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Northeast Wetland Flora

Field Office Guide to Plant Species

Alder-leaf Buckthorn
Rhamnus alnifolia L'Her.

JPG -- Species Photo JPG -- Distribution Map

Family: Buckthorn (Rhamnaceae)
Flowering: May-July
Field Marks: This shrubby species is the only buckthorn that has separate male and female flowers usually on separate plants, no petals, and 5 sepals.
Habitat: Low woods, wet meadows, swamps, bogs, fens.
Habit: Shrub to 2 1/2 feet tall, the branches forking and upright.
Stems: Twigs slender, red or brown, finely hairy; buds ovoid, up to 1/4 inch long; leaf scars half-round, slightly elevated, with 3 bundle traces.
Leaves: Alternate, simple, elliptic to oval, rounded to pointed at the tip, rounded or tapering to the base, finely toothed, smooth or nearly so, up to 4 inches long, up to 2 inches wide; leaf stalks slender, smooth.
Flowers: 1-3 in the axils of the leaves, the male and female usually borne separately and on different plants.
Sepals: 5, united below to form a bell, the lobes triangular, pointed, smooth.
Petals: 0.
Stamens: 5, free from each other and not attached to the sepals.
Pistils: Ovary superior; styles usually 4.
Fruits: Drupes spherical, black, up to 1/4 inch in diameter, with 3 seeds; seeds flat, shallowly grooved.
Notes: The fleshy fruits are eaten by birds.

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Page Last Modified: Saturday, 02-Feb-2013 06:16:00 EST
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