South Carolina State Tree

Leaf: Alternate, palmately compound, fan shaped; leaflets very long (4 to 6 feet) and lance shaped, leaf stalks are long, extend through the leaf, and are without sharp edges; green in color, overall leaf nearly round and several feet long.

Flower: Small white flowers occurring on large (several feet), branched clusters, appearing in early summer.

Fruit: Fleshy drupe, nearly round, 1/3 to 1/2 inch across, dark shiny blue, maturing in early fall and persistent into the winter.

Twig: Absent, since leaves appear directly out of unbranched trunk.

Bark: Gray brown, tough, splits vertically.

Form: Tall (to 80 feet), straight trunk with a short rounded crown.