North Carolina Wildflowers, Shrubs, & Trees

by Jeffrey S. Pippen | Back to Jeff's Plant Page | Jeff's Nature Pages


Lauraceae > Sassafras

Sassafras (Sassafras albidum) Sassafras (Sassafras albidum)
Bladen Co., NC
25 Mar 2007

Statewide in North Carolina, Sassagras grows in many different habitats from forests to fields to disturbed roadsides.

Sassafras (Sassafras albidum) Sassafras (Sassafras albidum)
Bladen Co., NC
25 Mar 2007

Sassafras flowers are yellow clusters at the ends of branches and appear before the leaves in the spring.

(Sassafras albidum) Sassafras (Sassafras albidum)
Brunswick Co., NC
4 Oct 2008

Leaf shape is quite variable, as illustrated on this sapling, where leaves may be unlobed or have one or two lobes.

Sassafras (Sassafras albidum) Sassafras (Sassafras albidum)
Scotland Co., NC
20 Apr 2008
Sassafras (Sassafras albidum) Sassafras (Sassafras albidum)
Bladen Co., NC
25 Mar 2007

Sassafras was used for decades to flavor root-beer until research showed that some ingredients in Sassafras may cause cancer.


Annotated habitat and distribution information listed above is from Radford, Ahles, & Bell. 1968. Manual of the Vascular Flora of the Carolinas. UNC Press; Alan Weakley's Flora of the Carolinas, Virginia, and Georgia; and from personal observations and discussions with Will Cook, Harry LeGrand, and Bob Wilbur. Supplemental resources include USDA plants website, and NatureServe.


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Created on ... Mar 30, 2007 | jeffpippen9@gmail.com