Strawberry tree
Arbutus unedo
Shrub or small tree of variable height up to 12m tall, with a thick and rounded top. Bark usually short. Rhytidome is initially red, later it shreds and darkens, showing brown lose strips. Branches are abundant and grow upward. Leaves are dark green and glossy (upper side) and light green (lower side), 4-11 long and 1.5-4 cm broad, oblong and serrated margin. Salient leaf ridge. Hermaphrodite flowers, bell-shaped; white corolla, 4-7 mm diameter. 10 stamens. Red berry, 1-2 cm diameter, globous, rough surface.
This species is native to the Mediterranean region and Western Europe, including western France and Ireland.
Legend: a. bark with different textures; b. a set of branches, including leaves, flowers (left), fruit (right), and a close-up of trichomes; c. polar view of a pollen grain (up) and a cross-section of a pollen grain (down); d. stamen; e. calyx and gynoecium; f. seed; g. corolla and reproductive organs; h. cross-section of the fruit; i. habit.
