Western burning bush facts for kids
Euonymus occidentalis is a special kind of plant often called the western burning bush or western wahoo. It's a type of spindle tree that grows in the western parts of North America. This plant is known for its interesting look and where it lives.
Quick facts for kids Western burning bush |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Euonymus
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| Species: |
occidentalis
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| Natural range | |
Where It Lives
The western burning bush is found naturally in western North America. You can see it growing from British Columbia in Canada all the way down to California in the United States. It's the only plant of its kind (from the Euonymus group) that grows wild in this area.
What It Looks Like
Size and Leaves
This plant can be a shrub or a small tree. It usually grows to be about two to six meters tall. That's like the height of a small building! Its leaves are thin and green. They are shaped like an oval and can be three to fourteen centimeters long. Sometimes, the edges of the leaves curl under a little bit.
Flowers and Fruit
The western burning bush has small flowers that grow in groups. Each group can have up to five tiny flowers. These flowers grow at the end of a long stem called a peduncle. Each flower has five rounded petals. These petals can be pink, brown, or even white with spots. In the middle of the flower, there's a special disc that makes nectar, which has five small bumps.
After the flowers bloom, they turn into fruit. The fruit is a round capsule with three parts that bulge out. When the fruit opens, you can see one seed inside each of these three parts. Each seed is covered by a bright red layer called an aril.
