Plant
Identification
Buttonbush
 Description Management
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Cephalanthus
occidentalis
Buttonbush is a woody shrub
(3-10 feet tall) that occasionally grows into a small tree and can
be found above water or in water up to 4 feet deep. It has shiny dark-green
spear-or egg-shaped pointed leaves 3 to 6 inches long. The leaves are
opposite or whorled in 3's or 4's along the stem. Flowers of buttonbush
are easily identified by their greenish-white tube flowers in dense
ball-shaped clusters about 1 inch in diameter. Seed heads are brown.
Submerged portions of
all aquatic plants provide habitats for many micro and macro
invertebrates. These invertebrates in turn are used as food by
fish and other wildlife species (e.g. amphibians, reptiles, ducks,
etc. ). After aquatic plants die, their decomposition by bacteria
and fungi provides food (called "detritus") for many aquatic invertebrates. Buttonbush seeds are occasionally eaten by ducks but the bush itself is used for nesting by many bird species.
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" indicates Non-Native plants.