Shrub 1 - 2 m tall Leaves: alternate, on a hairy, 2 - 5 mm long stalk, 5 - 8 cm long, to over 6 cm wide, broadly oblong to reverse egg-shaped to egg-shaped, woolly, becoming hairless with age. Inflorescence: a stalked cluster of two to three flowers. Flowers: nearly stalkless, pale yellow, 7 - 10 mm long, sepals fused into a funnel-shaped tube, without petals, subtended by hairy bud-scales. Tube somewhat constricted above the ovary. Stamens eight, exserted. Anthers orange. Style exceeding the stamens. Fruit: fleshy with a hard center (drupe), enclosed in the persistent sepals, yellowish green to purple, 1.2 - 1.5 cm long, ellipsoid. Twigs: jointed, flexible, often with a small spur at each node.
Similar species: No information at this time.
Flowering: April to early May, before the leaves
Habitat and ecology: Local in the Chicago Region. It has been found in moist woods, wooded bluffs along rivers and creeks, and on the shaded slopes of dunes.
Occurence in the Chicago region: native
Etymology: Dirca comes from the Greek word dirke, meaning fountain, in reference to the moist habitat of this plant. Palustris means "marsh loving."
Shrub 1-2 m; lvs broadly oblong-obovate or obovate to ovate, 5-8 cm, on petioles 2-5 mm; fls 7-10 mm, the stamens protruding 3 mm; fr ellipsoid, 12-15 mm, pale yellowish- green, quickly deciduous. Rich, moist woods; N.S. and s. Que. to Minn., s. to Fla., Ala., Ark., and Okla.
Gleason, Henry A. & Cronquist, Arthur J. 1991. Manual of vascular plants of northeastern United States and adjacent Canada. lxxv + 910 pp.