Kalmia angustifolia L.

Sheep laurel

About plant names...

Sheep laurel is native to North America.

Plants: Sheep laurel is 6-36" (15-91 cm) tall, spreading wider over time. A unique identifying feature of this plant is that each stem is terminated by 3-leaf clusters rather than flowers; the flowers grow in clumps along the stem instead.

Leaves: Oval, with smooth edges, yellow-green or blue-green in color, 1-2" (2.5-5 cm) long and about ½-1¼" (1.3-3.2 cm) wide. The leaf undersides are pale.

Flowers: A beautiful bright pink color, occurring in clusters of about 10-30, each about ⅜-½" (9.5-12 mm) across.

Fruits: Fruits are light brown, small capsules with five sections.

Edibility: Poisonous This plant is highly toxic to sheep as well as people, and can be fatal to either. Toxic ingredients include andromedotoxin and arbutin.

Online References:

Kalmia angustifolia at the University of Connecticut Plant Database

Kalmia angustifolia on the Virginia Tech Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation

Kalmia angustifolia at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

Kalmia angustifolia on Plants for a Future, a resource and information centre for edible and otherwise useful plants

Kalmia angustifolia at the Virginia Tech Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation

Kalmia angustifolia on the USDA Forest Service's Fire Effects Information Database

6/2/2016 · Townsend Wildlife Management Area, Townsend, Mass­a­chu­setts

6/8/2012 · Townsend Wildlife Management Area, Townsend, Mass­a­chu­setts
≈ 3½ × 5" (9.2 × 13 cm)

5/25/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Ayer, Mass­a­chu­setts
≈ 6 × 4½" (14 × 12 cm)

6/21/2017 · Pearl Hill State Park, Townsend, Mass­a­chu­setts
≈ 4½ × 7" (12 × 18 cm)

6/8/2012 · Townsend Wildlife Management Area, Townsend, Mass­a­chu­setts
≈ 5 × 3½" (13 × 9.2 cm)

This looks like a cultivar. · 6/22/2017 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Mass­a­chu­setts
≈ 5 × 4" (13 × 10 cm)

7/12/2015 · Mt. Kearsarge, Wilmot/Warner, New Hamp­shire
≈ 9 × 6" (22 × 15 cm)

8/22/2020 · Kettle Hole Bog, Hidden Valley Nature Center, Jefferson, Maine
≈ 7 × 4½" (18 × 12 cm)

6/8/2012 · Townsend Wildlife Management Area, Townsend, Mass­a­chu­setts
≈ 5 × 8" (13 × 19 cm)

Kalmia angustifolia description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 23 Aug 2020.

© FloraFinder.org. All rights reserved.

6/2/2016 · Townsend Wildlife Management Area, Townsend, Mass­a­chu­setts

6/21/2017 · Pearl Hill State Park, Townsend, Mass­a­chu­setts
≈ 4 × 6" (10 × 15 cm)

8/22/2020 · Kettle Hole Bog, Hidden Valley Nature Center, Jefferson, Maine
≈ 5 × 4½" (13 × 12 cm)

6/17/2013 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Nashoba Hospital, Mass­a­chu­setts
≈ 6 × 5" (16 × 13 cm)

7/12/2015 · Mt. Kearsarge, Wilmot/Warner, New Hamp­shire
≈ 9 × 6" (22 × 15 cm)

9/19/2009 · Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Maine
≈ 5 × 8" (13 × 19 cm) ID is uncertain

9/14/2010 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Mass­a­chu­setts
≈ 21 × 14" (52 × 34 cm)

6/21/2017 · Pearl Hill State Park, Townsend, Mass­a­chu­setts
≈ 3 × 4" (8.1 × 10 cm)

This looks like a cultivar. · 6/22/2017 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Mass­a­chu­setts
≈ 6 × 4" (16 × 11 cm)

5/30/2015 · Townsend Wildlife Area
≈ 7 × 5" (17 × 13 cm)

7/12/2015 · Mt. Kearsarge, Wilmot/Warner, New Hamp­shire
≈ 8 × 5" (19 × 13 cm)

9/26/2016 · Henry E. Cowdrey Nature Center, Lunenberg, Mass­a­chu­setts

Range:

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