Question: Newbie here, really like the full-key plant ID, but couldn't find my mystery plant. The foliage and plant height are …
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Question
Newbie here, really like the full-key plant ID, but couldn't find my mystery plant. The foliage and plant height are similar to wintergreen, but got no wintergreen scent from the leaves, and the flowers don't look like what I see for wintergreen species. Here are a couple pics. Leaves are on the order of one inch long. Photographed April 18 in oak/pine woods in Truro, MA.
Answer
Dear EricM, thank you for the detailed information about location, habitat, and time of year. This kind of information is frequently lacking from many posts, which makes it harder to identify the plants. The plant you are interested in is called Epigaea repens (trailing-arbutus). It is sometimes known as mayflower, though in this part of the world, it frequently flowers before May. Like the Gaultheria procumbens (spicy-wintergreen) in your image, it belongs to the Ericaceae (heath family). Best wishes.
