North Carolina Botanical Garden

Plant Index

Scientific Name:
Common Name:
Genus:
Family:

Cephalanthus occidentalis

Cephalanthus occidentalis L.

buttonbush, common buttonbush

Synonym(s): Cephalanthus occidentalis var. californicus, Cephalanthus occidentalis var. pubescens

Image ID: 8650
Image by: Cotterman, Laura
Image Collection: NCBG Digital Library

PLANT INDEX

ID_PLANT: CEOC2
SCIENTIFIC NAME: Cephalanthus occidentalis
Include in WOTAS: 0
Publish to Web: 1
Last Modified: 2019-06-04

GENUS INDEX

GENUS CODE: CEPHA
GENUS SCIENTIFIC: Cephalanthus
GENUS AUTHORITY: L.
GENUS COMMON: Buttonbush
GENUS SUMMARY: A genus of about 6 species, of tropical and temperate America.
GENUS IDENTIFICATION:
GENUS REFERENCES: Rogers (1987)=Z; Ridsdale (1976)=Y.

FAMILY INDEX

FAMILY CODE: RUBIAC
FAMILY SCIENTIFIC: Rubiaceae
FAMILY AUTHORITY: A.L. de Jussieu 1789
FAMILY COMMON: Madder Family
FAMILY SUMMARY: A family of about 630-650 genera and 10,200-13,000 species, trees, shrubs, vines, and rarely herbs, cosmopolitan, but especially diverse in tropical and subtropical areas. Subfamily and tribe classification follows Bremer & Eriksson (2009).
FAMILY REFERENCE: Bremer & Eriksson (2009); Rogers (1987, 2005).

NCBG DESCRIPTIVES

INTRO:
STEMS:
LEAVES:
INFLORESCENCE:
FLOWERS:
FRUITS:
COMMENTS:
HEIGHT: 4-8 ft.

DURATION: Perennial
HABIT: Shrub, Tree

LEAF ARRANGEMENT:
LEAF COMPLEXITY: Simple
LEAF RETENTION: Deciduous

FLORAL CHARACTERISTICS
SYMMETRY:
BLOOM TIME: June-July

Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
				x	x	x	x	x

BLOOM COLOR: White flowers

White	Red	Pink	Orange	Yellow	Green	Blue	Lavender	Purple	Violet	Brown	Not Applicable
x		x

FRUITING PERIOD:

DISTRIBUTION
HABITAT TYPE:
NATIVE RANGE: eastern North America

HORTICULTURAL
Plant Sale Text: Common buttonbush is a southeastern native shrub that is easy to grow and an excellent choice for naturalizing. Interesting globular heads of creamy-white flowers are a preferred nectar source for ruby-throated hummingbirds. The sweetly fragrant flower heads persist for several months. A single shrub will spread at a moderate rate into a handsome thicket. This species is easy to grow although it is infrequently offered for sale. Attractive to pollinators. The genus Cephalanthus supports up to 19 species of lepidoptera. 2023 N.C. Wildflower of the Year

Bloom Table Text:

NCBG Location:

Cultural Notes:

SOIL MOISTURE: Average, Moist/Wet
LIGHT EXPOSURE: Sun, Part Shade, Shade
MINIMUM HARDINESS ZONE: 5
MAXIMUM HARDINESS ZONE: 10
GERMINATION CODE: 1
WILDLIFE VALUE: Bee Friendly, Butterfly Friendly, Hummingbird Friendly
DEER RESISTANCE:

GRIM COLLECTIONS

Coll_id	Project	Collection date	Collector	Action
212	HORT	2008-05-01	Gocke	View
512	SOS	2015-10-01	Dakar	View
528	SOS	2015-10-01	Maynard	View
598	SOS	2015-10-18	Driskill	View
814	SOS	2016-10-26	Walker	View
1140	HORT	1981-01-01		View
2226	NPMD	2019-09-12	Touloupas	View

GRIM ACCESSIONS

acc_id	acc_num	acc_dt	coll_id	Action
213	2011-0036	2011-01-31	212	View
3236	1990-0083			View
3817	1991-0512			View
4589	1992-0745			View
5832	1995-0959			View
6753	1996-0411			View
7784	2001-0140	2001-06-27		View
7867	2002-0007	2001-09-01		View
7939	2002-0089	2002-11-12		View
8171	2004-0183	2006-05-19		View
8271	2004-0305	2006-09-21		View
8903	1985-0467	0000-00-00	1140	View

GRIM PLANTINGS

plt_num	acc_id	loc_num	pers_num	inst_dt	Action
431	213	32	MacIntyre	2011-03-03	View
432	213	14	NCBG staff	2011-03-10	View
1541	8903	154	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
5407	3236	8	NCBG staff	1981-08-23	View
6126	3817	199	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
6918	4589	200	NCBG staff	1993-03-01	View
8346	5832	204	NCBG staff	1993-01-01	View
9529	6753	115	NCBG staff	1967-12-01	View
10988	7784	61	NCBG staff	1986-01-01	View
11093	7867	157	NCBG staff	2001-09-01	View
11430	8171	81	Liloia	2003-07-30	View
11431	8171	83	NCBG staff	2003-07-30	View
11548	8271	174	NCBG staff	2004-09-15	View

USDA PLANTS DATABASE

USDA Symbol: CEOC2
USDA Common Name: Common Buttonbush
Native Status: L48 (N), CAN (N)
Distribution: USA (AL, AR, AZ, CA, CT, DC, DE, FL, GA, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MS, NC, NE, NH, NJ, NY, OH, OK, PA, RI, SC, TN, TX, VA, VT, WI, WV), CAN (NB, NS, ON, PE, QC)
Duration: Perennial
Growth Habit: Tree, Shrub

NATIONAL WETLAND INDICATOR STATUS

Region:	AGCP	AK	AW	CB	EMP	GP	HI	MW	NCNE	WMVE
Status:	OBL		OBL		OBL	OBL		OBL	OBL	OBL

This information is derived from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 2016 National Wetland Plant List, Version 3.3 (Lichvar, R.W., D.L. Banks, W.N. Kirchner, and N.C. Melvin. 2016. The National Wetland Plant List: 2016 wetland ratings. Phytoneuron 2016-30: 1-17. Published 28 April 2016. ISSN 2153 733X). Regions: AGCP-Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plain, AK-Alaska, AW-Arid West, CB-Caribbean, EMP-Eastern Mountains and Piedmont, GP-Great Plains, HI-Hawaii, MW-Midwest, NCNE-Northcentral and Northeast, WMCV-Western Mountains, Valleys & Coast

WEAKLEY FLORA

SCIENTIFIC NAME: Cephalanthus occidentalis
COMMON NAME: Buttonbush
SYNONYMY: [= K1, K3, Meso, Mo, Pa, RAB, S, Va, W, WH3, Y, Z; > C. occidentalis var. occidentalis - C, F, G; > C. occidentalis var. pubescens - C, F, G; = C. occidentalis var. occidentalis - GW (including var. pubescens)]
PHENOLOGY: Jun-Jul.
HABITAT: Streambanks, riverbanks, depressional wetlands, lakes, often in standing water.
COMMENTS: Widespread in North America, and south into Mexico, Guatemala, and Honduras.
RANGE MAP: Cephalanthus occidentalis.png

Key to Map Symbols

ABOUT FAMILY (Weakley Flora)
Rubiaceae A.L. de Jussieu 1789 (Madder Family)
SUMMARY: A family of about 630-650 genera and 10,200-13,000 species, trees, shrubs, vines, and rarely herbs, cosmopolitan, but especially diverse in tropical and subtropical areas. Subfamily and tribe classification follows Bremer & Eriksson (2009).
REFERENCE: Bremer & Eriksson (2009); Rogers (1987, 2005).

ABOUT GENUS (Weakley Flora)
Cephalanthus L. (Buttonbush)
SUMMARY: A genus of about 6 species, of tropical and temperate America.
REFERENCE: Rogers (1987)=Z; Ridsdale (1976)=Y.

HERBARIUM RESOURCES

SERNEC: Find Cephalanthus occidentalis in Southeast Regional Network of Experts and Collections (if available)
UNC SERNEC: Find Cephalanthus occidentalis in University of North Carolina Chapel Hill Herbarium - Southeast Regional Network of Experts and Collections (if available)

WEB RESOURCES

USDA: Find Cephalanthus occidentalis in USDA Plants
NPIN: Find Cephalanthus occidentalis in NPIN Database
FNA: Find Cephalanthus occidentalis in the Flora of North America (if available)
Google: Search Google for Cephalanthus occidentalis

IMAGE USE RECORDS

ID IMAGE: 8650 - Primary Image FloraQuest Plant Detail Page (Landscape Preferred)
ID IMAGE1: 8650 - Primary Image WOTAS
ID IMAGE2: 7795 - Secondary Image WOTAS
ID IMAGE3: 8650 - Primary Image Plant Sale Sign (Landscape Only)
ID IMAGE4: 0 - Primary Image New Plant Sale Label (Portrait Only)