Ceanothus americanus

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Distribution Map: Based on vouchered plant specimens only. View county names by placing the mouse cursor over a particular county.

Species Distribution Map
Family:RHAMNACEAE
Species:Ceanothus americanus L.
Common Name:Common New Jersey Tea; Red Shank; Freckle Weed
Habitat:Forest edges and disturbed sites.
Associated Ecological Communities:**
Growth Habit:Shrub
Duration:Perennial
Category:Vascular
USDA Symbol:**
Plant Notes:New Jersey Tea is a native subshrub in the Buckthorn family (Rhamnaceae). It can be found throughout Alabama. New Jersey Tea grows in dry woods, around rockoutcrops, on roadside banks, on shell middens, and in prairies. New Jersey Tea grows from 1-3 feet in height. The stems are several from a woody, gnarled, rootstock. The stems are more or less herbaceous, dying back to near soil level or to the rootstock each year. Stems are pubescent with short curling hairs and long straight hairs. Leaves are alternate, petiolate, and ovate to lanceolate in outline. The petioles and under surfaces of the leaves are pubescent. The margins of the leaves are serrate with gland tipped teeth, these appearing as black or red dots. There are two prominent veins from the base of the leaf that arch along the midrib and end at the leaf margin above the middle. Fragrant flowers are produced in a cylindrical axillary or terminal thyrse. Individual flowers have a cup-like floral tube. There are five white petals. The petals are hooded and each clasps an anther in bud. The fruit is a three lobed capsule-like drupe. The seed are explosively ejected when mature. New Jersey Tea is often available in the wildflower trade. It prefers a well-draining soil in full sun. Once established it is drought resistant. The dried leaves of New Jersey Tea were used as a tea substitute during the Revolutionary War. The roots and leaves of New Jersey Tea have been used in herbal medicine where it goes by the common names of Red Root or Red Shank. The larvae of several butterflies and moths use New Jersey Tea as a host plant, and the seed are consumed by ground foraging birds such as Wild Turkey and Bobwhite Quail.--A. Diamond
Taxonomic Notes:**
Status:Native, G5 (Global Rank)
References:**
Specimen: View specimen details in the Alabama Herbarium Consortium Specimen Database

** Not applicable or data not available.

Classification

FamilyRHAMNACEAE - Buckthorn family
Genus Ceanothus
Species Ceanothus americanus L. - Common New Jersey Tea; Red Shank; Freckle Weed

Citation

Citation Ceanothus americanus Linnaeus, Sp. Pl. 1: 195–196. 1753.
Basionym: **
Type: Without data (lectotype: LINN 264.1). Lectotypified by Wijnands, Bot. Commelins 180. 1983.

** Not applicable or data not available.

Synonyms

SynonymFull CitationBasionymType
Ceanothus americanus var. intermedius Ceanothus americanus Linnaeus, var. intermedius (Pursh) Torrey & A. Gray, Fl. N. Amer. 1: 264. 1838.Ceanothus intermedius Pursh 1814. 
Ceanothus americanus var. pitcheri Ceanothus americanus Linnaeus, var. pitcheri Torrey & A. Gray, Fl. N. Amer. 1: 264. 1838. ARKANSAS
Ceanothus glandulosus Ceanothus glandulosus Rafinesque, New Fl. 3: 57. 1838 ("1836"), nom. illegit.Forrestia thyroides Rafinesque 1806. 
Ceanothus glomeratus Ceanothus glomeratus Rafinesque, New Fl. 3: 55. 1838 ("1836").  
Ceanothus glomeratus var. fuscatus Ceanothus glomeratus Rafinesque, var. fuscatus Rafinesque, New Fl. 3: 55. 1838 ("1836").  
Ceanothus intermedius Ceanothus intermedius Pursh, Fl. Amer. Sept. 167. 1814. TENNESSEE
Ceanothus latifolius Ceanothus latifolius Rafinesque, New Fl. 3: 55. 1838 ("1836").  
Ceanothus officinalis Ceanothus officinalis Rafinesque, New Fl. 3: 54. 1838 ("1836"), nom. illegit.Ceanothus americanus Linnaeus 1753. 
Ceanothus officinalis var. acutus Ceanothus officinalis Rafinesque, var. acutus Rafinesque, New Fl. 3: 54. 1838 ("1836").  
Ceanothus officinalis var. foliosus Ceanothus officinalis Rafinesque, var. foliosus Rafinesque, New Fl. 3: 55. 1838 ("1836").  
Ceanothus officinalis var. ovatus Ceanothus officinalis Rafinesque, var. ovatus Rafinesque, New Fl. 3: 54. 1838 ("1836").  
Ceanothus officinalis var. paniculatus Ceanothus officinalis Rafinesque, var. paniculatus Rafinesque, New Fl. 3: 55. 1838 ("1836").  
Ceanothus virgatus Ceanothus virgatus Rafinesque, New Fl. 3: 56. 1838 ("1836"), nom. illegit.Ceanothus intermedius Pursh 1814. 
Forrestia thyroides Forrestia thyroides Rafinesque, Med. Repos., ser. 2. 3: 422. 1806. NEW YORK

Specimens and Distribution

This species has been reported in the following counties by the herbaria listed. An overview of the individual specimens are provided in the table that follows. Click on the accession number to view details; click on column headers to sort; choose a county or herbaria to filter the specimen data.

Counties included on distribution map: Autauga, Baldwin, Bibb, Blount, Bullock, Butler, Calhoun, Chambers, Cherokee, Chilton, Choctaw, Clarke, Clay, Cleburne, Coffee, Colbert, Conecuh, Coosa, Covington, Crenshaw, Cullman, Dale, DeKalb, Elmore, Escambia, Etowah, Fayette, Geneva, Greene, Hale, Henry, Jackson, Jefferson, Lauderdale, Lee, Limestone, Lowndes, Macon, Madison, Marengo, Marion, Marshall, Mobile, Monroe, Montgomery, Pike, Randolph, Shelby, St. Clair, Sumter, Talladega, Tallapoosa, Tuscaloosa, Walker, Washington, Winston

Counties represented by specimen data listed below:

Herbaria represented by specimen data listed below: ALNHS, AUA, JSU, SAMF, TROY, UNA, USAM, UWAL

Range of years during which specimens were collected: 1868 - 2019

Barcode / Accession No.
County
Coll. Date
Collector &
Collection No.
Herbarium &
Herbarium Name Used
Image
AUA_ACC_19289 Autauga 10 Jul 1970 MOORE, HAROLD D.
336		 AUA
CEANOTHUS AMERICANUS L.
UNA00009552 Autauga 12 May 1982 Gunn, Scott C.
528		 UNA
Ceanothus americanus L.
AUA_ACC_39343 Autauga 12 May 1982 GUNN, SCOTT C.
528		 AUA
CEANOTHUS AMERICANUS L.
UWAL0003703 Autauga 13 May 2009 Keener, Brian R.
5272		 UWAL
Ceanothus americanus L.
TROY000032295 Autauga 13 May 2009 Keener, Brian R.
5272		 TROY
Ceanothus americanus Linnaeus
UNA00009571 Baldwin 19 Jun 1893 Mohr, Charles
s.n.		 UNA
Ceanothus americanus L.
AUA_ACC_61891 Baldwin 8 May 1964 CREEL, JOHN
S.N.		 AUA
CEANOTHUS AMERICANUS L.
JSU129472 Baldwin 13 May 1973 Lynn, David
160		 JSU
Ceanothus americanus Linnaeus
TROY000047250 Baldwin 20 Jul 1974 Lelong, Michel G.
8028		 TROY
Ceanothus americanus Linnaeus
USAM000013490 Baldwin 20 Jul 1974 LeLong, Michel G.
8028		 USAM
Ceanothus americanus Linnaeus
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