Frangula rubra

Frangula rubra
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Rosales
Family: Rhamnaceae
Genus: Frangula
Species:
F. rubra
Binomial name
Frangula rubra
(Greene) Grubov
Synonyms

Rhamnus rubra Greene

Frangula rubra (syn. Rhamnus rubra) is a species of flowering plant in the buckthorn family known by the common names red buckthorn and Sierra coffeeberry.

Description

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Frangula rubra is a spreading shrub approaching 2 metres (6+12 ft) in maximum height, its bark red or gray.[1] The thin, deciduous leaves are generally oval in shape, green to grayish in color, and up to 6 centimetres (2+12 in) long.[1] The edges are smooth or faintly toothed. The inflorescence is an umbel of up to 15 flowers with five pointed sepals opening into a starlike shape and five smaller, greenish petals.[1] The fruit is a drupe which ripens to black. It measures just over 1 cm long and contains 2 seeds.

Distribution and habitat

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It is native to the mountains and plateau areas of northern and eastern California and western Nevada,[citation needed] including the Sierra Nevada and Klamath Mountains, where it grows in many habitat types, including forests, chaparral, and sagebrush.[1]

Adverse effects

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The berry is inedible and may have a laxative effect.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e Turner, Mark; Kuhlmann, Ellen (2014). Trees & Shrubs of the Pacific Northwest (1st ed.). Portland, OR: Timber Press. p. 233. ISBN 978-1-60469-263-1.
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