Halesia
Encyclopedia
Halesia , also known as (Silverbell or Snowdrop Tree) is a small genus
of four or five species of deciduous
large shrub
s or small tree
s in the family Styracaceae
, native to eastern Asia
(southeast China
) and eastern North America
(southern Ontario
, Canada
south to Florida
and eastern Texas
, United States
). They grow to 5-20 m tall (rarely to 39 m), and have alternate, simple ovate leaves
5-16 cm long and 3-8 cm broad. The flower
s are pendulous, white or pale pink, produced in open clusters of 2-6 together, each flower 1-3 cm long. The fruit
is an oblong dry drupe
2-4 cm long, with two or four narrow longitudinal ribs or wings.
Species
H. diptera is the most distinct, readily distinguished from the other taxa by its two-winged fruit; the other taxa all have four-winged fruit.
H. monticola is the largest of the genus, with specimens up to 39 m tall known in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park
in North Carolina
; the second-largest is H. macgregorii, reaching 24 m in China. The others rarely exceed 10 m tall. However H. Monticola is now considered to be a subspecies of H. tetraptera.
as H. carolina; some contend that it is the same as H. parviflora, while others say it is the same as H. tetraptera. The second dispute is over whether H. monticola is sufficiently distinct from the other species to merit specific recognition or not (with its varietal placing depending on the above question, too). Neither question has yet been conclusively answered.
The genus was named after Stephen Hales
by John Ellis
, publishing the name in the tenth edition of Linnaeus's Systema Naturae
in 1759. The name is conserved
as the same name had been used in an obscure earlier publication in 1756 for a different plant.
s in large gardens, grown for their delicate pendulous flowers in late spring.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of four or five species of deciduous
Deciduous
Deciduous means "falling off at maturity" or "tending to fall off", and is typically used in reference to trees or shrubs that lose their leaves seasonally, and to the shedding of other plant structures such as petals after flowering or fruit when ripe...
large shrub
Shrub
A shrub or bush is distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and shorter height, usually under 5–6 m tall. A large number of plants may become either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...
s or small tree
Tree
A tree is a perennial woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or trunk with clear apical dominance. A minimum height specification at maturity is cited by some authors, varying from 3 m to...
s in the family Styracaceae
Styracaceae
Styracaceae is a small family of flowering plants in the order Ericales, containing 11 genera and about 160 species of trees and shrubs. The family occurs in warm temperate and subtropical regions of the Northern Hemisphere....
, native to eastern Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
(southeast China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
) and eastern North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
(southern Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
south to Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
and eastern Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
). They grow to 5-20 m tall (rarely to 39 m), and have alternate, simple ovate leaves
Leaf
A leaf is an organ of a vascular plant, as defined in botanical terms, and in particular in plant morphology. Foliage is a mass noun that refers to leaves as a feature of plants....
5-16 cm long and 3-8 cm broad. The flower
Flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to effect reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism for the union of sperm with eggs...
s are pendulous, white or pale pink, produced in open clusters of 2-6 together, each flower 1-3 cm long. The fruit
Fruit
In broad terms, a fruit is a structure of a plant that contains its seeds.The term has different meanings dependent on context. In non-technical usage, such as food preparation, fruit normally means the fleshy seed-associated structures of certain plants that are sweet and edible in the raw state,...
is an oblong dry drupe
Drupe
In botany, a drupe is a fruit in which an outer fleshy part surrounds a shell of hardened endocarp with a seed inside. These fruits develop from a single carpel, and mostly from flowers with superior ovaries...
2-4 cm long, with two or four narrow longitudinal ribs or wings.
Species
- Halesia carolina L. - eastern North America (syn. H. parviflora or H. tetraptera)
- Halesia dipteraHalesia dipteraHalesia diptera is a species in the family Styracaceae, native to the southeastern United States from South Carolina and Florida west to eastern Texas....
Ellis - southeastern North America - Halesia macgregoriiHalesia macgregoriiHalesia macgregorii is a species of flowering plant in the family Styracaceae. It is endemic to southeastern China, where it grows at moderate altitudes of 700–1,200 m. It is threatened by habitat loss...
Chun - eastern China - Halesia monticola (Rehd.) Sarg.; Mountain Silverbell - eastern North America (syn. H. carolina var. monticola; H. tetraptera var. monticola)
- Halesia parviflora Michx. - eastern North America
- Halesia tetrapteraHalesia tetrapteraHalesia tetraptera is a species in the family Styracaceae, native to the southeastern United States....
Ellis - eastern North America
H. diptera is the most distinct, readily distinguished from the other taxa by its two-winged fruit; the other taxa all have four-winged fruit.
H. monticola is the largest of the genus, with specimens up to 39 m tall known in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Great Smoky Mountains National Park is a United States National Park and UNESCO World Heritage Site that straddles the ridgeline of the Great Smoky Mountains, part of the Blue Ridge Mountains, which are a division of the larger Appalachian Mountain chain. The border between Tennessee and North...
in North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
; the second-largest is H. macgregorii, reaching 24 m in China. The others rarely exceed 10 m tall. However H. Monticola is now considered to be a subspecies of H. tetraptera.
Taxonomy
The taxonomy and naming of the American species is confused and extensively disputed. The first dispute is over the exact identity of the specimen first named by LinnaeusCarolus Linnaeus
Carl Linnaeus , also known after his ennoblement as , was a Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist, who laid the foundations for the modern scheme of binomial nomenclature. He is known as the father of modern taxonomy, and is also considered one of the fathers of modern ecology...
as H. carolina; some contend that it is the same as H. parviflora, while others say it is the same as H. tetraptera. The second dispute is over whether H. monticola is sufficiently distinct from the other species to merit specific recognition or not (with its varietal placing depending on the above question, too). Neither question has yet been conclusively answered.
The genus was named after Stephen Hales
Stephen Hales
Stephen Hales, FRS was an English physiologist, chemist and inventor.Hales studied the role of air and water in the maintenance of both plant and animal life. He gave accurate accounts of the movements of water in plants, and demonstrated that plants absorb air...
by John Ellis
John Ellis (naturalist)
John Ellis FRS was a British linen merchant and naturalist.Ellis specialised in the study of corals. He was elected a member of the Royal Society in 1754 and in the following year published An essay towards the Natural History of the Corallines. He was awarded the Copley Medal in 1767...
, publishing the name in the tenth edition of Linnaeus's Systema Naturae
Systema Naturae
The book was one of the major works of the Swedish botanist, zoologist and physician Carolus Linnaeus. The first edition was published in 1735...
in 1759. The name is conserved
Conserved name
A conserved name or nomen conservandum is a scientific name that has specific nomenclatural protection. Nomen conservandum is a Latin term, meaning a "name which should be conserved"...
as the same name had been used in an obscure earlier publication in 1756 for a different plant.
Cultivation and uses
Silverbells are popular ornamental plantOrnamental plant
Ornamental plants are plants that are grown for decorative purposes in gardens and landscape design projects, as house plants, for cut flowers and specimen display...
s in large gardens, grown for their delicate pendulous flowers in late spring.