Rhododendron groenlandicum (Labrador Tea)

Plant Info
Also known as:
Genus:Rhododendron
Family:Ericaceae (Heath)
Life cycle:perennial woody
Origin:native
Habitat:part shade, sun; cedar/spruce bogs, sphagnum wetlands, lake and stream shores
Bloom season:May - June
Plant height:1 to 3 feet
Wetland Indicator Status:GP: FACW MW: OBL NCNE: OBL
MN county distribution (click map to enlarge):Minnesota county distribution map
National distribution (click map to enlarge):National distribution map

Pick an image for a larger view. See the glossary for icon descriptions.

Detailed Information

Flower: Flower shape: 5-petals Cluster type: round

[photo of flowers] Spidery rounded cluster of 10 to 40 flowers on slender stalks at the end of branching stems. Flowers are white, about 1/3 inch across with 5 oval petals and 5 to 10 long white stamens surrounding the small green round ovary in the center. The next season's bloom is formed in late summer and appears as a large scaly bud at the end of the evergreen terminals (see more photos below). The brown bud scales fall away from the floral base the next spring when the flowers bloom.

Leaves: Leaf attachment: alternate Leaf type: simple

[photo of leaves] Leaves are evergreen into 2nd year, simple, alternate, narrow to broader and oblong, tapered or blunt at ends, 1 to 2¼ inches long, ¼ to 2/3 inch wide, on a short stalk. The upper surface is dark green, smooth to sparsely hairy, with a leathery texture; the underside is woolly white the first year becoming copper colored the next year. Leaf edges are smooth and rolled under. Stems are upright; new stems densely covered with coppery hairs that gray by second year and persist for number of years. The bark on old wood is gray.

Notes:

Of its three contemporary, and of similar habit, evergreen wetland shrubs—Chamaedaphne calyculata, Kalmia polifolia and Andromeda glaucophylla—you don't always have to slog into a bog to see this one. Labrador Tea is quite common throughout the northeastern third of Minnesota—I've seen it along many lakeshores right in forest service campgrounds or lakeside roads in the Arrowhead. It does do best in sphagnum bogs however, forming colonies via rooting stems or rhizomes in the sphagnum. Formerly known as Ledum groenlandicum, I, not being a trained taxonimist and not read the journals, have always questioned why it was not in the Rhododendron genus. Apparently it now is.

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More photos

Photos by K. Chayka and Peter M. Dziuk taken at several locations in central Aitkin county and Carlton county.

Comments

Have you seen this plant in Minnesota, or have any other comments about it?

Posted by: Lou - Moose Lake, MN
on: 2012-06-05 13:30:53

Our woods are filled with this plant.

Posted by: malinda - waskish minn
on: 2013-05-28 15:15:57

How do you make tea from this plant? It says that it helps with the stomach flu and other stomach and digestive problems

Posted by: Kelly O. - Duluth
on: 2014-12-08 16:00:05

My sister and I make a tea from this plant. It has the best flavor when gathered in the spring, and the tea can either be prepared with fresh or dried leaves. It has a somewhat swampy taste, but paired with wild mint, it is wonderful. Keep in mind, I have found warnings against consumption when nursing or pregnant.

Posted by: tom - Isanti County
on: 2016-06-15 21:33:35

Found a small clump in a tamarack swamp just east of Horseleg Lake and Anderson County Park.

Posted by: George - Duluth
on: 2017-09-29 12:54:18

This site was helpful in ID'ing a plant for a friend - thank you! I had learned this as Ledum many years ago.

Posted by: Sarah F J - Princeton
on: 2017-12-21 12:18:40

Was excited to find a small patch of this in our tamarack swamp today (Isanti County just west of Green Lake).

Posted by: Scott - Grand Marais
on: 2019-05-22 10:54:24

Take care with making tea from the leaves. It can have hallucinogenic properties for some people is to much is consumed.

Posted by: donna Janus - Oshkosh
on: 2021-06-07 11:24:27

Does anyone know where I can buy this Plant?

Posted by: K. Chayka
on: 2021-06-07 13:49:14

Donna, check where to buy native plants and seeds. If none of those vendors carries it one might know who does. On a side note, Oshkosh MN probably doesn't have much suitable habitat for this species; Oshkosh WI probably does.

Posted by: Nena Lovelace - Bemidj
on: 2021-07-08 17:22:24

Is there anyway information on how to pick/use all these plants in order for them to re grow properly? Thank you

Posted by: K. Chayka
on: 2021-07-08 19:15:51

Nena, I don't know of anyone with expertise in propagating Labrador tea. Try a web search.

Posted by: Taylor Groby - Koochiching County, MN
on: 2022-04-19 19:25:01

Love this plant so much.

Posted by: S. Chayka - MN
on: 2022-07-20 16:18:13

I was introduced to Labrador tea in Alaska, USA and Yukon, and NWT, Canada. Now I'm running low on what I got there and looking got Labrador tea in Lake Co. and Cook Co. MN - Finland Sate Forest and Superior National Forest, but I have not had much luck. Should I look harder or it's not there?

Posted by: K Chayka
on: 2022-07-20 18:24:59

S. Chayka (no relation, I assume), we do not condone taking plants from the wild without the landowner's permission, even if that landowner happens to be a government agency. This species is commercially available (google is your friend) so you can grow your own and not disturb those in the wild.

Posted by: Lori - Big Lake
on: 2023-05-27 09:04:17

I purchased this plant from Prairie Restoration in Princeton, MN. It is now in it's third growing season and flowering beautifully, putting out new growth. I recommend this source for Labrador Tea.

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