is possible, but much slower.  Fall is the best time to sow the seeds, although many sources state that it does not require a stratification period.

Use by people: The wood of Pacific Ninebark has been used to make small items such as children’s bows and knitting needles.  A tea made from the bark was used as a laxative or to induce vomiting.  Due to toxicity concerns, caution is advised for any internal use.

 

Ninebark flower cluster

Use by wildlife: Mountain Goats have been observed eating Pacific Ninebark.  Its flowers are mostly pollinated by native bees but may also be visited by butterflies.  Tall arching branches and foliage provides cover.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Links:

USDA Plants Database

Consortium of Pacific Northwest Herbaria

WTU Herbarium Image Collection, Plants of Washington, Burke Museum

E-Flora BC, Electronic Atlas of the Flora of British Columbia

Jepson Eflora, University of California

Calphotos

Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center

Virginia Tech ID Fact Sheet

Native Plants Network, Propagation Protocol Database

Native American Ethnobotany, University of Michigan, Dearborn

Indian Plum, Oemleria cerasiformis

Indian Plum                                                          The Rose Family–Rosaceae

Oemleria cerasiformis (Torr. & A. Gray ex Hook & Arn.) Landon

(ohm-LAIR-ee-uh  sir-ASS-ih-form-iss)

Names: The genus is named after Augustus Gottlieb Oemler (1773-1852), a German naturalist from Savannah, Georgia, who was the first to collect the species.  Cerasiformis means cherry-shaped.  The species is also known as Osmaronia cerasiformis or Nuttallia cerasiformis. Osm- is a Greek root meaning “smelly;” aronia is the genus of chokeberries.   Other common names include Osoberry, Oregon Plum, Squaw Plum, Indian Peach, Bird Cherry, and Skunkbush.

Indian Plum leafs out early in Sprin

Indian Plum leafs out early in Sprin

Relationships:  Indian Plum is the only species in the genus Oemleria.  It bears a stone fruit or drupe similar to fruits in the related genus, Prunus which includes plums, cherries, apricots, peaches, and almonds.

Distribution of Indian Plum from USDA Plants Database

Distribution of Indian Plum from USDA Plants Database

Distribution: It is native from the area around Vancouver and Victoria, British Columbia to Santa Barbara County in California on the west slope of the Cascades and Sierra Nevadas.

Growth:  Indian Plum grows 4.5-20 feet (1.5-7m)

Habitat: It grows in dry to moist open woods and streambanks.  Wetland designation: FACU, It usually occurs in non-wetlands, but occasionally is found on wetlands.

 

 

 

 

Indian Plum leavesDiagnostic Characters: Its leaves are bright green in spring, lance-shaped, and entire (not toothed); and smell like cucumber when crushed.  Small, five-lobed flowers are born in drooping clusters, usually appearing before the leaves.  Each flower is white with a green calyx. They are said to have an unusual fragrance Indian Plum flowers“something between watermelon rind and cat urine.”  Others compare it to almonds.  Some sources report that the female flowers have a pleasant fragrance, but the male flowers are unpleasant.  The fruit are like small plums.  Immature fruit is peach-colored, mature fruit is purple or bluish-black.  Since Indian Plum is dioecious, you need to a have a female plant with nearby males for it to bear fruit.  In natural populations, there are usually more males than females, due to a higher mortality of females.  Males often flower at an earlier age than females; females have a slower growth rate.

 

Love the spring green color!

Love the spring green color!

 

 

In the Landscape: No other native shrub ushers in spring as splendidly as Indian Plum with its cheerful greenish-white flower clusters and spring green foliage.  Best in an open woodland garden, its flowers and new foliage brighten up an otherwise dreary late winter day.  Its graceful, arching branches are prettiest in the shade of alders and maple.  Later in the summer it is not as distinctive, blending in with other shrubs, appearing somewhat like a willow.  Because of its thicket-forming, suckering habit, it is not a good choice for a formal garden, but is a great choice for greenbelts and reclamation sites.

In the summer, the leaves are a darker green.

In the summer, the leaves are a darker green.

It is best in a woodland setting.

It is best in a woodland setting.

 

 

 

Phenology: Bloom time:  February-April. Fruit ripens: May-July.

Fruit turns dark purple when ripe.

Fruit turns dark purple when ripe.

Propagation: Soak seeds in water for 24 hours and stratify 120 days at 40º F (4º C).  Softwood or semi-hardwood cuttings may be taken in late summer. Suckers around the base of shrub may be divided in fall or winter.

Use by People: Indian Plums were eaten in small quantities fresh, cooked, or dried by Native Americans.  Flavor of unripe fruit is bitter and astringent, but they become more palatable when they are fully ripe.  Natives also used the twigs and bark for various medicinal uses.  Leaves, seeds and even fruit may contain small quantities of hydrogen cyanide, and should therefore only be consumed in small quantities.

Use by Wildlife: Indian Plums are highly attractive to birds such as cedar waxwings and are also eaten by mammals.  Flowers are pollinated by hummingbirds, butterflies, native bees and other insects.

Links:

USDA Plants Database

Consortium of Pacific Northwest Herbaria

WTU Herbarium Image Collection, Plants of Washington, Burke Museum

E-Flora BC, Electronic Atlas of the Flora of British Columbia

Jepson Eflora, University of California

Calphotos

Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center

Virginia Tech ID Fact Sheet

Native Plants Network, Propagation Protocol Database

Plants for a Future Database

Native American Ethnobotany, University of Michigan, Dearborn