Irish Trees - Common Alder

Common Alder
Alnus glutinosa
Fearnóg
Family: Betulaceae

Flowering March-April. Deciduous. Native.

Male catkins are pendulous, female smaller, resembling tiny cones. Cones turn woody in winter. Seedlings sensitive to drought and shading. Leaves obtuse, dark-green on both sides, irregularly toothed with small indentation at tip. Roots with nitrogen-fixing nodules. Height: To 20m, but frequently smaller.

Abundant. Damp or wet base-rich to mildly acidic soils, woods, lake and streamsides. Frequently planted.

Root Rot: European Alders are now under threat from a fungal disease caused by hybridisation of two introduced species of the Phytophthora family.

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