Sorry no digital camera pictures.
I'll try to discribe it the best I can.
This bush is about 15 wide and 4 feet height.
Bush has short leaves, 1.5" long by 3/4"
Very dense and the little birds love it.
In the spring it blooms a red/white flower and the flower is in the center of the bush, close in and not out towards the end of the branches. ALso very dense branches going every which way. In the fall it has a fruit. A small "crabapple" size
pale green fruit that is close to the branches. In fact it some time it surrounds the branch. Fruit is very hard. My son who is much braver than I said the fruit was sour - very sour!
Some times there are two or three fruits per cluster.
It definitely makes it more interesting without pics.
First, is this a wild tree/shrub? Is it on your front lawn or in the back 40? How long has it been there?
There are a few terms to describe leaves, flowers and fruit that would help here. Leaf "layout" is a good place to start. Think of a leaf as a flat blade and a leafstalk. Most leaves have one blade and are known as singular. Compound leaves are divided up into 3 or more leaflets. This is where things get interesting:
Pinately Compound: 2 rows along an axis
Bipinately Compound: side branches off an axis
Palmately Compound: radiating out like a fan.
Shape of the leaf is also important. You mention the size being about 1.5" x 3/4". Are they pointed at the end? Are they wider at the end or at the base?
If you can answer a few of these questions, we'll have a good place to start.
Dave, It's tricky to ID native vegetation without pictures, but it's do-able. However, my knowledge of ornamentals is right around zilch - even with pictures.
Maybe there's an aspiring horticulturalist out there that can help you with this one.
Sorry, Paul.
Oh, and let your son know that it is a real bad idea to taste plants/fruits. There are those that would cause certain death if tasted (like certain members of the Amanita mushroom family).
Take a trimming, prefferably with a flower and a few leaves, to a good nursery. They can probably help. If the have folks with a certificate or degree in horticulture, then they should know how to key it out if they do not know what it is. Taxonomy/plant identification is part of the courses they would have taken.
You might also check for a local Master Gardener. Here in Calif, the University system has a Master Gardener outreach program. My wife is signe up to take the course next year(only offered every couple years).
You might check if your local JC or other college has a horticulture program. You might be able to talk to the teachers...
Most plant id's start with the flower. Plant families are broken down based on flower structure. For instance, Apples and starwberries are in the Rose family; the rose family is HUGE!
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