Garrya wrightii
Garrya wrightii is a species of flowering plant in the family Garryaceae known by the common names Wright's silktassel, quinine-bush, coffee berry, bearberry, feverbush, and grayleaf dogwood.
Distribution
The plant is native to northern Mexico and to the southwestern United States in Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas. It is found growing on rocky slopes and in crevices of cliffs, from in elevation.Description
Garrya wrightii is a shrub slowly growing up to tall. It has branches that are square in cross-section and thick, tough leaves.The species is dioecious with male and female reproductive parts occurring on separate plants. Both flower types are borne in catkin-like spikes. They are green.
The fruit is a rounded purple berry under a centimeter wide containing one or two seeds. The seeds are dispersed by birds that eat the berries.
Ecology
This shrub grows in chaparral, pinyon-juniper woodlands, and Madrean pine-oak woodlands. It is rarely dominant but it occurs in many types of plant communities.It grows alongside many species of oak such as Emory oak (Quercus [emoryi)], gray oak (Quercus grisea), and Coahuila scrub oak (Quercus intricata).
Other plants in the habitats may include birchleaf mountain-mahogany, true mountain-mahogany, skunkbush sumac, desert ceanothus, pointleaf manzanita, Pringle manzanita, yellowleaf silktassel, and hollyleaf buckthorn.
It is adapted to wildfire-prone habitat, resprouting after being top-killed in fires.
Uses
Small amounts of rubber can be made from it.Livestock occasionally eat the plant, goats are especially partial to it. Cattle tend to dislike it because of its bitter taste. Many wild ungulates, such as mule deer, bighorn sheep, and elk browse it.