Edgeworthia chrysantha
Edgeworthia chrysantha at the botanical garden of Villa Durazzo-Pallavicini, Genoa
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Malvales
Family: Thymelaeaceae
Genus: Edgeworthia
Species:
E. chrysantha
Binomial name
Edgeworthia chrysantha
Synonyms[1]
  • Edgeworthia papyrifera Siebold & Zucc.
  • Edgeworthia tomentosa (Thunberg) Nakai

Edgeworthia chrysantha (common names: Oriental paperbush, mitsumata[2]) is a plant in the family Thymelaeaceae.[1]

Etymology

The genus was named in honour of Michael Pakenham Edgeworth (1812–1881), an Irish-born Victorian era amateur botanist, who worked for the East India Company, and for his sister, writer Maria Edgeworth.[3][4][5] The Latin specific epithet chrysantha is in reference to the plant's yellow flowers.[6]

Description

Edgeworthia chrysantha is a deciduous shrub with dark green, leathery, single, alternate, lanceolate leaves, 7.6–12.7 cm (3–5 in) long. It can reach a height of 1.2–1.8 m (4–6 ft). Flowers are yellow, have a sweet scent, and in clusters at the branch tips. The flowering period extends from February to April.[6]

Distribution and habitat

This species is native to Myanmar and south-central and southeast China.[7] It is naturalized in Japan. It grows in forests and shrubby slopes.[1]

Use

The bark fibres of these plants are used for making the handmade Japanese tissue called "mitsumata paper". Along with kōzo and gampi, it is used for making traditional Japanese paper (washi). Among other applications, mitsumata is used for banknotes as the paper is very durable.[2] In China, flowers, roots and bark are used in traditional medicine.[7]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Edgeworthia chrysantha". Flora of China @ efloras.org. Retrieved 2022-07-24.
  2. 1 2 "Banknotes are made from special paper!". Characteristics of Banknotes. National Printing Bureau (Japan)-www.npb.go.jp. Retrieved 20 February 2015.
  3. ↑ Jackson, Benjamin Daydon; and Grout, Andrew (May 2010). "Edgeworth, Michael Pakenham". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/8477. ISBN 978-0-19-861412-8. Retrieved 20 February 2015. Edgeworth, Michael Pakenham (1812–1881), botanist and East India Company servant, was born on 24 May 1812 at Edgeworthstown, co. Longford, Ireland (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  4. ↑ "Edgeworthia chrysantha: Paperbush". Royal Horticultural Society. Retrieved 20 February 2015.
  5. ↑ Meisner, C.D.F. Plantarum vascularium genera secundum ordines ... 2: 242. 1841 (18–24 Jul 1841)
  6. 1 2 "Edgeworthia chrysantha - Plant Finder". www.missouribotanicalgarden.org. Retrieved 2022-07-24.
  7. 1 2 "Edgeworthia chrysantha Lindl. | Plants of the World Online | Kew Science". Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 2022-07-24.
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