Gaultheria shallon Pursh
salal
Ericaceae (Crowberry family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
salal
Ericaceae (Crowberry family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
Species Information
General:
Creeping to erect shrub; stems branched, mostly to 1.5 m tall, but up to 3 m tall and sometimes forming impenetrable thickets, hairy.
Leaves:
Alternate, evergreen, thick, leathery, egg-shaped to egg-shaped-elliptic, 3-9 cm long, 1.5-6.5 cm wide, usually abruptly sharp-pointed at tip, rounded or more or less heart-shaped at base, sharply and finely toothed, glabrous; stalks short.
Flowers:
Inflorescences of 5-15 flowers in terminal and axillary, bracted racemes, 4-10 cm long, the flowering stems finely- and glandular-hairy; flowers all nodding, flower stalks 3-10 mm long, with 1-2 bracts; corollas white to pinkish, urn-shaped, 5-lobed, 7-9 mm long, short glandular-hairy; calyces soft glandular-hairy, about 1/2 the length of corolla; anthers with 4 slender apical awns, dehiscing by 2 large subterminal pores.
Fruits:
Berrylike, purplish-black at maturity, glandular, hairy, fleshy, 5-10 mm wide.
Illustration
If more than one illustration is available for a species (e.g., separate illustrations were provided for two subspecies) then links to the separate images will be provided below. Note that individual subspecies or varietal illustrations are not always available.
Illustration Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia
USDA Species Characteristics
Flower Colour:
White
Blooming Period:
Mid Spring
Fruit/Seed characteristics:
Colour: Purple
Present from Summer to Fall
Source: The USDA
Ecology
Ecological Framework for Gaultheria shallon
The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from
original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range.
(Updated August, 2013)
The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from
original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range.
(Updated August, 2013)
| Site Information |
Value / Class |
||
|
Avg |
Min |
Max |
|
| Elevation
(metres) |
219 | 0 | 1700 |
| Slope
Gradient (%) |
23 | 0 | 220 |
|
Aspect (degrees) |
201 | 0 | 360 |
| Soil
Moisture Regime (SMR) [0 - very xeric; 4 - mesic; 8 - hydric] |
4 | 0 | 8 |
| Modal
Nutrient Regime
Class |
C | ||
| #
of field plots species was recorded in: |
2742 | ||
| Modal
BEC Zone Class |
CWH | ||
|
All BEC Zones (# of stations/zone) species was recorded in |
CDF(192), CWH(2411), ICH(5), IDF(4), MH(30) | ||
|
Source:
Klinkenberg 2013
|
|||
Habitat and Range
Dry to wet forests and bogs in the lowland and montane zones; common in W BC, rare in SE BC; N to SE AK and S along the coast to CA.Status Information
Taxonomic Notes
This lovely BC native has leathery mid green, evergreen foliage on arching stems. The spring flowers hang like tiny white to pale pink bells and are followed by edible black berries that were prized by First Nations peoples. Great for the woodland garden, in dry shade...
Note Author: Gary Lewis, Phoenix Perennials |