North Carolina Botanical Garden

Plant Index

Scientific Name:
Common Name:
Genus:
Family:

Myrica gale

Myrica gale L.

sweet gale

Synonym(s): Gale palustris, Myrica gale var. subarctica, Myrica gale var. subglabra, Myrica gale var. tomentosa

Image ID: 95624
Image by: Fleming, Gary P.
Image Collection: NCBG Digital Library

PLANT INDEX

ID_PLANT: MYGA
SCIENTIFIC NAME: Myrica gale
Include in WOTAS: 0
Publish to Web: 1
Last Modified: 2020-01-01

GENUS INDEX

GENUS CODE: MYRIC
GENUS SCIENTIFIC: Myrica
GENUS AUTHORITY: L.
GENUS COMMON: Sweetgale
GENUS SUMMARY: A genus of two species, shrubs, of temperate and subarctic regions of North America and Eurasia.
GENUS IDENTIFICATION:
GENUS REFERENCES: Bornstein in FNA (1997); Kubitzki in Kubitzki, Rohwer, & Bittrich (1993).

FAMILY INDEX

FAMILY CODE: MYRICA
FAMILY SCIENTIFIC: Myricaceae
FAMILY AUTHORITY: Blume 1829
FAMILY COMMON: Bayberry Family
FAMILY SUMMARY: A family of about 3-5 genera and 55 species, trees and shrubs, nearly cosmopolitan. See Morella for discussion of our 3 genera.
FAMILY REFERENCE: Bornstein in FNA (1997); Wilbur (1994)=Z; Elias (1971b)=Y; Kubitzki in Kubitzki, Rohwer, & Bittrich (1993).

NCBG DESCRIPTIVES

INTRO:
STEMS:
LEAVES:
INFLORESCENCE:
FLOWERS:
FRUITS:
COMMENTS:
HEIGHT:

DURATION: Perennial
HABIT: Shrub

LEAF ARRANGEMENT: Alternate
LEAF COMPLEXITY: Simple
LEAF RETENTION: Deciduous

FLORAL CHARACTERISTICS
SYMMETRY:
BLOOM TIME: Apr

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

BLOOM COLOR:

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

FRUITING PERIOD: Aug-Sep.

DISTRIBUTION
HABITAT TYPE:
NATIVE RANGE:

HORTICULTURAL
Plant Sale Text:

Bloom Table Text:

NCBG Location:

Cultural Notes:

SOIL MOISTURE:
LIGHT EXPOSURE:
MINIMUM HARDINESS ZONE:
MAXIMUM HARDINESS ZONE:
GERMINATION CODE:
WILDLIFE VALUE:
DEER RESISTANCE:

USDA PLANTS DATABASE

USDA Symbol: MYGA
USDA Common Name: Sweetgale
Native Status: L48 (N), AK (N), CAN (N), SPM (N)
Distribution: USA (AK, CT, MA, ME, MI, MN, NC, NH, NJ, NY, OR, PA, RI, VT, WA, WI), CAN (AB, BC, LB, MB, NB, NF, NS, NT, NU, ON, PE, QC, SK, YT), FRA (SPM)
Duration: Perennial
Growth Habit: 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

2018 Natural Heritage Program List of Rare Plant Species of North Carolina

NHP ID	S RANK	ROUNDED S RANK	G RANK	ROUNDED G RANK	STATE STATUS	FEDERAL STATUS
17751	S1	S1	G5	G5	E

This information is derived from the 2018 North Carolina Natural Heritage Program List of Rare Plant Species.

WEAKLEY FLORA

SCIENTIFIC NAME: Myrica gale
COMMON NAME: Sweet Gale
SYNONYMY: [= C, FNA, G, GW, K, Pa, S, W, Y; > Myrica gale var. gale - F; = Gale palustris Chevallier - RAB]
PHENOLOGY: Apr; Aug-Sep.
HABITAT: Peaty bogs.
COMMENTS: A circumboreal species, south in North America to NJ, PA, MI, MN, and OR, disjunct from PA and s. NJ to Henderson County, NC, where considered extirpated at one time, as a result of the destruction of the famous East Flat Rock Bog. This shrub has been relocated at a single site, where it is abundant in a small area (less than 0.25 hectare).
RANGE MAP: Myrica gale.png

Key to Map Symbols

ABOUT FAMILY (Weakley Flora)
Myricaceae Blume 1829 (Bayberry Family)
SUMMARY: A family of about 3-5 genera and 55 species, trees and shrubs, nearly cosmopolitan. See Morella for discussion of our 3 genera.
REFERENCE: Bornstein in FNA (1997); Wilbur (1994)=Z; Elias (1971b)=Y; Kubitzki in Kubitzki, Rohwer, & Bittrich (1993).

ABOUT GENUS (Weakley Flora)
Myrica L. (Sweetgale)
SUMMARY: A genus of two species, shrubs, of temperate and subarctic regions of North America and Eurasia.
REFERENCE: Bornstein in FNA (1997); Kubitzki in Kubitzki, Rohwer, & Bittrich (1993).

HERBARIUM RESOURCES

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

WEB RESOURCES

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

IMAGE USE RECORDS

ID IMAGE: 95624 - Primary Image FloraQuest Plant Detail Page (Landscape Preferred)
ID IMAGE1: 0 - Primary Image WOTAS
ID IMAGE2: 0 - Secondary Image WOTAS
ID IMAGE3: 0 - Primary Image Plant Sale Sign (Landscape Only)
ID IMAGE4: 0 - Primary Image New Plant Sale Label (Portrait Only)