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Cyrilla racemiflora
Titi, Swamp Cyrilla, Swamp Titi, Littleleaf Titi, He-Huckleberry, Leatherwood, Red Titi, White Titi, Black Titi, Palo Colorado

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Swamp Titi is an extremely interesting and underused shrub or small tree for our area. It grows to perhaps 20 feet (more often 12-15 feet) and can be described as having both lustrous evergreen or tardily deciduous leaves and colorful fall foliage! Its trunk(s) and branches are very nicely contorted, with cinnamon-colored bark (maturing to grayish, exfoliating), and it puts on a long-lasting, stunning floral display in the summer, followed by seeds attractive to birds. In the Southern U.S., it is found in swamps. bogs, pocosins, wet places in the piedmont and coastal plains from Virginia around to Texas and is associated with Bald Cypress, Pond Cypress, Tupelos, Sweetbays, Redbays and Atlantic White Cedar. But its range extends much further, through the Caribbean to Central and northern South America. In these tropical places the trees are much taller, and evergreen. We have collected seeds from shrubs/trees growing in thickets or colonies pond-side in the Sandhills. Like many plants originating in wet places, Titi grows well in upland soils as well. This is a beautiful plant.

Last Updated: May 15, 2019

Key Info

Scientific Name: Cyrilla racemiflora L.
Common Names: Titi, Swamp Cyrilla, Swamp Titi, Littleleaf Titi, He-Huckleberry, Leatherwood, Red Titi, White Titi, Black Titi, Palo Colorado
Family Name: Cyrillaceae (Titi Family)
Plant Type: Tree / Shrub
Uses: Naturalizing, Specimen, Hedge, Pond edge
Light Requirement: Full sun, Partial/sunny, Partial/shady
Moisture Requirement: Wet, Moist well drained
Leaf Retention: Semi-evergreen
Bloom Times: May, Jun, Jul
Flower Color: White
Special Characteristics: Attracts bees, Interesting bark, Good fall color, Tolerates wet conditions, Rhizomatous, Showy fruit, Evergreen, Fragrant flowers, Interesting form

Additional Info

Habit: Shrubby when young, this plant will eventualy devleop into a small tree with contorted stems, smooth, rust-colored young bark, flaky mature bark, and shallow root system..
Height: 8' to 20'
Spread: 5'-10'
Growth Rate: Moderate
Soil Conditions: Moist well drained to wet; acid to circumneutral pH, organic, sandy, sandy loam, loamy clay soils.
Leaves: Alternate, simple, with entire margins, 3-4" long; leathery, lustrous dark green above, lighter below. In our climate some of the leaves turn bright red and hang on to plant until the spring when it sets new leaves.
Flowers (or reproductive structures): Drooping sprays (racemes) 4-6" long of small, perfect, bright white flowers form around stems.
Fruit: The sprays of small white flowers develop into sprays of dry capsules with several seeds each in fall.
Natural Distribution: Wet pinelands, stream banks, swamps and pocosins in coastal and sandhill counties.
USDA Hardiness Zone: 5 to 11
USDA Wetland Indicator Status in NC: FACW
Pollination: Bees
Wildlife Connections: Birds and small mammals eat the fruit. In nature, Titi can form thickets favored by small mammals and birds for cover and nesting.
Downside: Titi has no serious insect or disease problems
Propagation: From seed, from root cuttings in fall or winter, from softwood cuttings in early summer.
USDA/NRCS Plant Distribution Map: View Map at USDA.gov
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Cure Nursery is a small nursery propagating and selling native plants for the Southeastern U.S. We are located near the town of Pittsboro, Chatham County, in central NC.

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