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Cercocarpus ledifolius
Mountain Mahogany   

Family Rosaceae (Rose Family)

Description

This low growing tree (2-5 meters tall) has distinctive aromatic foliage. The leaves are evergreen and curled under. In the spring, Mountain Mahogony is covered in small yellow flowers. It has extremely hard wood, and can be single or multiple stemmed.

Range

Occurs in the intermountain west, west into California and north into Washington and Montana. Elevation: 5,000-10,000 feet.

Culture

Prefers dry, gravelly slopes. Low water requirement. Zones 3 - 8.

Value

Mountain mahogany is a marvelous small tree that would look good in any landscape, especially a low-water one. It is the only broadleaf evergreen tree in the Mountain West, and as such it offers an interesting winter contrast, as well as a nice, compact size, to you standard landscape conifer. It achieves a rather gnarly, and quite intriguing, shape with age, and once mature has seeds with long, cork-screw-feather-like plumes that cover the tree, creating an almost fuzzy appearance from distance. Become multistemmed as seedling, so would need training to achieve a more tree form.

Propagation

Seeds have a low germination rate, as they are extremely dormant. Soaking the seeds in hydrogen peroxide (from the market) for 24 hours will help break the dormancy. Rinse seed and cold treat for 30 to 60 days. Sow seed into container and cover to depth. To sow seed outdoors in the desired location use a generous amount of seed and cover with ¼" of soil. Sow any time of year and start watching for plants the following spring. Can be produced from cuttings in the spring from the previous seasons growth.