Leatherleaf
Chamaedaphne calyculata (L.) Moench [Ericaceae]
Horomuitsutsuji (ホロムイツツジ, 幌向躑躅)
Life form: dwarf shrub < 1.5 m
Distribution: cool temperate Asia, northern Europe, Russia, and northern America
Habitat: wetlands (peat bog), such as Picea mariana forest
Varieties in the world
- var. angustifolia (Ait.) Rehd.
- var. latifolia (Ait.) Fern.
- var. nana (Lodd.) E. Busch: leaves < ca. 1 cm long
Chamaedaphne Moench in Japan
Etymology
chamai (Gr.) = low, on the ground
daphne (Gr.) = laurel
→ dwaraf laurel
One species in Japan
Chamaedaphne calyculata in Alaska
[Left] on Sphagnum mat. [Center] a shoot. [Right] close-up. On a slope in Poker Flats near Fairbanks, Alaska, six years after a wildfire on August 11 2010.