speckled alder Betulaceae Alnus incana ssp. rugosa (L.) Moench ssp. rugosa (Du Roi) R.T. Clausen symbol: ALINR Leaf: Alternate, simple, oval, doubly serrated, 2 to 4 inches long, dull dark green above, paler and may be velvety below. Flower: Species is monoecious; in small clusters, preformed male catkins are 1/2 to 1 inch long, slender and green; females are much smaller, reddish green, open in early spring. Fruit: Cone-like, 1/2 inch long, brown when ripe, each scale enclosing a very small winged seed, mature in late summer, and persistent Twig: Moderate, gray-brown to reddish brown, velvety, lighter lenticels, buds stalked, plump and reddish brown. Bark: Smooth reddish brown with numerous conspicuous horizontal white to light orange lenticels. Form: Small clumping shrub that reaches 25 feet in height. Looks like: thinleaf alder - hazel alder - Sitka alder Additional Range Information: Alnus incana ssp. rugosa is native to North America. Range may be expanded by planting. See states reporting speckled alder. External Links: USDAFS Additional Silvics USDA Plants Database © Copyright 2016, Virginia Tech Dept. of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation, all rights reserved. Photos and text by: John Seiler, Edward Jensen, Alex Niemiera, and John Peterson