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Pacific Madrone aka Strawberry Tree

Arbutus menziesii

Photo by HemaShah
Published on Project Noah
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37.9063, -122.065

Field Notes

Description:

Strawberry trees (Arbutus unedo) and Madrone (Arbutus menziesii) are mostly different in their growth characteristic, and the Strawberry tree fruits are bigger. It is also commonly used in landscaping in California, where Madrone is harder to cultivate, it prefers cliff edges if it can get them.
Pic 4 and 5 are the fruits of a Madrone. Smaller than the fruits of an Arbutus Unedo, fruits of which are shown in picture 6.

Species ID Suggestions

Comments (22)
HemaShah
BTW , I read on the internet that Pacific Madrone is aka Strawberry Tree!
HemaShah
@ Cindy , We have concluded and completed Identifying this tree. It is a "Madrone" and not a strawberry tree. Maybe there was a reason for yours to be Identified as a strawberry tree. I will look at your spotting and see if I find some clue.
HemaShah
@ Behn, i went back to the spotting and felt the texture of the fruit. It is not smooth . I agree with you that it is a Madrone, based on the rough texture of the fruit. You are a Dynamic tree spotter. Welcome to Project Noah!
HemaShah
Ok Behn,picture number 5 is my tree . Picture number 6 is for sure an Arbutus. What I can do is go back to my spotting and feel the texture of the fruit. That should help in the ID. Thanks again:))
Behn
And now that I've seen the new pics of the fruit posted, I'm POSITIVE that it is NOT a Manzanita, it definitely is an ARBUTUS.
Behn
Correct me if I'm getting this wrong here, but don't decide Manzanita just on height, that was just ONE species of Manzanita that reaches that height. Arbutus menziesii reaches 30 METERS. The key here is going to be the fruit. if they are smooth are smooth and hairy, it is a Manzanita, if they are roughly textured, it is more likely an Arbutus. Check out the texture on the fruit in this pic: http://www.botanicalgarden.ubc.ca/potd/arbutus_unedo_rubra.jpg
HemaShah
am going to ID this as a Manzanita based on the fact that this tree was 20 ft tall or more. Thanks for all your help!
HemaShah
pic number 6 is an Arbutus fruit which is textured.
HemaShah
@Behn, thanks much. Pic number 4 has the fruit.
Behn
Madrone is Arbutus menziesii, and the bark definitely peels like that. The tallest Manzanita is around 20 feet, for the Arctostaphylos glauca. The fruits of Arbutus and Arctostaphylos are significantly different. The Arbutus fruits have a very distinct texture, where Manzanita fruits are smooth or a little bit hairy.
HemaShah
There has to be some differentiating factor between the two species!!
HemaShah
This is definitely a tree. The reason I am saying it is a Manzanita is that in picture number two the red bark is typical and is peeling off,.and the fact that this is a tree Is Madrone a Arbutus species? Though I observed that the strawberry tree has a bark that is similar too.
Behn
The reason I'm saying Madrone, is the berries (look the same as those of Strawberry tree, but smaller), and the size of it. It looks to be more treeish than shrubbish. How tall is it?
HemaShah
@Behn, The floral arrangements are not the same and I would tend to lean more towards Manzanita. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arbutus_menziesii
HemaShah
@Behn, I was going to ask you to help us out. Like you mentioned there is such a similarity between the two !! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arctostaphylos
Behn
Manzanita's are real similar, it looks like Arbutus menziesii, Strawberry tree's native cousin.
HemaShah
Cindy what I have is a Manzanita species.
HemaShah
@ Cindy , I saw your pic. I will let you know the Id as soon as I confirm mine.
CindyBinghamKeiser
Oh no! I was given that ID for mine http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/6932589
HemaShah
Cindy,this is not a strawberry tree.

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PublishedAugust 11, 2011

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