Ericaceae

Description

An attractive broadleaf evergreen with a twisting reddish trunk and irregular branches with an overall rounded outline which grows mostly in dry, rocky areas.

At a glance

• Plant Type: Tree.
• Distribution: This tree grows from southern British Columbia to Baja California. This tree grows on west of the Cascades crest, in the Columbia River Gorge, and at the coast in Washington.
• Height: This tree grows up to 98 feet (30 m) in height.
• Flowers: The flowers are produced in large, terminal, compound racemes. The flowers are white in color and the 5-lobed corolla is urn-shaped. The flowers are approximately 1/4 of an inch (6 to 7 mm) in length and contain 10 stamens within the corolla. The anthers contain two short, reflexed awns and the ovary is superior.
• Leaves: The leaves are smooth, shiny, alternate, oblong egg-shaped to elliptic, and glabrous. The margins are serrate to entire and 3 to 6 inches (7 to 15 cm) in length.
• Fruits: Berries are produced which are orange to red in color, covered with small projections and approximately 1/2 of an inch (1 cm) in diameter.
• Notable features: The bark is smooth and light green to yellowish when young and dark brown to reddish when aged. Arbutus menziesii sheds leaves and bark most of the year and can be difficult to establish. This tree is also a slow grower and intolerant of wet soils. The genus name, Arbutus, is Latin for 'strawberry tree', as a reference to the bright orange to red fruits. The common name, Madrone, is derived from the Spanish word 'madrono' (which also means 'strawberry tree') and was named by Father Juan Crespi who was a chronicler of the overland Portola expedition of 1769 to discover the 'lost bay' of Monterey.
• Synonym: Arbutus procera

Restoration and Conservation

Birds: The fruit is eaten by band-tailed pigeons, quail, flickers, varied thrushes, waxwings, evening grosbeaks, mourning doves, and robins.
Insects: The flowers are pollinated by spring azure butterflies and bees. Madrone is a larval plant for the ceanothus silk moth and the brown elfin butterfly.
Mammals: The fruit is eaten by raccoons and other mammals.

Ethnobotany

Many Pacific Northwest tribes (including the Cowichan, Hoh, Saanich, Salish, and and others) have used the leaves as a burn dressing. An infusion of bark has been used to treat cuts, wounds, and as a diabetes treatment. The leaves have been smoked. The leaves have been chewed and the juice swallowed to treat colds and sore throats. An infusion of leaves has been used to treat stomach ulcers and sore throats. The young branches have been used to make spoons and gambling sticks. The bark has been boiled and used as tanning for paddles and fish hooks.

References

• Hitchcock CL, Cronquist A. Flora of the Pacific Northwest: An illustrated manual. 2nd ed. Giblin DE, Legler BS, Zika PF, Olmstead RG, editors. Washington, D.C., DC: University of Washington Press; 2018. Page 402.
• Native American Ethnobotany Database: http://naeb.brit.org/uses/search/?string=Arbutus%20menziesii&page=1
• Oregon State University Dept. of Botany & Plant Pathology - OregonFlora. https://oregonflora.org/taxa/garden.php?taxon=2877 
• Pojar, J and MacKinnon, A. 1994. Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast: Washington, Oregon, British Columbia and Alaska. Vancouver (BC): Lone Pine Publishing, Page 49.
• Starflower Foundation Image Herbarium and Landscaping Pages, 2007.
• WTU Image Herbarium: https://biology.burke.washington.edu/herbarium/imagecollection/taxon.php?Taxon=Arbutus%20menziesii 

Details