Oemleria cerasiformis

Plant structure Osoberry is a deciduous The bark is a smooth dark gray to reddish-brown color, with twigs with similar coloring of green to reddish brown. These leaves can smell similar to cucumbers. Flowers and fruiting Osoberry bears racemes of small white flowers that have 5 separate pistils, which can develop into a drupe. A drupe can have 10–20 flowers growing from it. The plum fruit of osoberry begin as reddish pink and deepen to a deep blue color as they ripen. The fruit is known to be bitter, but sweetens as it ripens, tasting similar to cherries or watermelon. Sex Osoberry is dioecious, with almost all plants being male or female. Only female osoberry produce fruit. == Taxonomy ==

David Douglas and John Scouler were the first botanists to collect Oemleria in 1825, followed by Tolmie, Gairdner, and Nuttall. The genus was first named Nuttallia in 1839, but that name had already been given to three other genera. In 1841, Reichenbach published Oemleria as a nomen novum, in honor of Augustus Gottlieb Oemler, a naturalist in Dresden who had lived in Georgia, had known Nuttall, and had given Reichenbach specimens of plants from America. Reichenbach did not publish a name for the species under the new genus, and most botanists later adopted Osmaronia cerasiformis, published by Edward Lee Greene in 1891, until 1975, when J.W. Landon reasserted the priority of Reichenbach's name and published the full proper name of the species. Fossil record Oemleria cerasiformis is the only extant member of its genus, Oemleria. A fossil species is known from the genus, Oemleria janhartfordae from the Eocene Klondike Mountain Formation. Rosaceous flower fossils found in Northeastern Washington state show that Oemleria was present in the early Eocene of western North America. ==Distribution and habitat==

Osoberry are found in the Pacific Northwest, ranging from Northern California to Southwestern British Columbia. The shrubs grow in places such as second-growth forests, stream terraces, forest, or roadside margins. Osoberry grow in places with sunlight, and usually below elevations of . The shrub can grow up to in elevation. Moist soil is preferred, but not grounds that are saturated in winter months. Osoberry flowers bloom and leaves bud in the late winter to early spring. Osoberry are relatively short compared to trees in the Pacific Northwest. The early bud timing allows the osoberry to get access to sunlight that is not as easily available in later months. When taller trees or shrubs have grown their leaves, this can block sunlight from reaching an osoberry shrub. == Uses ==

The Pacific coast tribes utilized its fruit, twigs, and bark, as food sources and for teas and medicine. It is one of the first tree-borne fruits to ripen in summer and as such was prized by indigenous peoples and wildlife alike. Currently, osoberry is popular for restoration projects in the Pacific Northwest. Living osoberry branches can be used as live stakes in restoration projects to prevent erosion. The roots of osoberry are fibrous and are good for preventing erosion of soil. Fruit The fruits can be eaten raw or cooked when bitter; they tend to be somewhat astringent. The Indigenous peoples of the Americas included osoberry in their diets, making tea of the bark. Several Indigenous tribes from Western Washington, such as the Snohomish, Chehalis, and Squaxin tribes, ate the berries fresh. The Cowlitz tribe also ate the berries fresh, along with drying them for winter uses. ==References==