Pinckneya bracteata (formerly Pinckneya pubens)

Fevertree, Poinsettia tree, Georgia bark, Pinckneya, Feverbark

Fevertree is a large, graceful, deciduous shrub or small tree valued in the landscape for its rich green foliage and a long lasting display of beautiful pink in midseason. While the actual flowers of the Fevertree are greenish yellow and inconspicuous, these are surrounded by large, showy, whitish to deep rose sepals (usually pink), which provide a splash of welcome cool pink in the heat of high summer. Fevertree is endemic to Southern Georgia and Northern Florida, and to the southern tip of South Carolina (it grows nowhere else), and is considered threatened. Its habitat is on the margins of swamps, bays and streams. It can develop root rot in sustained wet conditions but grows well and suckers less in rich, moist, well drained upland soil. This is one of the great gifts from our Deep South (along with Magnolia virginiana var. ‘australis’ and Magnolia ashei) — a beautiful if short-lived plant. (We have had several in the ground for at least 10 years and they are thriving.) It can sometimes grow to thirty feet but its mature height is usually on the order of about fifteen feet. The inner bark of the Fevertree is extremely bitter but is proven to treat fevers, the source of several of its common names. The fruit is a dry capsule.