05 November 2021.
Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States
Locality: Plants growing in woodlands along a small unnamed creek corridor dumping into the Middle Branch White Clay Creek in Goddard Park, West Grove Pennsylvania, off of Wickerton Road, Chester County.
Coordinates: 39.8046, -75.8289
(Map it)
Elevation: 102m.
Habitat: Wild Habitat
Environment description: Plants are growing in a range of habitats from drier upland woods to moist creekside settings of deciduous woodlands that drain toward the Middle Branch White Clay Creek. Plants grow in part shade to high understory shade with dappled to indirect direct sunlight. Plants achieve their largest size and fruiting potential in part sun of the riparian zone of the creek where woodland canopy is thinner. Soils: Soils found in the areas where this collection was made are comprised primarily of flood plain Hatboro silt loam (Ha) and well-drained, upland Glenelg silt loam, 8 to 15 percent slopes (GgC). Hatboro silt loam consists of very deep and poorly drained soils formed in deposited alluvium derived from metamorphic and crystalline rock. They are on flood plains. Slopes range from 0 to 3 percent. Glenelg silt loam, 8 to 15 percent slopes consists of very deep, well drained soils formed in residuum weathered from micaceous schist on uplands of the Blue Ridge and the Northern Piedmont. This soil is undifferentiated, mostly poorly drained sandy bottomland soils intermingled with decomposing organic litter and eroded silts and clays due to erosion. Slope: 0 to 15% Aspect: Variable.
Number of plants sampled: 30
Associated species: Fagus grandifolia; Lindera benzoin; Carya glabra; Liriodendron tulipifera; Viburnum acerifolium; Cornus alternifolia; Maianthemum racemosum; Viburnum dentatum; Carex pensylvanica; Actaea racemosa; Carpinus caroliniana; Juglans nigra; Smilax glabra; Polystichum acrostichoides; Toxicodendron radicans; Acer rubrum; Smilax rotundifolia; Asarum canadense; Collinsonia canadensis; Fraxinus americana; Vitis riparia; Ilex verticillata; Quercus rubra; Osmundastrum cinnamomeum; Athyrium felix-femina; Phytolacca americana; Platanus occidentalis; Nyssa sylvatica; Rubus hispidus; Eurybia divaricata; Acer negundo; Ageratina altissima; Polemonium reptans; Chionanthus virginicus; Boehmeria cylindrica; Ulmus americana; Onoclea sensibilis Penthorum sedoides; Circaea canadensis; Echinocystis lobata; Sanguinaria canadensis; Malus angustifolia; Vitis vulpina; Persicaria pennsylvanica; Sambucus canadensis; Betula lenta; Alliaria petiolata; Lonicera japonica; Callicarpa dichotoma; Acer platanoides; Euonymus alata; Rosa multiflora; Berberis thunbergia; Pyrus calleryana; Celastrus orbiculatus; Prunus avium; Paulownia tomentosa; Rubus phoenicolasius; Morus alba; Duchesnia indica; Elaeagnus umbellata; Lonicera maackii; Microstegium vimineum.
Comment: Plants are multi-stemmed, deciduous upright spreading trees to suckering shrubs, often producing one to several main trunks to 15 cm+ diameter. Mature plants regularly reach 3 to 6 meters tall and wide. Fleshy fruits with a single seed are borne terminally on branches in large clusters, typically 5-20 fruits per cyme. Fruits are elongate-cylindrical and dark purple-black when fully mature and approximately 8-12 mm in diameter; at maturity, the fruiting cymes often turn red. Leaves are opposite, entire and thin. Leaves are ovate, ranging in size from 7.5-10 cm long.
Collector(s):