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Calycanthus floridus

(Bubby Bush)

Overview

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Interesting Facts

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Common Names

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Common Names in English:

Bubby Bush, Carolina Allspice, Carolina-Allspice, Common Sweetshrub, Eastern Sweetshrub, Pineapple Shrub, Spicebush, Strawberry Shrub, Strawberry-Shrub, Sweet Betsy, Sweet Shrub, Sweetshrub

Description

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Family Calycanthaceae

Shrubs , deciduous, rhizomatous , aromatic . Leaves opposite, without stipules, petiolate . Leaf blade : margins entire or, on fast-growing shoots , occasionally with a few teeth. Inflorescences terminal on short, leafy branches of current growth, solitary flowers. Flowers bisexual . Hypanthium urn-shaped; tepals and stamens perigynous; inner tepals, stamens, and staminodes with succulent, white food bodies at tips . Tepals 15-30, fleshy , petaloid , spirally inserted on outside of hypanthium. Stamens 5-30, spirally inserted at top of hypanthium; staminodes 10-25, on inner surface of hypanthium; locules opening by longitudinal slits. Pistils 5-35, 1-carpellate, spirally inserted within hypanthium; ovules 2 per locule, distal ovule abortive, submarginal ; style elongate , filiform ; stigma dry, decurrent. Fruits achenes, 1-35, dark reddish brown, cylindric , pubescent , enclosed within enlarged, fibrous persistent hypanthium (pseudocarp) . Seeds : endosperm absent.

Genera 3, species 6 (1 genus, 2 species in the flora ) : temperate North America and China.

Calycanthus is often grown ornamentally. Also in cultivation is Chimonanthus praecox (Linnaeus) Link, an eastern Asiatic shrub. Chimonanthus differs from Calycanthus in its scaly buds and yellow flowers that appear long before the leaves.

Calycanthus contains calycanthine, an alkaloid similar to strychnine, and it is toxic to humans and livestock (W. H. Lewis and M. P. F. Elvin-Lewis 1977) .[1]

Genus Calycanthus

Twigs quadrangular to nearly terete , pubescent to glabrous . Buds naked. Leaves 2-ranked. Leaf blade elliptic , ovate , or ovate-lanceolate; surfaces adaxially scabrous . Flowers maroon or reddish brown, rarely greenish or green-tipped, with strawberry or pineapple scent. x = 11.

Species 3: temperate North America.[2]

Physical Description

Species Calycanthus floridus

Shrubs , to 3.5 m. Lateral bud partially hidden by petiole base . Petiole 3-10 mm, pubescent to glabrous . Leaf blade elliptic , broadly elliptic, oblong , or ovate , 5-15 × 2-6 cm, base acute to truncate , apex acute, acuminate, or blunt ; surfaces abaxially green or glaucous, pubescent to glabrous. Flowers : hypanthium cylindric , ellipsoid , pyriform , or globose at maturity, 2-6 × 1-3 cm; tepals oblong-elliptic to obovate-lanceolate, 2-4 cm × 3-8 mm, apex acute; stamens 10-20, oblong. 2 n = 22, 33. [source]

ID Features: Foliage aromatic when crushed. Maroon, multi-tepal flowers in summer. Fragrant flowers. Persistent urn-shaped fruits; distinctive. Buds are densely brown-hairy and surrounded by shelf-like leaf scars.

Habit: Round , deciduous shrub , typically broader than tall. Upright spreading to irregular branching. In full sun it is dense and rounded . In shade it is more loose , open and irregular.

Flowers: Blooms May through July. Flowers a dark, chocolate brown to maroon. Up to 2" across. Comprised of numerous tepals. Not as showy in bloom as one might expect. Spicy fragrance, especially in the evening. • Bloom Period: March, April, May. • Flower Color: Red • Flower Conspicuous: Slipper shaped, brown tinged

Seeds: Fruit: Balloon or urn-shaped, tan capsules. Persist into winter after ripening in October. About 2" to 3" long. Wrinkled surface.

Foliage: Glossy, clove-like scent when crushed • Foliage Shape: OvalNormal foliage color: Green • Underside foliage: Gray • Juvenile foliage: Green • Mature foliage: Green • New foliage: Green • Spring foliage: Green • Summer foliage: Opposite leaf arrangement . 2" to 5" long. Ovate to elliptical with acute tip . Dark green color. Fragrant when crushed. • Fall foliage: Can be yellow green. Usually nothing to write home about. • Winter foliage: Green

Size/Age/Growth

Growth Rate: Moderate. • Size: 4 to 10 ft . tall, 5 to 8 ft. wide.

Landscaping

Landscape Uses: Specimen. Shrub border . Woods edge . Foundation plant. For aromatic flowers. • Liabilities: A favorite target of rabbits. Can become leggy in shade. Generally insect and disease free . • Care: Follow a regular watering schedule during the first growing season to establish a deep, extensive root system . Watering can be reduced after establishment. Feed with a general purpose fertilizer before new growth begins in spring .

Habitat

Zone 5.

Typically found at an altitude of 0 to 1,338 meters (0 to 4,390 feet).[3]

Biology

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Growth

Culture: Full sun is best, but tolerant of partial shade. Likes moist, rich soils best. Soil pH adaptable. Prune after flowering. May need renewal pruning if it becomes leggy .

Soil: Minimum pH: 6.1 • Maximum pH: 7.5

Sunlight: Sun Exposure: Thrives in either full sun or shade.

Moisture: Water Requirements: Water regularly, when top 3 in. of soil is dry.

Temperature: Heat Zones: High: 9 (>120 to 150 days) Low:1 (< 1 days) (map) • Cold Hardiness: 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b. (map)

Taxonomy

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Synonyms

Butneria florida (L.) Kearney

Notes

Publishing author : L. Publication : Syst. Nat., ed. 10. 2: 1053, 1066, 1371 1759 [7 Jun 1759]

Similar Species

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Members of the genus Calycanthus

ZipcodeZoo has pages for 13 species, subspecies, varieties, forms, and cultivars in this genus:

C. brockiana (Brock Sweetshrub) · C. chinensis (Chinese Allspice) · C. floridus (Bubby Bush) · C. floridus L. var. floridus (Eastern Sweetshrub) · C. floridus L. var. glaucus (Willd.) Torr. and A.Gray (Eastern Sweetshrub) · C. floridus var. floridus (Eastern Sweetshrub) · C. floridus var. glaucus (Eastern Sweetshrub) · C. floridus 'Athens' (Bubby Bush) · C. floridus 'Edith Wilder' (Carolina Allspice) · C. floridus 'Michael Lindsey' (Common Sweetshrub) · C. occidentalis (California Allspice) · C. raulstonii 'Hartlage Wine' (Eastern Sweetshrub) · C. raulstonii 'Venus' (Eastern Sweetshrub)

More Info

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Further Reading

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Notes

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Contributors

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal November 18, 2007:

Identifiers

Footnotes

  1. George P. Johnson "Calycanthaceae". in Flora of North America Vol. 3. Oxford University Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]
  2. "Calycanthus". in Flora of North America Vol. 3. Oxford University Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]
  3. Mean = 263.920 meters (865.879 feet), Standard Deviation = 233.670 based on 348 observations. Altitude information for each observation from British Oceanographic Data Centre. [back]
Last Revised: 7/16/2012