Styphnolobium japonicum
Encyclopedia
Styphnolobium japonicum (L.) Schott
, the Pagoda Tree (Chinese Scholar, Japanese pagodatree; syn. Sophora japonica) is a species of small tree
or shrub
in the subfamily Faboideae
of the pea family Fabaceae
.
It was formerly included within a broader interpretation of the genus Sophora
. The species of Styphnolobium differ from Sophora in lacking the ability to form symbioses
with rhizobia
(nitrogen fixing
bacteria
) on their root
s. It also differs from the related genus Calia
(mescalbeans) in having deciduous
leaves
and flower
s in axillary, not terminal, raceme
s. The leaves are pinnate
, with 9-21 leaflets, and the flowers in pendulous racemes similar to those of the Black locust
.
(mainly China
; despite the name, it is introduced in Japan
), is a popular ornamental tree in Europe
, North America
and South Africa
, grown for its white flowers, borne in late summer after most other flowering trees have long finished flowering. It grows into a lofty tree 10-20 m tall with an equal spread, and produces a fine, dark brown timber.
was a historic Pagoda Tree in Beijing
, on which the last emperor of the Ming Dynasty
, Chongzhen
, hanged himself.
.
, antibacterial, anticholesterolemic, antiinflammatory, antispasmodic
, diuretic
, emetic, emollient, febrifuge, hypotensive, purgative, styptic, and tonic properties.
Heinrich Wilhelm Schott
Heinrich Wilhelm Schott was an Austrian botanist well known for his extensive work on the aroids ....
, the Pagoda Tree (Chinese Scholar, Japanese pagodatree; syn. Sophora japonica) is a species of 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...
or 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...
in the subfamily Faboideae
Faboideae
Faboideae is a subfamily of the flowering plant family Fabaceae or Leguminosae. One acceptable alternative name for the subfamily is Papilionoideae....
of the pea family Fabaceae
Fabaceae
The Fabaceae or Leguminosae, commonly known as the legume, pea, or bean family, is a large and economically important family of flowering plants. The group is the third largest land plant family, behind only the Orchidaceae and Asteraceae, with 730 genera and over 19,400 species...
.
It was formerly included within a broader interpretation of the genus Sophora
Sophora
Sophora is a genus of about 45 species of small trees and shrubs in the subfamily Faboideae of the pea family, Fabaceae. The species are native to southeast Europe, southern Asia, Australasia, various islands in the Pacific Ocean, western South America, the western United States, the Southern US...
. The species of Styphnolobium differ from Sophora in lacking the ability to form symbioses
Symbiosis
Symbiosis is close and often long-term interaction between different biological species. In 1877 Bennett used the word symbiosis to describe the mutualistic relationship in lichens...
with rhizobia
Rhizobia
Rhizobia are soil bacteria that fix nitrogen after becoming established inside root nodules of legumes . Rhizobia require a plant host; they cannot independently fix nitrogen...
(nitrogen fixing
Nitrogen fixation
Nitrogen fixation is the natural process, either biological or abiotic, by which nitrogen in the atmosphere is converted into ammonia . This process is essential for life because fixed nitrogen is required to biosynthesize the basic building blocks of life, e.g., nucleotides for DNA and RNA and...
bacteria
Bacteria
Bacteria are a large domain of prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micrometres in length, bacteria have a wide range of shapes, ranging from spheres to rods and spirals...
) on their root
Root
In vascular plants, the root is the organ of a plant that typically lies below the surface of the soil. This is not always the case, however, since a root can also be aerial or aerating . Furthermore, a stem normally occurring below ground is not exceptional either...
s. It also differs from the related genus Calia
Mescalbean
Calia is a genus of three or four species of shrubs and small trees in the subfamily Faboideae of the pea family, Fabaceae. The genus is native to southwestern North America from western Texas to New Mexico and Arizona in the United States, and south through Chihuahua, Coahuila and Nuevo León in...
(mescalbeans) in having 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...
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....
and 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 in axillary, not terminal, raceme
Raceme
A raceme is a type of inflorescence that is unbranched and indeterminate and bears pedicellate flowers — flowers having short floral stalks called pedicels — along the axis. In botany, axis means a shoot, in this case one bearing the flowers. In a raceme, the oldest flowers are borne...
s. The leaves are pinnate
Pinnate
Pinnate is a term used to describe feather-like or multi-divided features arising from both sides of a common axis in plant or animal structures, and comes from the Latin word pinna meaning "feather", "wing", or "fin". A similar term is pectinate, which refers to a comb-like arrangement of parts...
, with 9-21 leaflets, and the flowers in pendulous racemes similar to those of the Black locust
Black locust
Robinia pseudoacacia, commonly known as the Black Locust, is a tree in the subfamily Faboideae of the pea family Fabaceae. It is native to the southeastern United States, but has been widely planted and naturalized elsewhere in temperate North America, Europe, Southern Africa and Asia and is...
.
Distribution
Styphnolobium japonicum is native to eastern AsiaAsia
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...
(mainly 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...
; despite the name, it is introduced in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
), is a popular ornamental tree in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, 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...
and South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
, grown for its white flowers, borne in late summer after most other flowering trees have long finished flowering. It grows into a lofty tree 10-20 m tall with an equal spread, and produces a fine, dark brown timber.
Gardening
The Guilty Chinese ScholartreeGuilty Chinese Scholartree
The Guilty Chinese Scholartree , a specimen of Pagoda Tree located in Beijing's Jingshan park, is a famous tree and national landmark on which the last Ming Chongzhen Emperor hanged himself after a group of peasants successfully stormed the Forbidden City in 1644.The tree was uprooted during the...
was a historic Pagoda Tree in Beijing
Jingshan Park
Jingshan is an artificial hill in Beijing, China. Covering an area of more than 230,000 m², Jingshan is immediately north of the Forbidden City on the central axis of Beijing. As a result, it is administratively part of both the Xicheng District and the Dongcheng District...
, on which the last emperor of the Ming Dynasty
Ming Dynasty
The Ming Dynasty, also Empire of the Great Ming, was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan Dynasty. The Ming, "one of the greatest eras of orderly government and social stability in human history", was the last dynasty in China ruled by ethnic...
, Chongzhen
Chongzhen Emperor
The Chongzhen Emperor was the 16th and last emperor of the Ming Dynasty in China. He reigned from 1627 to 1644, under an era name that means "honorable and auspicious".- Early years :...
, hanged himself.
Medicinal uses
S. japonicum is one of the 50 fundamental herbs used in traditional Chinese medicineTraditional Chinese medicine
Traditional Chinese Medicine refers to a broad range of medicine practices sharing common theoretical concepts which have been developed in China and are based on a tradition of more than 2,000 years, including various forms of herbal medicine, acupuncture, massage , exercise , and dietary therapy...
.
Medicinal properties
It has abortifacientAbortifacient
An abortifacient is a substance that induces abortion. Abortifacients for animals that have mated undesirably are known as mismating shots....
, antibacterial, anticholesterolemic, antiinflammatory, antispasmodic
Antispasmodic
An antispasmodic is a drug or a herb that suppresses muscle spasms.-Smooth muscle spasm:One type of antispasmodics is used for smooth muscle contraction, especially in tubular organs of the gastrointestinal tract...
, diuretic
Diuretic
A diuretic provides a means of forced diuresis which elevates the rate of urination. There are several categories of diuretics. All diuretics increase the excretion of water from bodies, although each class does so in a distinct way.- Medical uses :...
, emetic, emollient, febrifuge, hypotensive, purgative, styptic, and tonic properties.
Chinese Etymology
The Chinese name for the tree (槐) is composed of the word 木 ("wood") and 鬼 ("demon"). In folklore, it is said that a cowherd once built a home out of this species of tree, and within a month his entire family was suddenly found dead, with no signs of foulplay. It was therefore believed that demons are drawn to this tree and it is therefore not appropriate to use its wood to build homes. In addition, in the wild, other species of tree rarely grow near it.General references
- The relationship of Sophora sect. Edwardsia (Fabaceae) to Sophora tomentosa, the type species of the genus Sophora, observed from DNA sequence data and morphological characters. Bot. J. Linn. Soc. 146: 439-446 (2004). Available online.