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Sassafras

Sassafras albidum

Other common name(s):

White Sassafras, Ague Tree, Cinnamon Wood, Mitten Tree, Saloop, Smelling Stick

Family:

Lauraceae (Laurel Family)

Plant Ecoregion Distribution Map

East Central Texas Plains, Gulf Coast Prairies and Marshes, Western Gulf Coastal Plain
Northern Post Oak Savanna, Northern Prairie Outliers
Texas-Louisiana Coastal Marshes
Flatwoods, Floodplains and Low Terraces3, Pleistocene Fluvial Terraces, Red River Bottomlands, Southern Tertiary Uplands, Tertiary Uplands

Plant Characteristics

Growth Form

Tree

Height

15
to
20
ft.

Spread

10
to
15
ft.

Leaf Retention

Deciduous

Lifespan

Perennial

Habitat and Care Requirements

Soil Type(s)

Sand, Loam, Acid, Well Drained

Light Requirement

Sun, Part Shade

Water Requirement

Medium

Native Habitat

Woodland

Bloom and Attraction

Bloom Color

Yellow, Green, Brown

Bloom Season

Spring

Seasonal Interest

Fruit, Fall Color, Larval Host

Wildlife Benefit

Butterflies, Birds

Maintenance

May colonize to form thicket. Propagation: Seed, Root cuttings. Sucker division.

Comments

Blooms March-May. Aromatic small tree will sucker; three distinct leaf patterns: unlobed oval, mitten-shaped, and three-pronged turn red, orange, peach and yellow in fall. Little bunches of yellow flowers in spring seem to float in the air. Warning: bark is poisonous. Fall fruits gobbled by many birds. Larval Host: Spicebush Swallowtail, Tiger Swallowtail, Palamedes butterflies, Pale Swallowtail.
Previous Scientific Name(s): Synonym(s): Laurus albidus, Laurus sassafras, Sassafras albidum var. molle, Sassafras officinale, Sassafras sassafras, Sassafras variifolium

References

1) Griffith, Bryce, Omernick & Rodgers (2007). Ecoregions of Texas. 2) Miller, George O., Landscaping with Native Plants of Texas 2nd Ed., 2013, pg 53. 3) Wasowski and Wasowski, Native Texas Plants Landscaping Region by Region, 1991, pg. 302. 4) https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=SAAL5. 5) https://portal.torcherbaria.org/portal/taxa/index.php?taxon=Sassafras+albidum&formsubmit=Search+Terms. 6) http://bonap.net/TDC/Image/Map?taxonType=Species&taxonId=13889&locationType=County&mapType=Normal, 7) https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=18158#null

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Contact a local Chapter

State Office Phone: 830.997.9272

State Office Address:
Native Plant Society of Texas
PO Box 3017
Fredericksburg, TX 78624

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