Sweetleaf or horsesugar is a semi-evergreen large shrub or small tree with thick, leathery, yellow-green leaves that are slightly sweet to the taste. It is uncommon in the Mountains and rare in the Piedmont, much more common in the Coastal Plain of North Carolina. The leaves are the caterpillar food plant for the rare King's Hairstreak (Satyrium kingi)

Moore Co., NC 6/6/03.

The flowers are a popular nectar source for butterflies.

Moore Co., NC 4/13/02.

Moore Co., NC 4/20/05.

This is oddly shaped object is a gall, not a fruit.

Moore Co., NC 4/20/05.

Bark of a mature tree.

Moore Co., NC 3/14/07.