Plant ID Native or Import

[zelph]

Came across this plant today along a country road in Central Mississippi. Road has woodlands on each side. This plant is about 4 feet tall, 2 feet wide, Red berries are about 3/8" diameter. 2 more plants were within 30 feet of it. They also had berries in clusters. Please help ID this plant.....thank you! Was not able to get close-up of berries, batteries went dead in camera.

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[Venchka]

Educated guess: Nandina, also called Heavenly Bamboo. If I could see the stems/stalks I would know for sure. Probably bird transplanted from someone's garden.
Wayne


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[Venchka]

If I'm right, definitely invasive.
Wayne


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[gpburdelljr]

I think Venchka is right that it is Nandina. I have one in my front yard and it looks exactly like the picture

[NinjaFace]

venchka is correct..

[Dogwood]

Nandina domestic. The common name is Heavenly or Sacred Bamboo. It is not a true bamboo. It is only potentially invasive. The straight species which looks like is what you have in the northern area of its range like Illinois is not as commonly invasive as in the warmest southern part of its range like in FL, GA, forests of HI, etc. The invasiveness can be easily controlled as it is here in Fl and GA by opting for named cultivars rather than the straight species widely available such as the sterile non fruiting Firepower, Gulfstream, Harbour Dwarf, etc. and several others commonly available and seen rampantly used in the south in residential and commercial landscapes. These cultivars are much better behaved in the south. It can spread vegetatively though when disturbed with the tiniest rootlet with a node. Nandina is not typically a very fast growing so with good maintenance practices and using the named cultivars shouldn't be highest on the list of non native plants to avoid in ornamental landscapes. I've seen very well behaved compact but tall clumps of the straight species Nandina domestic at old wooded homesteads around foundations in central TN and NC. But since the straight species does flower and fruit the fruit can create new plants spread by birds and if near water vectored down and along streams.

Accounts of Nandina's invasiveness by the U.S. Forestry Service for example typically involve the straight species Nandina domestica in the southern limits of its range.

[Venchka]

I read that at Wikipedia after I made my first post.
As a professional you should have recused yourself. LOL!
Wayne


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[zelph]

Thank you my friends. I'll get more photos of the other 2. They look a little different, less bushy.

[zelph]

Ok, the locals here say it's not invasive. Found some in the campground that are landscape plantings. The ones along the road are bird plantings :-)

Been trying to sprout seeds of the wild saw palmetto plant without success. I suspect they have to be scarified. Anyone know if that is what is necessary?

[Tennessee Viking]

Hard to tell maybe a bustin heart berry bush

[wiel]

It is a Nandina (aka heavenly bamboo), it is invasive and toxic to some birds.

https://www.invasivespeciesinfo.gov/...edbamboo.shtml

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3005831/

[zelph]

Ok, got another one for identification. At first glance I thought it might be an asparagus coming up but closer exam said no way. It's located in a groomed area of the DeWayne Hayes Recreation Area in Columbus, MS. The sprout is flexing in the spring breeze. 2ltr bottle is for size comparison. Sprout is approx. 1 foot from very mature tree.
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[ScareBear]

At first I thought it was red baneberry, but then I zoomed in on the leafs. Smooth edges. Nandina, not baneberry.

[Dogwood]

Ok, the locals here say it's not invasive. Found some in the campground that are landscape plantings. The ones along the road are bird plantings :-)

Been trying to sprout seeds of the wild saw palmetto plant without success. I suspect they have to be scarified. Anyone know if that is what is necessary?

You caught me at a good time.

Again, Nandina domestica, the straight species, not a cultivar, invasiveness is dependent on maintenance practices and geographical planting site. I've seen the straight species very well behaved and in other places an invasive that spreads. Disturbing around it's base regularly can invite clumping growth and maybe spreading short runners that sprout creating new clumps. I think it a travesty to attempt to shear Nandina into formal looking hedges or globes. IMO, Nandina is best hand pruned at ground level by eliminating a few older stems to keep in check or possibly shaping up stems through selective pruning....NOT SHEARED! Perhaps the 'Gulfstream' variety, and few others, can take decently to a LIGHT shearing.

I've only germinated the Silver variety of Serenoa repens of the native Saw Palmetto. This is a variety that has become much rarer and can usually demand a higher price. You'll see it at the FL/GA state line on I 75 underplanted native taller Sabal palms/Cabbage palms(Sabal palmetto). It's strongly reminiscent of the native FL landscape. It's striking, more so than the light green version. The higher price of containerized Serenoa repens as it gets older can be attributed to its slower growth rate. Containerized plants tend to be even slower growing. I know of a few nurseries in FL that field grow setting out 3 yr old plants into the field. Larger older plants beyond their juvenile stage with above ground trunks can demand hefty price tags but not transplant well from the wild without much TLC. I get mine from sites being cleared that otherwise see 100 yr old trunked Serenoa repens as something that is in the way of development. I remove them myself. Even then they often go through a shocked transplanting stage and can be slow to recover. But once re-established I think it is a GREAT southern U.S. native in the residential and commercial landscape that have a more naturalized design. It takes a LONG LONG time before trunks form above ground. Great for re-naturalizing, native borders, setting property boundary lines, naturalized privacy screening(use it around tennis courts for example), xeriscaping designs, and when trimmed up.

It is easy to germinate though. Since I've always germinated commercially with the intent to sell to the landscaping trades I want the highest and quickest germination and growth rates. I will remove the outer mesocarp, acid scarify in a acid wash, and pre soak before setting in. Germination is increased by warming pads placed under planting medium. Germination can take as much as 3 months particularly so under less than ideal germination conditions. When first starting out germinating Serenoa repens I made the mistake of not removing the mesocarp and attempting to germinate during FL winters. I had sketchy results. Cold wet soil incites rot on seeds without the mesocarp removed or scarified. Sometimes out of 100 seeds planted many wouldn't germinate rotting out or only pushing through the soil after 4-5 months. It's slow to get a sizable plant but the growth rate can be increased a bit. However, scarification isn't absolutely necessary.

Unless I'm using a trunked specimen I usually clump a bunch of smaller plants together near a shoreline on a freshwater lake or along second tier salt water locations(good saltwater mist or salty air tolerance in established plantings) or in a naturalized border setting. I've used it at Miami Resorts, high rise Sarasota harbor, Naples Gulf front, Marco Island/Ft Myers, and residential estate sea front locations. Individual small plants I'm not keen on in designs or if after establishing a containerized palm collection.

If you're after the fruit for medical purposes(prostate, etc) you'll have to wait a while before a harvest! If anticipating this just buy saw palmetto supplements.

I'm a rare palm aficionado cultivating and selling rare palm seed to various institutions and botanical gardens. Some of the palm seed I've been involved with cultivating are in demand fetching good prices. These seeds or small plants that I've been involved with cultivating and vending have established themselves in palm gardens around the world. One of the people I've worked with in Hawaii has discovered two previously unknown palm species in C. America named after him. We're waiting for these palms to set seed.

Here you'll see this striking silver saw palmetto variety at Bok Gardens in Lake Wales or large plantings in Fairchild Gardens in Coral Gables in FL. http://www.botanical-journeys-plant-...etto-palm.html

Here are the cultivation protocols I currently employ: http://www.actahort.org/books/782/782_48.htm

[Dogwood]

Fresh seed prepared and germinated as directed is much better.

[Dogwood]

Ok, got another one for identification. At first glance I thought it might be an asparagus coming up but closer exam said no way. It's located in a groomed area of the DeWayne Hayes Recreation Area in Columbus, MS. The sprout is flexing in the spring breeze. 2ltr bottle is for size comparison. Sprout is approx. 1 foot from very mature tree.
DSCF3579.JPGDSCF3580.JPGDSCF3581.JPGDSCF3583.JPG

Hard to tell by me at this stage in it's development. Could be something related to or in the Japanese Knotweed family(Polygonum). It would be young spear, young plant. Once it opens could tell better. I've seen this. When I hear or find out what it is I'm going to say damn should have known.

Resembles a very young Veratrum album or viride stem too but I don't think it's a False Hellebore. I think I'm wrong about the Polygonum as well. Looks somewhat like a young pokeweed stem too.

[Venchka]

Ok, the locals here say it's not invasive. Found some in the campground that are landscape plantings. The ones along the road are bird plantings :-)

Been trying to sprout seeds of the wild saw palmetto plant without success. I suspect they have to be scarified. Anyone know if that is what is necessary?

Nandina is native to Asia. The locals think because you can buy them at a nursery that they aren't invasive. Another reason why we have so many annoying invasive species.
Wayne

[Dogwood]

As previously stated Nandina comes in cultivars that don't set fruit/seed which is the primary way it spreads afar. I named a few of these cultivars above. They can be very well behaved. One of the major problems in it spreading out in wide clumps is incorrect usage for the species or cultivar and questionable maintenance habits.

[zelph]

I believe it's the straight species Nandina. Not too far from the short plant that I photographed there are 2 plants with clear 4 foot length trunks. I'll see if I can get a photo of them tomorrow. The Corps of Engineers Campground that I'm staying at has 4 of the plants along side of a small bridge within the campground. I have to say that these plants are not invasive while in this area.

The saw palmetto seeds that I've scarified with a Dremel tool are slow to germinate. Just yesterday I read where the seeds should be kept at about 100 degrees for a length of time to increase the rate of germination. The scarified seeds have been soaking in water for at least 2 weeks. One of the seeds has a white nodule protruding from the scarified area. I'll take a photo of it tomorrow.

The silver saw palmetto variety at Bok Gardens in Lake Wales or large plantings in Fairchild Gardens in Coral Gables in FL. http://www.botanical-journeys-plant-...etto-palm.html are super awsome....thank you so much for the link :-) and for your insight to plant germination and care.

[Dogwood]

Nandina is native to Asia. The locals think because you can buy them at a nursery that they aren't invasive. Another reason why we have so many annoying invasive species.
Wayne

The big box hardware home improvement store "nurseries', who are just middle men - garden centers - NOT in the field/in the greenhouse growers themselves, are some of the most perverse in promoting invasive plant species, problematic monocultures and genera, Leyland cypress, Arborvitae(Thuja species especially Emerald Green/Smargd), Rosey purple leaved barberry, and some forms of Pennisetum and Miscanthus grasses for example, and, sometimes to often, have incorrect plant label specs. Buyers for these mega outlet stores are often selecting plants for vending over a wide regional area in large lots, often to reduce their own wholesale pricing through pre existing contracts, for many stores non selectively that invariably aren't hardy for the zones they are being vended, will grow larger than stated on labels(there's a tendency for plant labels in these stores to exhibit the marketing plant size sweet spot for residential foundation plantings which are so popular which may be smaller in scale on the label than in actual typical local growing conditions), or include such problematic statements for the residential home owner like "water when dry" or "Watering Needs: average."


BTW not all non native plants are invasive. For example, even though the Coconut Palm is not native to Florida or Hawaii I don't know of anyone complaining that it's not a native.