Botanical Mystery Of The Day
You may have noticed these shrubs increasingly around the neighborhood recently. Wondered what they were?
The plant (these two spotted on Westminster Rd. and Marlborough Rd., respectively) is called the Pieris japonica or the Japanese andromeda, and is a part of the Ericaceae or heath family (along with close cousins rhododendrons, azaleas, blueberries, and mountain laurel). Originally from China, Taiwan, and Japan, the andromeda shrub is deer-resistant and poisonous when ingested by humans or animals. Left to its own devices, the shrub can grow over 10 feet tall.
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