superkingdom Eukaryota
kingdom Plantae
division Magnoliophyta (formerly Phylum
Tracheophyta)
class Magnoliopsida (formerly Class
Angiospermae)
subclass Dilleniidae
order Ericales
family Ericaceae
subfamily Vaccinoideae
tribe Arbuteae
genus Arbutus
A genus of 10-15 species of broadleaf evergreen trees and shrubs.
Red peeling bark, clusters of white flowers, large strawberry-like fruit
that are edible but not very tasty. The 5 North American species
of arbutus are called 'Madrona' or 'Madrone', while European and Asian arbutus are called 'Strawberry tree'.
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A. andrachne (Cyprus Strawberry tree) (Greece, Turkey, Cyprus, Lebanon, Israel)
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A. arizonica (Arizona Madrone) (Northern Mexico
and Arizona) (pointy leaves)
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A. canariensis (Canary Islands)
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A. madrensis (Sierra Madre Occidental)
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A. menziesii (Pacific Madrone) (U.S. Pacific Coast
and British Columbia)
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A. occidentalis (central Mexico)
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A. pavarii (Cyrenacia aka Jamahirya, Libya)
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A. tessellata (Madroño negro) (north-central
Mexican mountains) (dark grey bark)
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A. unedo (Arboç or Strawberry Tree) (Mediterranean,
mostly in Europe; also Ireland)
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A. xalapensis (aka A. texana or A. glandulosa)
(Texas Madrone) (Texas and far northeastern Mexico)
(oval leaves)
A. x arachnoides is a hybrid between A. andrachne and A.
unedo. The rare 'trailing arbutus' (aka 'Mayflower') can be found in genus Epigaea.
Several species formerly classed in Arbutus are now listed in
Gaultheria.
Among other sources,
"Ericaceae--Part II. The Superior-Ovaried Genera (Monotropoideae, Pyroloideae,
Rhododendroideae, and Vaccinioideae p.p.)."
Modified for WWW, New York Botanical Garden,.
http://www.nybg.org/bsci/res/lut2/arbutus.htm
USDA Forest Service, Center for Wood Anatomy Research, technology transfer
fact sheet: Arbutus spp.
http://www2.fpl.fs.fed.us/TechSheets/HardwoodNA/pdf%20files/arbutuseng.pdf