Myrica faya Dryand. - Accepted: Myrica faya Dryand. bei The Plant List (2010); Familie: Myricaceae (APG III)
Myrica faya Dryand. - Accepted: Myrica faya Dryand. bei The Plant List (2014), version 1.1; Familie: Myricaceae (APG III)
Myrica faya Dryand. - Accepted: Myrica faya Dryand. bei The Plant List (2014), version 1.1; Familie: Myricaceae (APG IV)

Flowers

subdioecious; flowers in branched catkins

Flower ecology

wind-pollinated (anemophilous)

Life form

shrub or small tree

Leaves

leaves alternate, oblanceolate, coriaceous, shiny, dark green, aromatic, 4-12 cm long, cuneate at the base, apically often toothed, margins somewhat revolute

Foliage persistence

evergreen

Fruit ecology

bird-dispersed (ornithochorous)

Soil conditions

on moist volcanic soils

Natural occurrence (habitat)

laurel forests, cliffs, coastal shrubland, Myrica-Picconia* woodland, degraded forests, on lava flows, pasture margins, along roadsides, hedgerows, margins of agricultural fields

Comment to ecology

actinorrhizal nitrogen fixer; invasive species; litter has allelopathic effects

Vegetation typ and synecology (plant community)

subtropical, broad-leaved evergreen, humid laurophyllous forests (laurisilva); in communities of the fayal-brezal (heath scrub), e.g. in association with Picconia azorica (Tutin) Knobl. (White Wood)

Constraints according radiation (light)

relatively shade-intolerant

Usage

as ornamental plant; as medical plant used for treatment of catarrh; the drupes can be used for making marmelade; in the USA cultivated as a bionenergy plant

Phytopathogenic organisms

is affected by a number of diseases and pests, e.g. by the moth Caloptilia sp. nr. schinella

Altidudinal lower limit (sea level in m)

0

Altitudinal higher limit (sea level in m)

1,500

Cronk, Q. C. B. & Fuller, J. L. (2014): Plant Invaders: The Threat to Natural Ecosystems. Überarb. Neuauflage. Routledge, London: 256 S. 9781134203581.;

Gardner, D. E. & Hodges, C. S. (1990): Diseases of Myrica faya (firetree, Myricaceae) in the Azores, Madeira and the Canary Islands. Plant Pathology, 39: 326-330.;

Goetz, R. (2017): Flora der Kanarischen Inseln. Naturführer. Bergverlag Rother GmbH, Oberhaching: S. 138. 9783763361021.;