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Fruit and foliage

Chittamwood, Gum Bumelia, Woolybucket Bumelia, Gum Elastic, Wooly Buckthorn, Gum Woolybucket, Wooly Bumelia, False Buckthorn, Shittamwood, Ironwood, Coma
Bumelia lanuginosa

Sapotaceae

Chittamwood is usually found in open woods or along fence rows in all areas of Texas except the High Plains. The nearly evergreen leaves are thick and usually dark green on the upper surface, and white, gray, or tan underneath because of the numerous hairs. The inconspicious white flowers are borne in early to mid-summer in small clusters from the leaf axils and have a sweet and penetrating odor. One-inch-long, oval, blue-black berries ripen in the fall and are a good source of food for wildlife. The twigs are often armed with thorns at the tips. Children of early pioneers sometimes chewed the sap that oozed from cracks and wounds in the bark.

Plant Habit or Use: small tree

Exposure: sun partial sun

Flower Color: white clusters

Blooming Period: summer

Fruit Characteristics: blue to black berries

Height: to 80 ft.

Width: to 50 ft.

Plant Character: evergreen

Heat Tolerance: high

Water Requirements: low

Soil Requirements: adaptable

USDA Hardiness Zone: 5

Additional Comments:



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