Figure 1.
Kalmia latifolia.
(University of Georgia Herbarium Slide Collection, Scanned by Elizabeth Skillen)
Kalmia latifolia and references to mountain laurel are found in literature from early colonial inhabitants. According to Jaymes, it is possible that the "rose trees" that Henry Hudson recorded on his 1609 trip to Cape Cod were the species Kalmia latifolia. The first detailed account was from Peter Kalm, a student of Carolus Linnaeus. He took samples back to Europe and Linnaeus wrote a dissertation and proposed the name Kalmia in honor of the collector. The species latifolia and Angustifolia were recorded at this time, and recorded in his Species Plantarum. (Jaynes, 1997)
Figure 1.
Kalmia latifolia.
(University of Georgia Herbarium Slide Collection, Scanned by Elizabeth Skillen)
"Large shrubs or rarely small trees, twigs stipate-glandular, glabrate in age. Leaves thick, corraceous, evergreen, alternate, at first stipate-glandular but soon glabrate, elliptical-oblanceolate, 5-12 cm. long 1.5-5 cm. wide, acute, base cuneate; petioles 0.7-3 cm. long. Inflorescence a terminal, compound corymb; pedicles glabrous or stipitate-glandular often floccose, 1.5-3 cm. long. Sepals glabrous or stipate-glandular, ca. 2 mm. long; corolla white or pink, usually with a purple spot around each pocket, glabrous or stipitate-glandular on the outside, 2-3 cm broad; stryle 1.4-1.8cm long. Capsule erect, stipitate-glandular, broader than long, 4-7 mm. broad. Seeds 0.8-1 mm. long. (n=12) April-June; Sept-Oct. Rocky or Sandy Woods; infrequent in outer C.P., otherwise common throughout the Southeast." (cited from Radford, 1974)
Class:Dicodonlidinae
Subclass:Dilleniidae
Order:Ericales
Family:Ericaceae
Tribe:Rhododendreae(Jaynes,1997)
Genus:Kalmia
K. latifolia | ||
| AREA | STATUS | REFERENCES |
| North America: Continental United States; Canada |
Yes | Jaynes 1997 |
| Eastern North America: United States east of Mississippi; Ontario and eastern Canada |
Yes | Jaynes 1997 |
| Southeastern United States: AL AR DE DC FL GA KY MD NC SC TN VA WV |
Yes | Jaynes 1997 |
| Southern Appalachian
States: AL GA KY MD NC SC TN VA WV |
Yes | Jaynes 1997 |
| Coastal Plain | Marginal | Radford, Ahles & Bell, 1968 Jaymes 1997 |
| Piedmont | Widespread | Radford, Ahles & Bell, 1968 Jones & Coile, 1988 |
| Blue Ridge Mountains | Widespread | Radford, Ahles & Bell, 1968 |
| Great Smoky Mountains National Park | Yes | Chester, Wofford and Kral, PN.#13 |
| Ridge and Valley | Yes | Jones & Coile, 1988 |
| Cumberland Plateau | Yes | Jaynes,1997 |
| Central Arch | ? | - |
| Georgia | Widespread | Jones & Coile, 1988 |
| Clarke County, Georgia | Yes | Jones & Coile, 1988 |
| Sams Farm | Possible | Sam Haupt, Pers. Guess. |
| Old Field | ? | - |
| Wetland | ? | - |
| Woods | ? | - |
| 1-Hectare Plot | ? | - |
"Mountain laurel commonly forms dense thickets in rocky and sandy forests throughout most of its range, particularly where there are openings in the canopy. It is also found in pastures and open fields and often forms thickets at the edges of roads. This species is restricted to the eastern United States and occurs from southern Maine west through southern New York to central Ohio, south to southern Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia, and northwestern Florida. There are some reports of mountain laurel being native to Canada, but there is no conclusive supporting evidence. These reports possibly were based on cultivated plants or on large-leaved specimens of the more northern sheep laurel,Kalmia angustifolia." (cited from Jaynes 1997
Kalmia latifolia is located throughout North Georgia. Raven Cliffs trail is a beutiful spot to observe this species. The trail is about 3 miles (one direction) about half-way up the trail, on the right edge there are several mountain laurels that make for a spectacular view when they are blooming (late spring or early summer). To get to Raven Cliffs, go North from Helen 3 miles to Robertstown, take a left on GA 78, travel about 3-5 miles and turn left onto Ga 348 (Richard B Russel Parkway). On GA 348 you will cross Dukes Creek, about 1-2 miles after crossing Dukes creek there will be a gravel parking lot on the left. The trail head is at the edge of the stream.