page_title: Euonymus alatus
section_title: Description
hierarchical_section_title: Euonymus alatus / Description
caption_attribution_description: English: Euonymus alatus foliage during autumn along Idaho Street in Elko, Nevada
context_page_description: Euonymus alatus, known variously as winged spindle, winged euonymus, or burning bush, is a species of flowering plant in the family Celastraceae, native to central and northern China, Japan, and Korea.
  The common name "burning bush" comes from the bright red fall color.
  It is a popular ornamental plant in gardens and parks due to its bright pink or orange fruit and attractive fall color. The species and the cultivar 'Compactus' have both gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.
  This plant is regarded as an invasive species of woodlands in eastern North America, and its importation and sale is prohibited in the states of Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Maine.
context_section_description: This deciduous shrub grows to 6.1 m (20 ft) tall, often wider than tall. As with the related Euonymus phellomanus, the stems are notable for their four corky ridges or "wings." The word alatus (or alata, used formerly) is Latin for "winged," in reference to the winged branches. These structures develop from a cork cambium deposited in longitudinal grooves in the twigs' first year, unlike similar wings in other plants. The leaves are 2–7 cm (³⁄₄–2 ³⁄₄ in) long and 1–4 cm (¹⁄₂–1 ¹⁄₂ in) broad, ovate-elliptic, with an acute apex. The flowers are greenish, borne over a long period in the spring. The fruit is a red aril enclosed by a four-lobed pink, yellow, or orange capsule
  All parts of the plant are toxic by ingestion, causing severe discomfort.
caption: Detail of leaves in autumn
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