Index- plants in this Family
Lauraceae / Laurel
Northern Spice Bush (Lindera benzoin)
Plant Type: This is a shrub which can reach a height of 4.6 Meters (15 feet ) .
Leaves: The leaves are alternate. Leaves can reach 12cm in length (4.7inches). Each leaf is entire, elliptic or obovate.
Flowers: The flowers have 6 Regular Parts and are up to 0.7cm wide (0.3 inches). They are yellow. Blooms first appear in late winter and continue into early spring. Flowers appear before the leaves at the nodes.
Fruit: A red berry up to 10mm long (0.4")
Habitat: Under story of hardwood forests with rich moist soil..
Range: Texas to Florida and north as far a southern Maine.
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Lore: An aromatic oil can be extracted from the bark and berries which likely accounts for the common name 'Spice Bush'.

Medical Uses: There are some reports of a decoction of the twigs, leaves or berries being taken for fevers and other ailments but there is no evidence of its efficacy and apparently use was not widespread.


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More Info:  
The Search below may provide more information about this species. Some of URLs may have been used as a source for this page not otherwise cited. Most of the information not cited comes from multiple sources that can be found in the Books page. The USDA plant links are provided by: USDA, NRCS 1999. The PLANTS database (http://plants.usda.gov/). National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70874-4490 USA. You can check species names at ITIS Advanced Search to see if they meet the current ITIS taxonomic criteria.
 
Classification:  
Kingdom
Plantae
Plants		|Division
Magnoliophyta
Angiosperms / Flowering Plants		|Class
Magnoliopsida
Dicots / Two Seed Leaves		|Subclass
Magnoliidae
||Family
Lauraceae
Laurel		|Subfamily

|Tribe

|Genus
Lindera
Spicebush
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www.2bnTheWild.com - Wildflowers of the Southeastern United States, Page updated on 9/27/2009 6:51:28 AM. File date-27-Sep-09
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