Encyclopedia
of Stanford Trees, Shrubs, and VinesEncyclopedia
of Stanford Trees, Shrubs, and Vines
RHAMNACEAE (Buckthorn family)
Like the coffeeberry that grows in the hills near Stanford, the evergreen Italian buckthorn has 2-inch lanceolate, leathery, glossy leaves, with sparse teeth and with a paler color below, and clusters of 1/4-inch fruits that are red before turning black. Two rows, running toward Old Anatomy, are growing at the northwest corner of the Cantor Center. Curiously, this plant is under pest control in New Zealand. California coffeeberry, R. californica, is widely planted on campus, including Serra Mall. At Stanford Sierra Camp one may see R. rubra, the Sierra coffeeberry.
Illus.: The secondary leaf veins of the genus Rhamnus are festooned: they loop together at their ends.
Illustrations (links open new windows): branchlet
Additions/Revisions: Italian buckthorn is weedy in wild areas of campus.Name derivation, genus | species
Related material: Botanical
name index | Common name index | Family
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