Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Magnoliids: Laurales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (2/8/20):
Camphora officinarum
FAMILY
Lauraceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Check out EDDMapS.org to see where this has been reported.
Read more about Camphortree at Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Cinnamomum camphora
FAMILY
Lauraceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH (INVALID NAME) Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Camphora camphora
COMMON NAME:
Camphortree
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
)
JK Marlow jkm150301_801
March Charleston County SC
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JK Marlow jkm150301_802
March Charleston County SC
Leaves glabrous, long-petioled, spicy-aromatic when crushed, per Woody Plants of the Southeastern US: A Winter Guide (Lance, 2004).
)
JK Marlow jkm150301_805b
March Charleston County SC
Leaf margins entire, yellowish-green, and wavy, per A Field Guide for the Identification of Invasive Plants in Southern Forests (Miller, Chambliss, & Lowenstein, 2010).
)
JK Marlow jkm150301_805c
March Charleston County SC
Buds 1.2cm long, sharp-pointed, with overlapping scales, per A Field Guide for the Identification of Invasive Plants in Southern Forests (Miller, Chambliss, & Lowenstein, 2010).
)
James H. Miller, USDA Forest Service, Bugwood.org bug_5421916
June
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James H. Miller, USDA Forest Service, Bugwood.org bug_5421918
October
Many fleshy dangling drupes, turning black with a funnel-shaped green base, per A Field Guide for the Identification of Invasive Plants in Southern Forests (Miller, Chambliss, & Lowenstein, 2010).
)
James H. Miller, USDA Forest Service, Bugwood.org bug_5421917
November
Bark brownish, fissured, per Woody Plants of the Southeastern US: A Winter Guide (Lance, 2004).
)
James H. Miller, USDA Forest Service, Bugwood.org bug_1539078
Month Unknown
Twigs green, glabrous, aromatic, per Woody Plants of the Southeastern US: A Winter Guide (Lance, 2004).
)
Forest and Kim Starr, Starr Environmental, Bugwood.org bug_5284094
Month Unknown
)
T. Davis Sydnor, The Ohio State University, Bugwood.org bug_5497873
Month Unknown SC
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (2/8/20):
Camphora officinarum
FAMILY
Lauraceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Cinnamomum camphora
FAMILY
Lauraceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH (INVALID NAME)
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Camphora camphora
330
Tree
Perennial
Habitat: Disturbed areas, suburban woodlands, increasingly in natural forests, per Weakley's Flora
Non-native: east Asia
Click here to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
Click here to see a map showing all occurrences known to SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria. (Zoom in to see more detail.)
This plant is causing problems in natural areas outside its native range, according to authorities such as:
- Alabama Invasive Plant Council, 2012
- Georgia Exotic Pest Plant Council, 2006
- SC Exotic Pest Plant Council, 2014
- US Fish & Wildlife Service
- US Forest Service Southern Research Station
LEAVES:
Evergreen
Simple
Alternate
Petioles to 1" long
FLOWER:
Spring
Greenish-white/ Yellowish
Bisexual
3-merous
6 tepals?
9 stamens, 3 staminodes
Superior ovary
FRUIT:
Summer/Fall
Bluish-black
Drupe
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Invasive Plants, Guide to Identification, Impacts and Control (Kaufman & Kaufman, 2007) p051
- A Field Guide for the Identification of Invasive Plants in Southern Forests (Miller, Chambliss, & Lowenstein, 2010) p006
- Native Trees of the Southeast, An Identification Guide (Kirkman, Brown, & Leopold, 2007) p348
- Trees of the Southeastern United States (Duncan & Duncan, 1988) p212
- Woody Plants of the Southeastern US: A Winter Guide (Lance, 2004) p102