Sideroxylon lanuginosum (formerly Bumelia lanuginosum)
Family: Sapotaceae
Plant Description: Two subspecies. Sideroxylon l. oblongifolium A spiny deciduous shrub or tree to 6 m or higher. Leaves oblanceolate to obovate or elliptic, mostly 3.5-6 cm long. Flowers in kkaxillary clusters, the corolla 5-7 mm long, white to creamy. Fruits 7-13 mm long, purplish black. Frequent on sandy or sometimes clayey soils in pastures, woods, and mottes, blooms April-June. Sideroxylon l. rigidum is a deciduous or semi-evergreen shrub to 2 m height with leaves as in S. lanuginosum oblongifolium but usually only 2-3 cm long. Flower in dense clusters, the corolla about 3 mm long, white. Known only from brushy pasture east of Calallen on sandy loam. Blooms Dec.-April.
Field Identification Traits: Bark is mottled gray to brown with long sharp spines at the end of the twigs.
Plant Trivia:
Plant Uses: Good wildlife plant for food, shelter, and nesting. Fruit is eaten in Mexico and is used as an aphrodisiac. Its heartwood is occasionally used in cabinet work.
Dichotomous Key to the Genus Sideroxylon:
- Leaves glabrous or nearly so……………..S. celastrinum
Leaves woolly beneath…………………….S. lanuginosum
stxflora 