Leatherwood is a unique, interesting and well-mannered shrub that deserves a more prominent place in the home landscape. I've had native plant collectors ask specifically for this shrub.
It's a relatively tidy plant that often takes the shape of a tree, with a single trunk under a leafy crown. It likes morning sun and even thrives in heavy shade--attracting butterflies, bees and beetles to its early spring blooms. Birds and small mammals feast on the reddish fruits that ripen in early summer.
Kind of like Redbud, Leatherwood's pale yellow flowers poke out all along the twigs and branches before the foliage emerges.
Its leaves are clear yellow in fall, and in winter its twigs take on reddish tones and are so rubbery they can be tied in a knot without breaking.
Fun fact: Native Americans used the twigs to make bow strings and fishing line.
1st photo: Fritz Flohr Reynolds
Leatherwood
- Latin: Dirca palustris
- Pollinator value: Medium
- Current height: 1-2 feet
- Mature height: 3-6 feet; 4-6 foot spread
- Light: Part to full shade
- Soil: moist
- Bloom: Pale yellow, among the first to emerge in spring
- Foliage: Unfolds in March, bright yellow-white fall
- Fruits: Olive-like, summer; two best for fruit
- Bark: Blue-grey
- Landscape: Shade or native plant garden, along ponds and streams
- Resistance: Deer, rabbits
- More information and native range here