Multiflora Rose

Posted on December 11, 2021 by admin

Multiflora Rose (Rosa multiflora) was first recorded as an escape in 1934. Imported from eastern China, Japan and Korea, it was widely planted in southern Michigan. Conservation groups encouraged growing it as late as the 1970s as “wildlife plantings” for cover and food. This was before they understood its invasive tendencies.

Multiflora Rose is a large shrub with arching branches that often tip root. Alternate, compound leaves remain green late in the season. They have seven or more leaflets. At the base of each leaf is a fringed stipule. Our native roses never have fringed stipules. The leaf stalks and the flower stalks are glandular.

Multiflora Rose (Rosa multiflora) Leaf with fringed stipules.

Multiflora Rose (Rosa multiflora) (Note the glands of the flowers and stipules and also the fringed stipules on the right.)

Flowers have five petals and are white. They occur in large clusters and the styles form a column. Many of our native roses have larger, pink flowers.

Native Roses: Prickly Wild Rose (Rosa acicularis) l-c Smooth Wild Rose (R. blanda) r (Note the fringeless stipules.)

Multiflora Rose (Rosa multiflora) Winter twig and fruit.

The fruit often remains on the shrub through the winter. Winter buds are blunt, reddish, and glabrous. Twigs have sharp, recurved, thorns.

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Black Alder (Alnus glutinosa) in Michigan

Posted on March 15, 2021 by admin

Black Alder (Alnus glutinosa) is naturally found in Europe and North Africa. It is planted in Michigan as far north as Baraga Co. so it could spread throughout the state. Currently, it is recorded from the southern half of the Lower Peninsula.

Black Alder Left and Center Speckled Alder Right

Black Alder is a small tree with usually a single trunk. Its leaves are about as wide as they are long and have a notched tip. They remain green into December in southern Michigan. Dark gray to black bark with squarish plates identify this species. Leaf buds start out green and turn purple in the winter. It is difficult to distinguish this species by bud and twig characters. In the winter I use its growth habit and I look for leaves on the ground.

Speckled Alder (Alnus incana) is normally a multi-stemmed shrub. When it reaches tree size, its bark is tight and gray with large lenticels. Leaves are 1.5 to 2 times longer than wide with acute tips. Leaf buds are dark-reddish brown, and it takes some practice to separate this species from Black Alder using only the twigs. If this species is considered distinct from the European alder, then its scientific name is Alnus rugosa.

Black Alder should be watched for throughout the state. It should be reported wherever you find it at the Midwest Invasive Species Network (MISIN). They also have a free app for reporting observations.

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Michigan Elderberries

Posted on July 13, 2020 by admin

Michigan has two species of Elderberries. Both are native. Elderberries are shrubs with opposite, compound leaves that have more than five leaflets. Bladdernut (Staphylea trifolia) is our only other opposite-leaved shrub with compound leaves; it has three finely-toothed leaflets.

Common Elderberry (Sambucus canadensis) flowers in early summer and the fruits ripen in the fall. Flower clusters are flat. The mature fruit is almost black. The twig is covered with white lenticels, the pith of second year twigs is white, and it has small winter buds about twice as long as wide. Normally some of the leaves will have more than seven leaflets. This is the species to make jelly (and wine) from.

Red Elderberry or Red-berried Elder (S. racemosa) flowers in spring and the fruits ripen in the summer. Flower clusters are elongated. The mature fruit is red. The twig is covered with orange lenticels, the pith of second year twigs is dark brown, and it has large, globular winter buds. Normally the leaves will have seven or fewer leaflets.

Both of our Elderberries are common shrubs and should become familiar to anyone who studies nature in Michigan.

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Hop-tree: A Michigan Citrus

Posted on January 16, 2019 by admin

I was asked to identify a fruiting elm shrub. It was actually a Hop-tree or Wafer-ash (Ptelea trifoliate). Ptelea is the ancient Greek word for elms. The fruit resembles a large elm fruit (1.9 to 2.5 cm [3/4 to 1 inch] in diameter) but the veins of the wings are more pronounced than an elm and are continuous, not notched as an elm is. They have been used as substitutes for hops in beer brewing.

The leaves are compound with three leaflets and are entire or sometimes with fine teeth. They are alternate which helps to distinguish it from the opposite-leaved Bladdernut (Staphylea trifolia) if one only has the leaves.

The greenish-white flowers appear with the leaves. They are small for a flower that is insect pollinated but their aroma attracts insects. I do not care for the aroma but some people think it resembles lime.

The slender twigs have short, stubby hairs. Buds are hidden under a membrane but expand and break through it in late winter. The leaf scar almost surrounds the bud and has three vascular bundle scars. The terminal bud is absent.

Hop-tree is a member of the Citrus Family (Rutaceae). Our other native citrus is prickly-ash (Zanthoxylum americanum). Hop-tree is found in southern Michigan. Keep an eye out for it this winter. It holds its seeds so it can easily be identified. Look for it in southern Michigan on the sand dunes of Lake Michigan, or in open sandy fields, and also along rivers.

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Michigan Holly

Posted on December 28, 2018 by admin

Michigan Holly habit

Recently a friend showed me a photo of a red-berried shrub she did not know. It was Michigan Holly (Ilex verticilata). If you are not from Michigan, you probably call this Winterberry or Black-alder. It can be showy this time of year with bright red berries (drupes) on dark bare branches. It grows in wet areas but not standing water. It likes to have its roots dry out a little each year.

Michigan Holly flowers male L female R

Michigan Holly flowers when the leaves are fully developed. Male and female flowers occur on different shrubs. They are insect pollinated. Flowers are whitish with a tinge of yellow or green. Although small, I find them attractive.

Michigan Holly leaves with fruit L winter twig -R

The leaves are stalked, coarsely toothed, broadest at the middle, two or three times longer than wide, and have a pointed tip. Their upper surface is dark green, darker than most other species.

Michigan Holly fruit

The bright red fruit is technically called a drupe. Drupes have stony pits surrounded by soft flesh. Cherries are drupes. It is short stalked and persists into winter. Wildlife feed on them. I have seen wintering robins strip a shrub in an hour.

Mountain Holly

Mountain Holly (Ilex mucronata) is our other native holly. It has leaves that are entire (toothless), bright pink or purple fruit on long stalks, and normally grows as a single trunk. This has been called Nemopanthus mucronatus.

American Holly

American Holly (Ilex opaca) is our typical Christmas holly. It is native south of Michigan but is now escaping into forests in southern Michigan. Unlike our native holly species this one is evergreen, but its leaves sometimes dry out in the winter.

You can find Michigan Holly by driving rural roads. The bright red fruit is evident from a distance, especially on a sunny day. Get out and look for it.

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Sweet Gale: an often overlooked shrub

Posted on May 14, 2018 by admin

Sweet Gale leaves and staminate buds

Sweet Gale (Myrica gale) is one of our earliest flowering shrubs. It blooms in April or early May in northern Michigan along with the Willows (Salix spp.) and soft maples. Its leaf buds are small on brownish-red, shiny, stems. Staminate (male) flower buds are larger, cigar shaped, and at the branch tips. Staminate flowers form catkins 20-25mm [3/4-1 inch] long. Their triangular scales are covered with fragrant resinous dots. I think the catkins resemble small Viking horns. Pistillate (female) catkins are red to brown and their divided, threadlike, stigmas remind me of an artist’s brush. It flowers before the leaves appear. Plants are dioecious meaning pistillate and staminate flowers are on different shrubs. Wind pollinates this plant.

Sweet Gale staminate flowers

Sweet Gale pistillate flowers – L Upper surface of leaves showing glands – R

The leaves appear after the flowers in an alternate arrangement (one leaf at each node). They are simple, oblanceolate (wedge-shaped, broadest near the leaf tip) with a few fine teeth near the tip and very fragrant. If you brush your hand against the leaves it will pick up the fragrance. The upper and lower leaf surfaces are dotted with golden glands.

Sweet Gale leaves and seed heads

Sweet Gale is a low shrub, seldom taller than 1.5m [5 feet] growing in low areas or on banks of streams and ponds. It likes to have its roots inundated by water in the springtime. It is common in Michigan north of Saginaw. Get out and look for it while it is still blooming. Most people walk by this shrub without paying it any attention.

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Labrador-tea

Posted on April 4, 2018 by admin

Labrador-tea L – Flower Bud R – seed capsules

Labrador-tea (Rhododendron groenlandicum) is an evergreen shrub growing in sunny acidic locations. It prefers wet locations. I recently visited a location and observed it in its winter condition. Its evergreen leaves shrivel up to conserve moisture. They are revolute meaning the margins curl under the leaf blade. The young leaves have white woolly hairs that turn rusty–brown with age. A large terminal flower bud appeared on most branches with a small lateral leaf bud. Seed capsules were still present and will persist for several years. They are unique in the way they split, starting from the base and opening upward.

Labrador-tea leaves showing woolly hairs and curled leaf margins

One of my favorite sights in early summer is the white flowers of Labrador-tea along the edge of a bog. They bloom in terminal clusters, held high above the leaves. Insects pollinate them and often they are visited by solitary bees.

Labrador-tea in bloom

Labrador-tea is common in the Upper Peninsula and the Northern Lower Peninsula. It was known as Ledum groenlandicum. Because it easily hybridizes with other Rhododendrons in cultivation it should not be in its own genus.

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Review: “Michigan Shrubs & Vines”

Posted on September 17, 2016 by admin

The University of Michigan Press recently released Michigan Shrubs & Vines: A Guide to Species of the Great Lakes Region by Burton Barnes, Christopher Dick, and Melanie Gunn. This is a companion volume to Michigan Trees by Burton Barnes and Warren Wagner.

Species accounts are similar to the ones in Michigan Trees. Two pages for each species with a page describing size and form, bark, leaves, stems-twigs, winter buds, flowers, fruit and distribution. The section on site-habitat shows that the authors know these plants in the field. A notes section contains interesting tidbits that might include: growth habits, origin of common and scientific names, world distribution, or uses by Native Americans. A second page shows line drawings of the shrub and its key characters. I applaud the authors decision to use drawings instead of photographs. The selected drawings show the key characters and are excellent. Not every shrub is treated at this level. Some are only mentioned under the heading similar species.

From the species accounts I learned that Leatherleaf (Chamaedaphne calyculata) occurs in bogs in Japan. That Bearberry (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi) seeds “may remain viable in the soil for decades.” Also, that there are 58,000 Bearberry seeds to the pound. Wintergreen (Gaultheria procumbens) contains “methyl salicylate, closely related to the main ingredient in aspirin.” Leatherwood’s (Dirca palustris) fruit is correctly described as “pale green to yellowish-green when ripe.” Many guidebooks get this wrong stating it is purple or dark red which the fruit becomes if dried or rotting.

Michigan Shrubs and Vines contains a set of workable keys (and a section on how to use them including line drawings of many of the plant parts). The keys stress vegetative characters and allow identification without flowers and most of the time without fruit. I ran a dozen species through the keys and they worked flawlessly.

The final section of the book is headed “Ecology of Shrubs and Vines.” It distills some of Burt Barnes’ insights regarding ecology in a manner that laypersons will understand. This section alone is worth the price of the book. Shrub reproduction strategies, climate change, specific site factors, and Michigan’s four regional landscape ecosystems are among the topics discussed.

This book will allow you to identify Michigan’s shrubs and vines and then place them into the bigger ecological picture. It can be ordered from the University of Michigan Press and should be in the library of every naturalist in Michigan.

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Michigan’s Mistletoe

Posted on May 8, 2016 by admin

Dwarf Mistletoe witch’s brooms

Dwarf Mistletoe (Arceuthobium pusillum) is a parasitic flowering plant found on Black Spruce (Picea mariana) and rarely on other evergreens. It is related to southern Christmas Mistletoe (Phoradendron leucarpum). I learned about Dwarf Mistletoe from Billington’s Shrubs of Michigan when I was a boy. He writes, “To include such a little, inconspicuous plant among the shrubs may be stretching things too far. But it is a shrub, and to discover it may provide the discoverer with a greater thrill than locating many of the larger and more conspicuous plants.” I have looked for this species for decades, never being certain that I found it. It often forms distorted branches termed “witch’s brooms.” Fungi and insects also cause these growths. I looked at the witch’s brooms in this colony before and I was never sure what the cause of their abnormal growth was. When I saw the flowers for the first time last weekend, I knew exactly what they were. I have never walked into Diane’s Bog this early in the growing season.

Male Dwarf Mistletoe flowers

Dwarf Mistletoe is one of our first species to flower. It flowers at the same time as Red Maple (Acer rubrum). I found 16 Black Spruce hosts. Male and female Mistletoe grew on separate hosts. The flowers are 10mm (3/8 inch) high but each host had many blooms. The species is insect pollinated; however, I observed no pollinators at work. Mistletoe does damage or kill host trees.

Female Dwarf Mistletoe flowers

Billington was right, it was thrilling. I seldom find native plant species that I have not seem before. My pulse quickened. I stood and stared at the plant for several minutes, forgetting my cold feet. My sense of wonder renewed. I found the male (staminate) plants first and then looked for the more inconspicuous female (pistillate) plants. I returned an hour later and the sunlight was reaching the plants. I spent several hours just photographing and studying the plants. What a memorable day. You never know what you will find when you go out into nature and look.

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Our Native Buckthorn

Posted on January 3, 2016 by admin

Alder-leaved Buckthorn

Michigan has a native Buckthorn, Alder-leaved Buckthorn (Rhamnus alnifolia). It normally grows in fens and is seldom found in dry habitats. It is similar to the invasive Common Buckthorn (R. cathartica) but the two species are easy to tell apart.

Alder-leaved Buckthorn showing stipules and leaf characters

Alder-leaved Buckthorn is normally shorter than 1m [3 feet] tall. Its toothed leaves are strictly alternate with 5 to 9 veins per side and are more pointed at the tips than Common Buckthorn. The leaves have stipules at the base of the petioles; however, they are sometimes missing late in the growing season. The flowers lack petals. The petal-like structures are sepals. Sepals are the covering of flower buds; petals are found inside the bud. There are 5 sepals and 5 stamens on each flower. The flowers, and hence the fruits, are in small groups, less than 3 in a cluster.

Alder-leaved Buckthorn flowers, immature fruit, and ripe fruit

Common Buckthorn can reach the size of a small tree. Its toothed leaves can vary from alternate, to sub-opposite, to opposite, on the same branch. Its flowers are 4-parted with both sepals and petals. Flower and fruit clusters are large, seldom as few as 3in a cluster. The branch tips are normally spine tipped and spines can often be found on the along the main trunk.

Glossy Buckthorn (Frangula alnus) is a wetland invasive species but has non-toothed leaves. Its veins are 6 to 9 per side. It has 5 sepals and 5 petals on each flower. The leaf buds are tan pubescent (covered with dense short hairs).

If you are removing invasive buckthorn you should know this native species. One site in Oakland County was almost destroyed by over-zealous invasive species hunters who did not realize that the invasive Common Buckthorn did not grow into the fen at the bottom of the hill.
Copyright 2016 by Donald Drife

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The Michigan Nature Guy’s Blog

To get people looking at, enjoying, and understanding the natural world around them.

Category Archives: Michigan Shrubs

Multiflora Rose

Black Alder (Alnus glutinosa) in Michigan

Michigan Elderberries

Hop-tree: A Michigan Citrus

Michigan Holly

Sweet Gale: an often overlooked shrub

Labrador-tea

Review: “Michigan Shrubs & Vines”

Michigan’s Mistletoe

Our Native Buckthorn