NC Native Plant Society:
Plant Details

Mitchella repens

Partridge-berry, Twinberry, Running Box, Pigeon Plum

Scientific Name:	Mitchella repens
Genus:	Mitchella
Species Epithet:	repens
Common Name:	Partridge-berry, Twinberry, Running Box, Pigeon Plum
Plant Type	Herb/Wildflower
Life Cycle	Perennial
Plant Family	Rubiaceae (Madder Family)
Native/Alien:	NC Native
Size:	0-1 ft.
Bloom Color(s):	White
Light:	Part Shade - 2 to 6 hours of sun per day, Less than 2 hours of sun per day
Soil Moisture:	Dry, Moist
Bloom Time:	April, May, June
Growing Area:	Mountains, Piedmont, Sandhills, Coastal Plain
Habitat Description:	“Deciduous and coniferous forests, stream-banks, heath balds, maritime forests, on rotten logs;...Plants in maritime forests are more robust than others and often have an ascending habit, the stems sometimes 20-30 cm tall.” (Weakley 2015). Common throughout NC.
Leaf Arrangement:	Opposite
Leaf Retention:	Evergreen
Leaf Type:	Leaves veined, not needle-like or scale-like
Leaf Form:	Simple
Life Cycle:	Perennial
Wildlife Value:	Has some wildlife value
Landscape Value:	Suitable for home landscapes
State Rank:	S5: Secure ^(*Key)
Global Rank:	G5 - Secure ^(*Key)
Notes:	"All parts are dainty, including its pairs of small, rounded, evergreen leaves; tiny, trumpet-shaped, pinkish-white flowers; and scarlet berries...A most attractive woodland creeper with highly ornamental foliage, it can be used as a groundcover under acid-loving shrubs and in terraria in the winter." Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center
The twin flowers, actually the ovaries, will fuse to make a single fruit or berry. Ev-Henwood, Brunswick County, May 2010
Single berry from fused ovaries. The Green Swamp, Brunswick County, Nov. 2010
Plant with creeping stems and dark green, leathery, evergreen opposite leaves Macon County, NC Bettina Darveaux
Flower and bud groups Wake County, NC, 1993 by Hugh Partridge
In early spring before flowering. Orange County, NC Bettina Darveaux
Links:	USDA PLANTS Database Record