Bayberry (Myrica pensylvanica)
Crush a leaf; note the sweet aromatic odor Small, white, waxy berry in fall
No doubt the Bayberry is familiar to you. Wax from its berries has long been used to make candles, and you may wish to take some berries home to try your hand at this. Boiling them will cause the wax to float on the water. Dip a piece of string (wick) to collect it.
Sweet Gale (Myrica gale) very closely resembles Bayberry but has tiny pine-cone-like fruits instead of white berries. It is very common in the swampy areas on the beach.
Beach Plum (Prunus maritima)
Leaf with many small, sharp-pointed teeth White flowers or purple fruit
This “typical” sea-beach shrub is well known. Its fruit has long been used for “Beach Plum preserve,” a New England favorite. The plums may be collected in late summer. Beach Plum is reasonably common on the back side of Crane’s Beach, high on the dunes. It is often twisted and gnarled from exposure to the winds.
