Sassafras vs Northern Spicebush
This guide is under construction and has not been published yet. It may have errors. When in doubt, double-check other sources for definitive ID.Sassafras and spicebush are usually easy to distinguish, but young plants can often be confused, especially when sassafras exhibits only simple leaves. The two species are closely related and the leaves have a similar appearance as well as similar aromas. Both can occur in the same habitat, but sassafras can grow on drier sites and spicebush can tolerate deeper shade.
Sassafras (Sassafras albidum) | Northern Spicebush (Lindera benzoin) |
A large shrub to medium tree with aromatic leaves and roots and variably-lobed leaves. | A native understory shrub of rich deciduous forests in eastern North America. |
 Usually has some leaves with 2 or 3 lobes. Photo © Andrew Conboy, CC BY 4.0. |  All leaves are entire (without any lobes.) Photo © Michael Ellis, CC BY 4.0. |
 Ripe fruit is dark blue, almost black. Photo © Judy Gallagher, CC BY 4.0. |  Ripe fruit is red. Photo © Christine McAnlis, CC BY 4.0. |
A tree, growing much larger and typically with a single, straight trunk. | A shrub, not growing as tall and often growing with multiple trunks. |
References & External Resources
These short lists show only links helpful for ID. For a complete list of references and resources also covering other aspects of ecology, visit the links section of the full article on each plant, which is the first entry here.
