greenbark ceanothus Rhamnaceae Ceanothus spinosus Nutt. Listen to the Latin symbol: CESP Other Fact Sheets
Leaf: Alternate, simple, evergreen, oval, 1 to 3 inches long, thick, entire margins, shiny green and glabrous above and paler below; leaves may be toothed on vigorous shoots.
Flower: Perfect and complete small white to pale lilac flowers borne in long terminal or axillary clusters; appearing February to May.
Fruit: Small, round to triangular, sticky capsule up to 3/16 inch in diameter' each lobe is ridged.
Twig: Slender, smooth, angled, and stiff, often terminating in thorns; bright green to tannish green.
Bark: Initially bright green, becoming gray and rough.
Form: An erect, loosely branched shrub or small tree to 20 feet tall.

 Looks like: whitethorn ceanothus - snowbrush - redstem ceanothus - deerbrush
leaf twig bark form1 map
Additional Range Information:
Ceanothus spinosus is native to North America.
Range may be expanded by planting.
See states reporting greenbark ceanothus.
External Links:
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
Virginia Tech Homepage CNRE FREC