Ptelea trifoliata

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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:RUTACEAE
Species:Ptelea trifoliata L.
Common Name:Hoptree; Wafer Ash
Habitat:**
Associated Ecological Communities:**
Growth Habit:Tree
Duration:Perennial
Category:Vascular
USDA Symbol:PTTR
Plant Notes:Wafer Ash is a native deciduous shrub or small tree in the Citrus family (Rutaceae). It can be found throughout Alabama. Wafer Ash grows on creek banks, in open woods, on glades, on rock outcrops, and in prairies. Stems are erect, 3-25 feet in height, and branched. Young stems are green and glabrous while the trunk and older branches have gray-brown and scaly bark. The leaves are petiolate, alternate, and ternately compound. The leaflets are elliptic to ovate in outline, glabrous or pubescent, with crenate to entire margins. The leave turn yellow before falling in the autumn. Wafer Ash is monoecious, often producing male, female, and perfect flowers on the same shrub. Flowers are produced in terminal compound corymbs. Individual flowers have 3-5 greenish yellow sepals and petals. The fruit is a 2-seeded circular samara. The leaves and twigs of Wafer Ash have a musky/citrus odor when crushed. It is the larval food plant for the Giant Swallowtail (Papilio cresphontes). The bitter fruit have been used as a substitute for hops in the beer making process. Wafer Ash is sometimes cultivated as a street or patio tree. Several cultivars are available from nurseries.—A. Diamond.
Taxonomic Notes:**
Status:Native, FAC (NWI)
References:**
Specimen: View specimen details in the Alabama Herbarium Consortium Specimen Database

** Not applicable or data not available.

Classification

FamilyRUTACEAE - Citrus/Rue family
Genus Ptelea
Species Ptelea trifoliata L. - Hoptree; Wafer Ash

Citation

Citation Ptelea trifoliata Linnaeus, Sp. Pl. 1: 118. 1753.
Basionym: **
Type: USA: VIRGINIA: Without data (lectotype: S 62.7). Lectotypified by J.L. Reveal, in C.E. Jarvis et al., Regnum Veg. 127: 80. 1993.

** Not applicable or data not available.

Synonyms

SynonymFull CitationBasionymType
Ptelea antonina Ptelea antonina Greene, Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 10: 59. 1906. TEXAS: Bexar Co.: Near San Antonio, 11 Jun 1891, Dewey s.n. (holotype: US).
Ptelea aquilina Ptelea aquilina Greene, Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 10: 57. 1906. MISSOURI: Barry Co.: Along the White River near Eagle Rock, 21 Jun 1897, Bush 171 (holotype: US).
Ptelea baldwinii Ptelea baldwinii Torrey & A. Gray, Fl. N. Amer. 1: 215. 1838. FLORIDA: Duval Co.: St. John's [Fort George Island], s.d., Baldwin s.n. (holotype: PH).
Ptelea carolina Ptelea carolina Greene, Torreya 5: 99. 1905. NORTH CAROLINA: Madison Co.: Along the French Broad River, 2 Aug 1880, Smith s.n. (holotype: US).
Ptelea isophylla Ptelea isophylla Greene, Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 10: 58. 1906. MISSOURI: Taney Co.: Vicinity of Swan, 8 Jun 1898, Bush 211 (holotype: US).
Ptelea mesochora Ptelea mesochora Greene, Torreya 5: 100. 1905. INDIANA: Miller's, 30 Jul 1897, Umbach s.n. (lectotype: US). Lectotypified by V. L. Bailey, Brittonia 14: 7. 1962.
Ptelea mesochora var. mucronata Ptelea mesochora Greene, var. mucronata Nieuwland, Amer. Midl. Naturalist 2: 180. 1912. MICHIGAN: Berrien Co.: Near the dunes of Lake Michigan ca. 7 mi. E of Michigan City at Grand Beach, s.d., Nieuwland 870 (holotype: ND).
Ptelea microcarpa Ptelea microcarpa Small, Bull. Torrey Bot. Club 28: 193. 1901. TENNESSEE: Davidson Co.: Nashville, 9 Aug 1897, Biltmore Herb. 4437b (holotype: NY).
Ptelea microphylla Ptelea microphylla D. Dietrich, Syn. Pl. 1: 497. 1839.  
Ptelea mollis Ptelea mollis (Torrey & A. Gray) M. A. Curtis, Amer. J. Sci. Arts 57: 406. 1849.Ptelea trifoliata Linnaeus, var. mollis Torrey & A. Gray 1840. 
Ptelea mollis var. cryptoneura Ptelea mollis (Torrey & A. Gray) M. A. Curtis, var. cryptoneura Bartlett, Rhodora 13: 82. 1911. GEORGIA: McDuffie Co.: Near Thomson, 1 Sep 1907, Bartlett 951 (lectotype: MICH). Lectotypified by V. L. Bailey, Brittonia 14: 12. 1962.
Ptelea obcordata Ptelea obcordata Greene, Torreya 5: 99. 1905. FLORIDA: Lake Co.: Vicinity of Eustis, Jun 1894, Nash 976 (holotype: US).
Ptelea pentaphylla Ptelea pentaphylla Muenchhausen, Hausvater 5: 242. 1770.  
Ptelea prominula Ptelea prominula Greene, Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 10: 58. 1906. TEXAS: Travis Co.: Near Austin, 9 May 1872, Hall 74 (holotype: US).
Ptelea rhombifolia Ptelea rhombifolia A. Heller, Bull. Torrey Bot. Club 26: 313. 1899. TEXAS: Bexar Co.: San Antonio, 27 Apr 1894, Heller 1582 (holotype: US).
Ptelea serrata Ptelea serrata Small, Bull. Torrey Bot. Club 28: 292. 1901. GEORGIA: DeKalb Co.: Stone Mountain, 3 Jul 1893, Small s.n. (holotype: NY).
Ptelea tomentosa Ptelea tomentosa Rafinesque, Fl. Ludov. 108. 1817. LOUISIANA
Ptelea trifoliata var. aurea Ptelea trifoliata Linnaeus, var. aurea Behnsch ex Hartwig, Ill. Gehoelzb., ed. 2. 293. 1892.  
Ptelea trifoliata var. baldwinii Ptelea trifoliata Linnaeus, var. baldwinii (Torrey & A. Gray) D. B. Ward, Novon 11: 363. 2001.Ptelea baldwinii Torrey & A. Gray 1838. 
Ptelea trifoliata var. deamiana Ptelea trifoliata Linnaeus, var. deamiana Nieuwland, Amer. Midl. Naturalist 2: 179. 1912. MICHIGAN: Berrien Co.: Along the Pere Marquette RR at St. Joseph, s.d., Nieuwland 4087 (holotype: ND).
Ptelea trifoliata var. fastigiata Ptelea trifoliata Linnaeus, var. fastigiata Bean, Trees Shrubs Brit. Isles 2: 260. 1914.  
Ptelea trifoliata var. glauca Ptelea trifoliata Linnaeus, var. glauca Booth ex G. Kirchner, in Petzold & G. Kirchner, Arbor. Muscav. 191. 1864.  
Ptelea trifoliata var. mollis Ptelea trifoliata Linnaeus, var. mollis Torrey & A. Gray, Fl. N. Amer. 1: 680. 1840. TEXAS: Without data, Drummond s.n. (holotype: NY).
Ptelea trifoliata var. pentaphylla Ptelea trifoliata Linnaeus, var. pentaphylla (Muenchhausen) Pursh, Fl. Amer. Sept. 107. 1814; (Muenchhausen) de Candolle, Prodr. 2: 83. 1825.Ptelea pentaphylla Muenchhausen 1770. 
Ptelea trifoliata var. pubescens Ptelea trifoliata Linnaeus, var. pubescens Pursh, Fl. Amer. Sept. 107. 1814. PENNSYLVANIA
Ptelea viticifolia Ptelea viticifolia Salisbury, Prodr. Stirp. Chap. Allerton 68. 1796, nom. illegit.Ptelea trifoliata Linnaeus 1753. 
Ptelea wrightiana Ptelea wrightiana Greene, Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 10: 58. 1906. TEXAS: "Turkey Creek, western Texas", Jun 1849, Wright 82 (holotype: US).

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, Barbour, Bibb, Blount, Bullock, Butler, Calhoun, Choctaw, Clarke, Clay, Cleburne, Colbert, Conecuh, Coosa, Crenshaw, Dale, Dallas, DeKalb, Elmore, Escambia, Etowah, Greene, Henry, Jackson, Jefferson, Lee, Lowndes, Macon, Marengo, Monroe, Montgomery, Pike, Randolph, Shelby, Sumter, Talladega, Tallapoosa, Tuscaloosa, Wilcox

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: 1888 - 2022

Barcode / Accession No.
County
Coll. Date
Collector &
Collection No.
Herbarium &
Herbarium Name Used
Image
AUA_ACC_39408 Autauga 12 May 1982 GUNN, SCOTT C.
547		 AUA
PTELEA TRIFOLIATA L.
UNA00037006 Autauga 12 May 1982 Gunn, Scott C.
547		 UNA
Ptelea trifoliata L.
UWAL0010616 Autauga 21 Apr 2012 Keener, Brian R.
7158		 UWAL
Ptelea trifoliata L.
TROY000037807 Autauga 21 Apr 2012 Keener, Brian R.
7158		 TROY
Ptelea trifoliata Linnaeus
UWAL0046485 Autauga 17 Apr 2018 Parker, Matthew R.
1611		 UWAL
Ptelea trifoliata Linnaeus
TROY000048624 Autauga 17 Apr 2018 Parker, Matthew R.
1611		 TROY
Ptelea trifoliata Linnaeus
TROY000049710 Autauga 15 Jun 2020 Parker, Matthew R.
1881		 TROY
Ptelea trifoliata Linnaeus
UWAL0049815 Autauga 15 Jun 2020 Parker, Matthew R.
1881		 UWAL
Ptelea trifoliata Linnaeus
TROY000008802 Barbour 21 Apr 1997 Adams, David L., Jr
4		 TROY
Ptelea trifoliata Linnaeus
TROY000033406 Barbour 20 Aug 2011 Dykes, Bailee
34		 TROY
Ptelea trifoliata Linnaeus
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