Oxydendrum arboreum DC.
Large deciduous shrub or small tree, the lance-shaped leaves producing brilliant crimson and yellow autumn colour, the white flowers produced in terminal drooping racemes in summer. The leaves have a pleasant scent. Usually to c.6m in cultivation, taller in the wild. [RHSD, Hilliers’, Hortus].
Horticultural & Botanical History
‘Said to grow in its native soil, in the Alhegany-Mountains, into a tree fifty or sixty feet high. The specimen from which our drawing was taken forms a very large shrub in Messrs. Whitley and Brame’s Nursery, in Old Brompton; the branches are pendent, and the long racemes of white flowers grow from their extremities. Blossoms from July to September, and during this season in particular makes a very handsome appearance.’ [BM t.905/1806]. Introduced to Britain in 1752. [JD].
History at Camden Park
Andromeda arborea is marked with a ‘c’ in an 1836 edition of Loddiges’ catalogue held at Camden Park [CPA]. In William Macarthur’s code, used and explained elsewhere, this means grown at Camden. It is almost certain that it was grown in the gardens around this time but may have been short lived as it did not appear in the catalogues.
Notes
Published Jan 11, 2009 - 11:50 AM | Last updated Jul 17, 2010 - 05:22 PM
Oxydendrum arboreum DC. | BM t.905/1806 | BHL
| Family | Ericaceae |
|---|---|
| Category | |
| Region of origin | North America |
| Synonyms |
|
| Common Name | Sour wood, Sorrel tree |
| Name in the Camden Park Record | Andromeda arborea |
| Confidence level | high |