Pacific Madrone

Did you know

• Pacific madrone is one of the most beautiful trees in North America—its bark peels in long red strips to reveal smooth jade-green new bark underneath, like a constantly molting snake.
• The clusters of white urn-shaped flowers look exactly like lily-of-the-valley bells, which makes sense—madrones are in the heath family along with rhododendrons, blueberries, and lily-of-the-valley.
• After flowering, the tree produces bright red-orange berries that look like miniature strawberries (giving the related Mediterranean species its name 'strawberry tree').
• Madrone wood is incredibly dense and hard—Indigenous Coast Salish peoples used it for arrow tips, bowls, and ritual carvings, and modern furniture makers prize its tight grain and rosy color.
• Pacific madrones are notoriously sensitive to disturbance—they refuse to grow in disturbed soil and are nearly impossible to transplant, making old-growth specimens nearly irreplaceable.

Color meanings

Uses

• Specimen tree
• Native plant gardens
• Pacific Northwest landscaping
• Wildlife habitat