BOTANICAL AND ECOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS
SPECIES: Oxydendrum arboreum | Sourwood 



GENERAL BOTANICAL CHARACTERISTICS : 
Sourwood is a native, deciduous, medium-sized tree, 40 to 60 feet (12-15
m) tall [13,30].  It develops a slender trunk and small crown in dense
stands.  In the open it forms a short, often leaning trunk dividing into
several stout, ascending limbs [32].  The inflorescence is a raceme
emanating from a central axis.  The simple, alternate leaves are 4 to 7
inches (10-18 cm) long and variable in shape.  The fruit is a capsule
0.25 to 0.5 inch (6-13 mm) long containing many tiny seeds [9,23,42].
No information on the rooting habit of sourwood was found in the
literature.


RAUNKIAER LIFE FORM : 
   Phanerophyte


REGENERATION PROCESSES : 
Seed production and dissemination:  Estimated seed production ranging
from 1,850,000 to 5,500,000 seeds per pound (4,080,000-12,250,000
seeds/kg) has been reported [32,42].  The fruits are shed in the fall
and the seeds are dispersed gradually throughout the winter by the
dehiscing capsule.  Sourwood seeds germinate well without special
treatment [32,33].

Seedling development:  Germination is epigeal.  Seedbed requirements for
sourwood have not been reported.  In the Piedmont, sourwood seed
germination and establishment may occur on litter and under partially
shaded conditions.  Techniques for sourwood seed collection, storage,
and germination have been described [32].

Vegetative reproduction:  Sourwood sprouts prolifically and persistently
from the stump and root crown [11,17].  It is difficult to propagate
from cuttings; no reports were found of propagation from grafting [32].


SITE CHARACTERISTICS : 
In the central Appalachian Mountains sourwood is most abundant on
subxeric open slopes and ridges occupied by chestnut oak (Quercus
prinus), white oak (Q. alba), scarlet oak (Q. coccinea), and Virginia
pine (Pinus virginiana).  It is less frequent on more mesic sites such
as coves and sheltered slopes.  Throughout this area sourwood is found
up to 5,000 feet (1,520 m) but rarely to 5,600 feet (1,710 m) in
elevation [3,6,32].

Sourwood grows throughout the Piedmont uplands.  It is also found along
Piedmont streams on well-drained lowland areas not subject to flooding.
In the Coastal Plain it is found on gently rolling areas.  Toward the
coast it is restricted to old dunes and well-drained slopes and ridges
above streams and swamp borders.  Sourwood is commonly found growing on
soils in the orders Ultisols, Inceptisols, and Entisols [5,26,32].

Other associates of sourwood in addition to the cover type species are
sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua), yellow-poplar (Liriodendron
tulipifera), southern red oak (Q. falcata), red and sugar maple (Acer
rubrum and A. saccharum), shagbark, bitternut, pignut, and mockernut
hickory (Carya ovata, C. cordiformis, C. glabra, and C. tomentosa),
white ash (Fraxinus americanus), American beech (Fagus grandifolia),
eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis), flowering dogwood (Cornus florida),
sassafras (Sassafras albidum), American hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana),
eastern hophornbeam (Ostrya virginiana), and redbud (Cercis canadensis)
[2,18,32].


SUCCESSIONAL STATUS : 
Facultative seral species.

Sourwood is shade tolerant.  In the Piedmont sourwood seedlings and
saplings are found in all stages of successsion from young pine (Pinus
spp.) stands to oak-hickory (Quercus spp.- Carya spp.)  forests.
Sourwood's response to release is not known [7,32,35].


SEASONAL DEVELOPMENT : 
Sourwood blooms from late June to August; the fruit ripens from
September through October [30,41].

Related categories for Species: Oxydendrum arboreum | Sourwood