SCIENTIFIC NAME: Oxydendrum arboreum

COMMON NAME: sourwood, sorrel tree

LEAVES: Alternate with a lanceolate shape. Serrulate margins (very fine teeth). Excellent red fall color. Pointed at both ends. Leaves have a sour taste. Stem forms a hump where petiole attached (node).

FLOWERS: White in hanging racemes in July (looks like Chinese lantern). Very attractive.

BARK: Ridge and furrowed with age.

OTHER: Grows 30' to 50' tall. New growth is green. Found only in acid soils (indicator tree). White flowers in July that bees like to work. Used to make sourwood honey. Hard to transplant. Use container grown trees only. Very drought tolerant. A member of the Ericaceae family. Requires acid pH. Fall webworms can be a problem on this species.