Comptonia peregrina
Sweetfern is a shrub from 1 to 3 feet high with slender, erect, or spreading branches and reddish-brown bark. The thin, narrow leaves are from 3 to 6 inches long, from one-fourth to one-half an inch wide, deeply divided into many lobes and in general resembling the leaves of a fern. Both male and female flowers are produced. The former are borne in cylindrical catkins in clusters at the ends of the branches and the latter in egg-shaped catkins. The whole plant has a spicy, aromatic odor, which is more pronounced when the leaves are bruised.
Type:
Shrub
Height (low):
2
Height (high):
4
Distribution:
north
Habitat:
Oak woods, pastures, roadsides
Features:
Fern-like leaves are aromatic. Does well on sandy or infertile soils. Difficult to transplant. Do not disturb in the wild. *(w) *(bd)
Availability:
trade