"THE STRAWBERRY TREE"

This tree, whose scientific name is Abutus unedo, is also called the “madrone tree” or “Greek strawberry tree.” It is an evergreen tree about 40 feet tall (rarely taller). It is native to the Mediterranean area/western Europe, especially Italy, as well as the the Middle East region. This tree also grows well in northwestern west Africa, and has also been introduced to England, Ireland, and elsewhere. There are 11 different species of this tree. 

This tree is well known for its fruit (the arbutus berry, which resembles the strawberry---but the two are not related). Initially, the strawberry- tree fruit is yellow in color, but in December in southern California, the fruit begins to change to its typical red color. 

The fruit of this unusual tree matures in autumn (especially December). Its fruit is edible and is used for making jam because the fruit has a high sugar content. The wood is quite hard and used for making pipes for smoking. 

                                                                       Figure 1. A strawberry tree.

                                                                   Figure 2. Strawberry-tree fruit.

                                                                 Figure 3. A single fruit from a

                       strawberry tree. The scale is in centimeters.

Classification

Kingdome Plantae

Clades (4 of them)

Order Ericales

Family Ericaceae

Genus Arbutus

Type species A. unedo Linnaeus, 1753.

Note: This is the national tree of Italy because the white flowers, red berries, and green leaves of this tree correspond to the national colors of Italy.

Fossil forms described as Arbutites [a fossil genus that shares morphological characters with modern Arbutus] have been found in Eocene and Miocene deposits in Europe. For example, Andrews (1970) reported a Miocene Arbutites leaf from Priesen, Bohemia. Molecular data indicate that the Old World Abutus unedo and New World Arbutis menziesii lineages diverged between 21 and 39 million years ago (= late Oligocene to early Miocene). Furthermore, Miocene fossilized leaves of Abutus menziesii have been discovered in early Miocene deposits (12 to 26 years ago) in Nevada, Oregon, and California (Wikipedia, 2025). 

     

References

Andrews, H. N. A., Jr. 1970. Index of generic names of fossil plants, 1820-1965. Geological Survey Bulletin 1300, 364 pp.

Wikipedia, 2025.