Common snowberry facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Common snowberry |
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| Scientific classification | |
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Symphoricarpos
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| Species: |
albus
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The Symphoricarpos albus, often called the common snowberry, is a type of flowering plant. It belongs to the honeysuckle family. This plant is originally from North America. You can find it across much of Canada and the northern and western parts of the United States.
Common snowberry plants like to grow in shady and moist places. They are often found in mountains, forests, woodlands, and along riverbanks. This plant is very adaptable and can grow in many different types of environments. It has also started growing naturally in parts of Britain. There, people planted it as an decoration and to provide cover for wild animals.
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What Does Snowberry Look Like?
The common snowberry is an upright deciduous shrub. This means it's a woody plant that loses its leaves in the fall. It has a stiff, branching main stem. Often, it also grows several smaller shoots from its underground stems, called rhizomes. This allows it to spread and form a thick patch of plants.
This shrub can grow up to 1 to 2 meters (about 3 to 6 feet) tall. Its leaves grow opposite each other on the branches. They are usually oval-shaped and can be up to 5 centimeters (about 2 inches) long. Leaves on new shoots might be a bit larger.
Flowers and Berries
The snowberry plant produces clusters of up to 16 flowers. Each flower has a small, five-pointed green cup called a calyx. The flowers are bell-shaped and about 0.5 centimeters (0.2 inches) long. They are a bright pink color. Inside, they are covered with tiny white hairs.
The most noticeable part is its fruit. These are soft, white, berry-like fruits called drupes. They are about 1 centimeter (0.4 inches) wide. Each fruit contains two seeds. The plant can grow from seeds, but it mostly spreads by sending out new shoots from its underground rhizomes. Birds help spread the seeds after they eat the fruit.
Snowberry and Animals
This shrub is an important food source for many animals. Large animals like bighorn sheep, white-tailed deer, and grizzly bears eat it. Farm animals such as cattle and sheep also enjoy browsing on its leaves.
Many birds and small mammals use the snowberry for both food and shelter. For example, Pocket gophers dig their burrows underneath these plants during the winter. It's important to know that while animals can eat the fruit, the fruit and the plant itself are not safe for humans to eat.
Uses by People
Native Americans used the snowberry plant in several ways. They used it as a medicine and to make soap. Sometimes, they even used it for food. The wood from the plant was also good for making arrow shafts. In Russia, people sometimes crush the berries in their hands. They rub them on their skin as a soothing lotion.
Why We Plant Snowberry
The common snowberry is useful for controlling erosion. This is especially true in areas near rivers and streams. It is also planted in ecological restoration projects. These projects help bring life back to damaged areas, like old mines.
Its pretty white fruits and blue-green leaves made it a popular ornamental plant in the past. People often planted it around houses from the 1890s to the 1920s. You can still find it for sale at some plant nurseries today. It grows well in full sun to light shade. It prefers soil that drains well and is slightly acidic to alkaline. This plant is easy to move because it has shallow roots. It grows well in USDA hardiness zones 2 to 7.
Varieties of Snowberry
There are two main types, or varieties, of common snowberry:
- S. albus var. albus: This variety is found in eastern North America.
- S. albus var. laevigatus: This type grows along the Pacific coast. It is a larger shrub, growing up to 2 meters (about 6 feet) tall. Its fruits are also slightly bigger. Some botanists even consider this a separate species, called Symphoricarpos rivularis.
See also
In Spanish: Symphoricarpos albus para niños
