Leaves

• 6-11.5 cm in length
• lance-shaped, fine toothed with a slender, sharp tip
• often curved to one side inward at the tip
• bright, shiny, green above, paler below, often turning bright red in autumn

Fruit

• bright red, berry-like
• ½ -1 cm. in diameter on a long stalk
• sour but edible flesh ripening in late August or early September

Bark

• thin and smooth
• dark reddish-brown, often marked by raised, horizontal elongated, orange, powdery markings (lenticles)

General

• most commonly a small tree
• 3 – 7.5 m in height
• grows on a variety of sites and is often found on new clearing and burned over area
• doesn’t grow well in shade, and in forests where is has become over shadowed
• it often appears to be dead or unhealthy
• although it has no commercial value, it is useful in preventing erosion in burned or cleared forest land