Definition

1. Noun:
   • A deciduous shrub native to Europe and Asia, known for forming thickets, producing clusters of white flowers, and bearing small, bright red berries. It is a specific ornamental plant species.

Usage

• The word "guelder rose" is used as a common name for the specific shrub species . It functions as a singular, countable noun.
• It is primarily used in botanical, horticultural, and descriptive natural contexts.

Examples

• Noun:
  • The hedgerow was bright with the white blooms of the guelder rose.
  • Birds often eat the berries of the guelder rose in winter.

Advanced Usage

• "guelder rose" as a modifier: The term can be used attributively to describe related things.
  • The garden featured a beautiful guelder rose bush.

Variants and Related Words

• European cranberrybush: A common alternative name for the same plant ().
• Snowball tree: A cultivated variety of (often 'Roseum') known for its large, round, sterile flower clusters that resemble snowballs. This is a distinct horticultural form.
• Viburnum: The genus to which the guelder rose belongs.

Synonyms

• Cramp bark: A name derived from the historical medicinal use of the shrub's bark.
• Water elder: Another occasional common name.

Notes on Meaning

• The term specifically refers to the wild or standard form of with flat clusters of fertile flowers. It is distinct from the cultivated "snowball tree" variant, which has showy, ball-shaped clusters of sterile flowers.

Noun

1. deciduous thicket-forming Old World shrub with clusters of white flowers and small bright red berries