Trees of Alabama and the Southeast Home Page

 Leaves are simple, opposite, deciduous, elliptical to ovate, about 6 inches long, with smooth margins and gray-downy pubescence below.   Twigs are maroon-brown with lenticels and raised U-shaped leaf scars.  Bark is brown to gray with lenticels.   Flowers are red-maroon and usually fragrant. Fruit is a nutlet enclosed in a leathery sac.  Sweetshrub is usually a shrub or small tree found on a fertile soils in the east and central U.S.

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All text and photographs are intended for educational purposes only and are not for commercial use in any form.  All photographs are copyrighted by the named photographer(s), text copyright by Lisa Samuelson. © 2005, all rights reserved. Photographs by Mike Hogan.