14 November 2023.
Charleston County, South Carolina, United States
Locality: Francis Marion National Forest: plants growing in wetlands/swamps on US Forest Service Road 223 approximately 0.57 kilometers southeast from the junction with Halfway Creek Road.
Coordinates: 33.0678, -79.6775
(Map it)
Elevation: 11m.
Georeference protocol: Lat/lon determined by GPS
Habitat: Wild Habitat
Environment description: Plants are growing in part shade to shade of a swamp in seasonally inundated acidic wetland habitat. Slope: N/A. Aspect: N/A. The underlying geology of this area is of Pleistocene origin and characterized as an Socastee Formation. This is a low coastal formation in the Carolinas like Penholoway but younger and lower in altitude. It is comprised primarily of unconsolidated, fine-detrital clay. It is described as variegated quartzose sands, argillaceous sands, and clays, 5 m thick at the type section near Socastee Swamp. (Source: USGS South Carolina Geologic Map Data.) The primary soil type in this collection area is classified as Rutlege Series loamy fine sand. Rutlege Series soils are very deep, very poorly drained soils that are sandy, siliceous, thermic Typic Humaquepts. Upper strata soils (0-38 cm) are black loamy sand with weak medium granular structure. They are loose and very strongly acid. Lower strata (38-175 cm) range from dark gray to dark brown sand that is single grained, loose, and very strongly acid. (Source: NRCS Web Soil Survey.)
Number of plants sampled: 1
Associated species: Arundinaria tecta; Liquidambar styraciflua; Smilax laurifolia; Nekemias arborea (listed as Ampelopsis arborea); Acer rubrum; Viburnum dentatum; Clethra alnifolia; Gordonia lasianthus; Cephalanthus occidentalis; Persea palustris; Magnolia virginiana; Pinus taeda; Leucothoe axillaris; Ilex coriacea; Vitis rotundifolia (listed as Muscadinia rotundifolia); Morella cerifera; Woodwardia areolata; Gelsemium sempervirens; Vaccinium corymbosum; Ilex myrtifolia; Taxodium distichum; Quercus laurifolia; Itea virginica; Hydrangea barbara (listed as Decumaria barbara); Pontederia cordata; Chamaecyparis thyoides; Lyonia lucida; Hypericum sp.; Smilax walteri; Aronia arbutifolia; Baccharis halimifolia; Cornus foemina (listed as Swida foemina); Hydrocotyle verticillata; Ilex glabra; Carex sp.; Viburnum nudum; Nyssa aquatica.
Comment: This species is a dioecious, single-stemmed (occasionally multi-stemmed), broadleaved evergreen tree with an upright pyramidal habit. Older specimens become loose and open with an upright spreading, slightly pyramidal habit. Fruiting trees at this site ranged from 5-8 m tall and 13 m wide. The bark of mature trees is light grey and smooth. Leaves are alternate, simple, and evergreen, generally ovate to broadly ovate; leaves typically have 4-6 spines on each side of the leaf (occasionally almost entire). Leaves are medium green and not shiny; they range from 5-10 cm long x 2-3 cm wide. The fruit are drupe-like berries ripening in the autumn; they are round to ellipsoidal shaped, 6-12 mm in diameter, and dull reddish-orange to red color. Plants are occasional at this site. Seeds collected from one plant.
Collector(s):