wax myrtle

Also known as Southern Wax Myrtle, Southern Bayberry, Candleberry, Tallow Shrub

Wax myrtles are hardy evergreen shrubs whose dark green leaves release a spicy resinous scent when crushed. Female plants produce dense clusters of pale blue, pale-gray waxy berries in winter, providing crucial fuel for migrating and wintering songbirds. Symbiotic bacteria in their root nodules allow them to fix atmospheric nitrogen, letting them thrive in poor coastal sands and damp pine flatwoods across eastern North America.