''Rhododendron menziesii'', also classified as ''Menziesia ferruginea'',
[ is a species of flowering plant in the heath family Ericaceae, known by several common names, including rusty menziesia, false huckleberry, fool's huckleberry and mock azalea.
]
Description
''Rhododendron menziesii'' is a mostly erect or spreading shrub often exceeding in height, and reaching lower heights at higher elevations.[
Its branches are coated in thin, scaly, shreddy bark and its twigs with fine glandular hairs.
The alternately arranged ]deciduous
In the fields of horticulture and botany, the term deciduous () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed Leaf, leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...
leaves are oval in shape with pointed tips, reaching 4 to 6 centimeters long. The leaves are hairy, glandular, and sticky in texture, and have an unpleasant skunk
Skunks are mammals in the family Mephitidae. They are known for their ability to spray a liquid with a strong, unpleasant scent from their anal glands. Different species of skunk vary in appearance from black-and-white to brown, cream or gi ...
like odor when crushed.[
The ]inflorescence
In botany, an inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a plant's Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a system of branches. An inflorescence is categorized on the basis of the arrangement of flowers on a mai ...
is a loose cluster of hanging bell- or cup-shaped flowers in shades of pink to orange to yellow-green. The flower has 4 to 5 petals which are mostly fused into a cylinder, and eight stamen
The stamen (: stamina or stamens) is a part consisting of the male reproductive organs of a flower. Collectively, the stamens form the androecium., p. 10
Morphology and terminology
A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filament ...
s inside. The bloom period is June and July.[
The fruit is a valved capsule under a centimeter long which contains many seeds.
]
Distribution and habitat
The shrub is native to northwestern North America from Alaska
Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...
through the Pacific Northwest
The Pacific Northwest (PNW; ) is a geographic region in Western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though no official boundary exists, the most common ...
to northwestern California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
and Wyoming
Wyoming ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States, Western United States. It borders Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho t ...
.[
It is a member of the flora in mountain forests. It grows in the ]understory
In forestry and ecology, understory (American English), or understorey (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English), also known as underbrush or undergrowth, includes plant life growing beneath the Canopy (biology), forest ca ...
of subalpine fir
''Abies lasiocarpa'', the subalpine fir or Rocky Mountain fir, is a western North American fir tree.
Description
''Abies lasiocarpa'' is a medium-sized evergreen conifer with a very narrow conic crown, growing to tall, exceptionally , with a t ...
(''Abies lasiocarpa''), Pacific silver fir
''Abies amabilis'', commonly known as the Pacific silver fir, is a fir native to the Pacific Northwest of North America, occurring in the Pacific Coast Ranges and the Cascade Range. It is also commonly referred to in English as the white fir, red ...
(''A. amabilis''), Coast redwood (''Sequoia sempervirens''),[ ]western redcedar
''Thuja plicata'' is a large evergreen coniferous tree in the family Cupressaceae, native to the Pacific Northwest of North America. Its common name is western redcedar in the U.S. or western red cedar in the UK, and it is also called pacific re ...
(''Thuja plicata''), western hemlock
''Tsuga heterophylla'', the western hemlock or western hemlock-spruce, is a species of hemlock native to the northwest coast of North America, with its northwestern limit on the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska, and its southeastern limit in northern ...
(''Tsuga heterophylla''), and other conifers
Conifers () are a group of cone-bearing seed plants, a subset of gymnosperms. Scientifically, they make up the division Pinophyta (), also known as Coniferophyta () or Coniferae. The division contains a single extant class, Pinopsida. All e ...
.habitat
In ecology, habitat refers to the array of resources, biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species' habitat can be seen as the physical manifestation of its ...
s where it can grow in deep shade.[
]
See also
*
*
References
External links
Calflora Database: ''Menziesia ferruginea'' (Mock azalea, Rusty menziesia)
— ''active name (5−2017).''
Jepson Manual eFlora (TJM2) treatment of ''Menziesia ferruginea''
— ''active name (2017).''
USDA Plants Profile for ''Menziesia ferruginea'' (rusty menziesia)
— ''active name (5−2017).''
Photo gallery for ''Menziesia ferruginea''
— ''active name (2017).''
menziesii
Flora of Alaska
Flora of California
Flora of Western Canada
Flora of the Northwestern United States
Flora of the West Coast of the United States
Flora of the Cascade Range
Flora of the Klamath Mountains
Natural history of the California Coast Ranges
Taxa named by James Edward Smith
Flora without expected TNC conservation status
{{Ericaceae-stub