Tree Description:
A thicket-forming shrub or small, multi-trunked tree to 25 feet tall and stems up to 6" in diameter, with a dense, conical or rounded crown of dark green foliage.
Range/Site Description:
Common on the fertile, moist soils of East Texas bottomlands, but also south to Matagorda Bay and west to the edge of the Edwards Plateau.
Leaf:
Simple, alternate, 1" to 2" long by 0.5" to 1" wide, oval, leathery, with blunt teeth along the margin. Leaves are glossy and dark green above, paler below, evergreen, and persistent for 2 to 3 years
Flower:
Small, whitish, not showy; male and female flowers are borne on separate plants.
Fruit:
A red, translucent, berry-like drupe, about 0.25" in diameter, on a short stalk, ripening in late fall and often produced in great abundance be the female plants.
Bark:
Light gray, smooth or leathery, sometimes developing thin scales and blotches on larger stems.
Wood:
Wood is of little commercial value except for fuel; plants are commonly sold in the nursery trade as a landscape specimen.
Similar Species:
Chinese privet (Ligustrum sinense) has opposite leaves and a spike of small, blue fruits.
Interesting Facts:
Yaupon leaves contains a small amount of caffeine and can be steeped into a weak tea. They also have been used ceremonially by native Americans as a purgative called the "Black Drink,", thus providing the source for the Latin species name, 'vomitoria.' The berries are favored by several bird species.
