North Carolina Wildflowers, Shrubs, & Trees

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

Ericaceae > Lyonia (maleberry, staggerbush, fetterbush)
	Northern Maleberry, He-Huckleberry (Lyonia ligustrina var. ligustrina) Hardwood forest at Falls Lake, Wake Co., NC 24 May 2009 Fairly common in (usually) moist habitats statewide in NC. Inflorescences of var. ligustrina have no or few leafy bracts. Inflorescences of maleberry originate from buds on last year's twigs.
	Northern Maleberry, He-Huckleberry (Lyonia ligustrina var. ligustrina) Hardwood forest at Falls Lake, Wake Co., NC 24 May 2009 Flowers are white, quite small, round (globose), and appear in late spring or early summer.
	Northern Maleberry, He-Huckleberry (Lyonia ligustrina var. ligustrina) Hardwood forest at Falls Lake, Wake Co., NC 24 May 2009 Leaves are elliptic, hairy above and below, and are barely toothed.
	Northern Maleberry, He-Huckleberry (Lyonia ligustrina var. ligustrina) Hardwood forest at Falls Lake, Wake Co., NC 24 May 2009 Note appressed hairs, lack of glands, and mucronate tip.
	Northern Maleberry, He-Huckleberry (Lyonia ligustrina var. ligustrina) Hardwood forest at Falls Lake, Wake Co., NC 24 May 2009 Underside of leaf.
	Northern Maleberry, He-Huckleberry (Lyonia ligustrina var. ligustrina) Hardwood forest at Falls Lake, Wake Co., NC 24 May 2009 Current-year twig.
	Northern Maleberry, He-Huckleberry (Lyonia ligustrina var. ligustrina) Hardwood forest at Falls Lake, Wake Co., NC 24 May 2009 Older bark detail.

Fetter-Bush (Lyonia lucida)
Brunswick Co., NC
4/24/2004

Common in the NC coastal plain.

	Staggerbush (Lyonia mariana) Pender Co., NC 23 Apr 2006 Common in sandy woods in the coastal plain and eastern piedmont of NC, the leaves of this shrub are toxic and have been noted to cause sheep, cattle, and horses to stagger and fall after being eaten.
	Staggerbush (Lyonia mariana) Pender Co., NC 23 Apr 2006

Annotated habitat and distribution information listed above is from Radford, Ahles, & Bell. 1968. Manual of the Vascular Flora of the Carolinas. UNC Press; and from personal observations and discussions with Will Cook, Harry LeGrand, and Bob Wilbur. Common names from personal experience and supplemented by the following resources USDA plants website, Flora of the Carolinas, Virginia, and Georgia, and NatureServe.

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Created on May 7, 2006 | jeffpippen9@gmail.com

North Carolina Wildflowers, Shrubs, & Trees

Ericaceae > Lyonia (maleberry, staggerbush, fetterbush)