Introductory
SPECIES: Symphoricarpos mollis | Creeping Snowberry 



ABBREVIATION : 
SYMMOL

SYNONYMS : 
   Symphoricarpos hesperius


SCS PLANT CODE : 
   SYMO


COMMON NAMES : 
   creeping snowberry
   snowberry
   spreading snowberry
   trailing snowberry


TAXONOMY : 
The currently accepted scientific name of creeping snowberry is
Symphoricarpos mollis Nutt. (Caprifoliaceae). There are three recognized
varieties [15,16,24] and one recognized subspecies [33]:

Symphoricarpos mollis var. hesperius (G.N. Jones)
S. mollis var. mollis
S. mollis var. acutus Gray
S. mollis ssp. hesperius


LIFE FORM : 
Shrub

FEDERAL LEGAL STATUS : 
No special status

OTHER STATUS : 
NO-ENTRY


COMPILED BY AND DATE : 
S. A. Snyder, August 1991


LAST REVISED BY AND DATE : 
NO-ENTRY


AUTHORSHIP AND CITATION : 
Snyder, S. A. 1991. Symphoricarpos mollis. In: Remainder of Citation

DISTRIBUTION AND OCCURRENCE
SPECIES: Symphoricarpos mollis | Creeping Snowberry 



GENERAL DISTRIBUTION : 
Creeping snowberry has a very limited range, from southern, coastal
British Columbia south to southern California and from Washington east
to northern Idaho [15,16,24,33].  Distribution of the varieties are as
follows [15]:

                var. hesperius - from southern British Columbia to
                                 northwestern California
                var. acutus - Sierra Nevada Mountains and southern
                              Cascade Mountains
                var. mollis - cismontane California


ECOSYSTEMS : 
   FRES20  Douglas-fir
   FRES21  Ponderosa pine
   FRES23  Fir - spruce
   FRES24  Hemlock - Sitka spruce
   FRES27  Redwood
   FRES28  Western hardwoods
   FRES34  Chaparral - mountain shrub


STATES : 
     CA  ID  OR  WA  BC


ADMINISTRATIVE UNITS : 
     CRLA  MORA  OLYM  PINN  REDW  SAMO
     YOSE


BLM PHYSIOGRAPHIC REGIONS : 
   1  Northern Pacific Border
   2  Cascade Mountains
   3  Southern Pacific Border
   4  Sierra Mountains
   5  Columbia Plateau
   8  Northern Rocky Mountains


KUCHLER PLANT ASSOCIATIONS : 
   K004  Fir - hemlock forest
   K005  Mixed conifer forest
   K006  Redwood forest
   K007  Red fir forest
   K011  Western ponderosa forest
   K012  Douglas-fir forest
   K029  California mixed evergreen forest
   K030  California oakwoods
   K033  Chaparral


SAF COVER TYPES : 
   207  Red fir
   210  Interior Douglas-fir
   211  White fir
   213  Grand fir
   221  Red alder
   224  Western hemlock
   229  Pacific Douglas-fir
   230  Douglas-fir - western hemlock
   231  Port-Orford-cedar
   241  Western live oak
   243  Sierra Nevada mixed conifer
   244  Pacific ponderosa pine - Douglas-fir
   245  Pacific ponderosa pine 246
   246  California black oak
   247  Jeffrey pine
   248  Knobcone pine


SRM (RANGELAND) COVER TYPES : 
NO-ENTRY


HABITAT TYPES AND PLANT COMMUNITIES : 
Creeping snowberry is a dominant shrub in a few forested communities.
Publications listing creeping snowberry as an indicator or dominant
species in habitat types (hts) and plant associations (pas) are listed
below.

Area                 Classification               Authority

OR: Siskiyou         forest hts                   Atzet & Wheeler
Mountain Prov.                                    1984
OR: Willamette NF    forest pas                   Hemstrom & others
                                                  1987
WA: Gifford Pinchot  forest pas                   Topik 1989
NF   

VALUE AND USE
SPECIES: Symphoricarpos mollis | Creeping Snowberry 



WOOD PRODUCTS VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE : 
NO-ENTRY


PALATABILITY : 
NO-ENTRY


NUTRITIONAL VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


COVER VALUE : 
Creeping snowberry provides nesting cover for the endangered least
Bell's vireo, in southern California [10].


VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES : 
Creeping snowberry is useful for erosion control because of its rhizomes
[21].  It can be propagated through cuttings or, less successfully, by
seed.  Seeds should be collected from September through October.  


OTHER USES AND VALUES : 
Traditionally, Native Americans crushed the leaves of creeping snowberry
to treat sores and wounds.  The bark was boiled to remedy tuberculosis
and venereal disease.  Stems were used for arrows and pipes [11].


MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
Saponin in the leaves of creeping snowberry could be toxic to livestock
and wildlife, but no ill effects have been reported on Western ranges
[31].

Creeping snowberry did not show significant increases in cover until 40
years following clearcutting and broadcast burning in western hemlock
(Tsuga heterophylla)/Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) habitat types
in the western Cascade Mountains of Oregon [28].

BOTANICAL AND ECOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS
SPECIES: Symphoricarpos mollis | Creeping Snowberry 



GENERAL BOTANICAL CHARACTERISTICS : 
Creeping snowberry is a trailing shrub about 1.5 to 2 feet (0.3-1.5 m)
high. Its branches trail from 3 to 6 feet (1-3 m).  Leaves are opposite
on hairy twigs; flowers form clusters.  Creeping snowberry produces a
white, round fruit with two nutletts [11,15,24].
  


RAUNKIAER LIFE FORM : 
   Phanerophyte


REGENERATION PROCESSES : 
Creeping snowberry mainly reproduces by rhizomes.  It is typically not a
seed banker as seeds "probably are not viable for long or do not survive
fire" [22].  Birds and small mammals disperse seeds [11].  To break
dormancy, seeds can be treated with sulfuric acid and stratified for 6
months in sand or soil at temperatures between 36 to 46 degrees
Fahrenheit (2-8 degrees C) [21].


SITE CHARACTERISTICS : 
Creeping snowberry most commonly occurs on dry, sunny slopes at low to mid
elevations [2,4,11,16,33], although it can occur in shady, mesic communities
as well [6,24,25].  Creeping snowberry forms its greatest cover in 60 to
100 percent full sunlight [7].  Elevational ranges have been listed for
California: 1,000 to 5,000 feet (305-1,500 m) [6,12] and Oregon: 1,000
to 6,480 feet (305-1,975m) [2,3,29].  Creeping snowberry occurs on
coarse sands and gravels, sandy alluvium deposits, as well as fine
sandy-loam and silt loams, and moderately deep floodplains and terraces
[13,20].  In British Columbia creeping snowberry occurs in maritime and
submaritime climates on moderately dry nitrogen-medium soils [33].

Some overstory associates of creeping snowberry include big leaf maple
(Acer macrophyllum), California hazel (Corylus cornuta), incense-cedar
(Calocedrus decurrens), red alder (Alnus rubra), white fir (Abies
concolor), red fir (A.  magnifica), western hemlock, and Douglas-fir.
Some understory associates include redstem ceanothus (Ceanothus
sanguineus), salal (Gaultheria shallon), red huckleberry (Vaccinium
parvifolium) oceanspray (Holodiscus spp.), rhododendron (Rhododendron
spp.), mahonia (Berberis spp.), currant (Ribes spp.), rattail fescue
(Festuca myuros), and silver hairgrass (Aira caryophyllea) [3,4].


SUCCESSIONAL STATUS : 
Creeping snowberry is an indicator in some forested communities of the
Pacific Northwest [1,11,29].  It is shade intolerant and
indicative of warm, dry sites [10,14,33].  It becomes a dominant shrub
in Monterey pine (Pinus radiata) stand openings [19].  


SEASONAL DEVELOPMENT : 
Flowering dates for creeping snowberry have been listed as follows:

Oregon: June through July [11]
southern California: March through August [6]

FIRE ECOLOGY
SPECIES: Symphoricarpos mollis | Creeping Snowberry 



FIRE ECOLOGY OR ADAPTATIONS : 
Creeping snowberry reproduces by rhizomes following fire [22].


POSTFIRE REGENERATION STRATEGY : 
   survivor species; on-site surviving rhizomes
   off-site colonizer; seed carried by animals or water; postfire yr 1&2

FIRE EFFECTS
SPECIES: Symphoricarpos mollis | Creeping Snowberry 



IMMEDIATE FIRE EFFECT ON PLANT : 
Creeping snowberry is usually top-killed by fire [22].  Some consider
it to be a weak sprouter after fire because rhizomes in the humus layer
can be destroyed [25].


DISCUSSION AND QUALIFICATION OF FIRE EFFECT : 
NO-ENTRY


PLANT RESPONSE TO FIRE : 
Creeping snowberry sprouts from rhizomes following fire [22].


DISCUSSION AND QUALIFICATION OF PLANT RESPONSE : 
In northern Idaho creeping snowberry increased to a maximum 100 percent
canopy cover five years following a clearcut and low severity broadcast
burn; it increased to a 95 percent cover after a high severity broadcast
burn [23].



FIRE MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
Creeping snowberry is a potential spot fire hazard when near firelines
[25].

References for species: Symphoricarpos mollis

1. Atzet, Thomas; Wheeler, David L. 1982. Historical and ecological perspectives on fire activity in the Klamath Geological Province of the Rogue River and Siskiyou National Forests. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Region. 16 p. [6252]

2. Atzet, Thomas; Wheeler, David L. 1984. Preliminary plant associations of the Siskiyou Mountain Province. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Region. 278 p. [9351]

3. Bailey, Arthur Wesley. 1966. Forest associations and secondary succession in the southern Oregon Coast Range. Corvallis, OR: Oregon State University. 166 p. Thesis. [5786]

4. Bailey, Arthur W.; Poulton, Charles E. 1968. Plant communities and environmental interrelationships in a portion of the Tillamook Burn, northwestern Oregon. Ecology. 49(1): 1-13. [6232]

5. Bernard, Stephen R.; Brown, Kenneth F. 1977. Distribution of mammals, reptiles, and amphibians by BLM physiographic regions and A.W. Kuchler's associations for the eleven western states. Tech. Note 301. Denver, CO: U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management. 169 p. [434]

6. Conrad, C. Eugene. 1987. Common shrubs of chaparral and associated ecosystems of southern California. Gen. Tech. Rep. PSW-99. Berkeley, CA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Forest and Range Experiment Station. 86 p. [4209]

7. Emmingham, W. H. 1972. Conifer growth and plant distribution under different light environments in the Siskiyou Mountains of southwestern Oregon. Corvallis, OR: Oregon State University. 50 p. Thesis. [9651]

8. Eyre, F. H., ed. 1980. Forest cover types of the United States and Canada. Washington, DC: Society of American Foresters. 148 p. [905]

9. Garrison, George A.; Bjugstad, Ardell J.; Duncan, Don A.; [and others]. 1977. Vegetation and environmental features of forest and range ecosystems. Agric. Handb. 475. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service. 68 p. [998]

10. Gray, M. Violet; Greaves, James M. 1984. Riparian forest as habitat for the least Bell's vireo. In: Warner, Richard E.; Hendrix, Kathleen M., eds. California riparian systems: Ecology, conservation, and productive management: Proceedings of a conference; 1981 September 17-19; Davis, CA. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press: 605-611. [5862]

11. Halverson, Nancy M., compiler. 1986. Major indicator shrubs and herbs on National Forests of western Oregon and southwestern Washington. R6-TM-229. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Region. 180 p. [3233]

12. Halvorson, William L.; Clark, Ronilee A. 1989. Vegetation and floristics of Pinnacles National Monument. Tech. Rep. No. 34. Davis, CA: University of California at Davis, Institute of Ecology, Cooperative National Park Resources Study Unit. 113 p. [11883]

13. Hawk, G. M.; Zobel, D. B. 1974. Forest succession on alluvial landforms of the McKenzie River Valley, Oregon. Northwest Science. 48(4): 245-265. [9686]

14. Hemstrom, Miles A.; Logan, Sheila E.; Pavlat, Warren. 1987. Plant association and management guide: Willamette National Forest. R6-Ecol 257-B-86. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Region. 312 p. [13402]

15. Hitchcock, C. Leo; Cronquist, Arthur; Ownbey, Marion. 1959. Vascular plants of the Pacific Northwest. Part 4: Ericaceae through Campanulaceae. Seattle, WA: University of Washington Press. 510 p. [1170]

16. Hitchcock, C. Leo; Cronquist, Arthur. 1973. Flora of the Pacific Northwest. Seattle, WA: University of Washington Press. 730 p. [1168]

17. Kuchler, A. W. 1964. Manual to accompany the map of potential vegetation of the conterminous United States. Special Publication No. 36. New York: American Geographical Society. 77 p. [1384]

18. Lyon, L. Jack; Stickney, Peter F. 1976. Early vegetal succession following large northern Rocky Mountain wildfires. In: Proceedings, Tall Timbers fire ecology conference and Intermountain Fire Research Council fire and land management symposium; 1974 October 8-10; Missoula, MT. No. 14. Tallahassee, FL: Tall Timbers Research Station: 355-373. [1496]

19. McDonald, Philip M.; Laacke, Robert J. 1990. Pinus radiata D. Don Monterey pine. In: Burns, Russell M.; Honkala, Barbara H., technical coordinators. Silvics of North America. Volume 1. Conifers. Agric. Handb. 654. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service: 433-441. [13401]

20. McNeil, Robert C.; Zobel, Donald B. 1980. Vegetation and fire history of a ponderosa pine-white fir forest in Crater Lake National Park. Northwest Science. 54(1): 30-46. [166]

21. Mirov, N. T.; Kraebel, C. J. 1937. Collecting and propagating the seeds of California wild plants. Res. Note No. 18. Berkeley, CA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, California Forest and Range Experiment Station. 27 p. [9787]

22. Meeuwig, Richard O.; Bassett, Richard L. 1983. Pinyon-juniper. In: Burns, Russell M., compiler. Silvicultural systems for the major forest types of the United States. Agriculture Handbook No. 445. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service: 84-86. [3899]

23. Fetcher, Ned; Beatty, Thomas F.; Mullinax, Ben; Winkler, Daniel S. 1984. Changes in arctic tussock tundra thirteen years after fire. Ecology. 65(4): 1332-1333. [7234]

24. Munz, Philip A. 1973. A California flora and supplement. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press. 1905 p. [6155]

25. Neuenschwander, L. F. [n.d.]. The fire induced autecology of selected shrubs of the cold desert and surrounding forests: A-state-of-the-art-review. Moscow, ID: University of Idaho, College of Forestry, Wildlife and Range Sciences. In cooperation with: Fire in Multiple Use Management, Research, Development, and Applications Program, Northern Forest Fire Laboratory, Missoula, MT. 30 p. Unpublished manuscript on file at: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Intermountain Fire Sciences Laboratory, Missoula, MT. [1747]

26. Ossinger, Mary C. 1983. The Pseudotsuga-Tsuga/Rhododendron community in the northeast Olympic Mountains. Bellingham, WA: Western Washington University. 50 p. Thesis. [11435]

27. Sawyer, John O.; Thornburgh, Dale A. 1977. Montane and subalpine vegetation of the Klamath Mountains. In: Barbour, Michael G.; Major, Jack, eds. Terrestrial vegetation of California. New York: John Wiley & Sons: 699-732. [685]

28. Schoonmaker, Peter; McKee, Arthur. 1988. Species composition and diversity during secondary succession of coniferous forests in the western Cascade Mountains of Oregon. Forest Science. 34(4): 960-979. [6214]

29. Topik, Christopher. 1989. Plant association and management guide for the grand fir zone, Gifford Pinchot National Forest. R6-Ecol-TP-006-88. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Region. 110 p. [11361]

30. Ferguson, Dennis E.; Boyd, Raymond J. 1988. Bracken fern inhibition of conifer regeneration in northern Idaho. Ogden, UT: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Intermountain Research Station. 11 p. [2834]

31. Tiedmann, Arthur R.; McArthur, E. Durant; Stutz, Howard C.; [and others], compilers. 1984. 1984 Proceedings--symposium on the biology of Atriplex and related chenopods; 1983 May 2-6; Provo, UT. Gen. Tech. Rep. INT-172. Ogden, UT: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Intermountain Forest and Range Experiment Station. 309 p. [2337]

32. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Soil Conservation Service. 1982. National list of scientific plant names. Vol. 1. List of plant names. SCS-TP-159. Washington, DC. 416 p. [11573]

33. Klinka, K.; Krajina, V. J.; Ceska, A.; Scagel, A. M. 1989. Indicator plants of coastal British Columbia. Vancouver, BC: University of British Columbia Press. 288 p. [10703]

Related categories for Species: Symphoricarpos mollis | Creeping Snowberry