Louisiana Plant ID | Alnus serrulata (hazel alder)

FAMILY: BETULACEAE

ALTERNATE COMMON NAME: tag alder

LEAVES: alternate, simple, 1 1/2 to 2 1/2”, doubly serrate, wavy, rugose (sunken) veins, stipules persistent

FLOWER: catkin, unisexual

FRUIT: small cones, 1/2 to 3/4 inch diameter, persistent

TWIGS: terminal bud absent; triangular pith

BARK: brown-gray, smooth, fluted and twisted, similar to Carpinus (hornbeam)

FORM: Shrub or small tree

HABITAT: wet - stream banks, ponds, marshes

WETLAND DESIGNATION: Facultative Wetland (FACW): Usually occurs in wetlands, but may occur in non-wetlands of the Atlantic and Gulf Coast Plain Region

RANGE: southeastern US

USES:

Best Recognition Features:

persistent woody cone
doubly serrate leaf margins
persistent stipules
triangular pith

NOTES:

leaves - look like witch-hazel, but are serrate
bark - can be confused with eastern hophornbeam (ironwood), or bluebeech (hornbeam)

School of Renewable Natural Reources	Louisiana Plant Identification and Interactive Virtual Tours Dr. Chris S. Reid, Project Director \| creid4@lsu.edu LSU School of Renewable Natural Resources LSU AgCenter, Baton Rouge, LA © 2003-2020 website problems or broken links: mbowen@agcenter.lsu.edu page revised: 15-Jan-2020 4:11 PM msb	LSU AgCenter
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