This woody plant is usually a large shrub or a round-headed, densely branched small tree, but can also be a medium to large tree, as there are two campion trees in the Apalachicola National Forest of northern Florida of one 81 x 48 feet and the other of 93 x 41 feet. The dark, lustrous leaves are about 4 to 6 inches long with an underside with a grayish hue and soft to touch. The short-stalked red drupes are 1 to 1.5 inches long. The seed inside has wing-like ribs. The female trees are noted for dropping lots of fruit. Although it grows wild in swamps and wetlands, it tolerates dry soils. The soils should be acid, but I don't know the upper pH limit. It is native to the coastal plain from southeast South Carolina down into northern Florida. It was first discovered by western science when William Bartram from Philadelphia found some growing along the Ogeechee River in southeast Georgia. A few nurseries in Georgia have been reported as growing some.

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Honey bes get nectar from this plant which produces a light amber honey with a greenish cast.

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