Syringa reticulata

Japanese tree lilac
Conservation status
	; Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Asterids
Order:	Lamiales
Family:	Oleaceae
Genus:	Syringa
Species:	S. reticulata
Binomial name
	Syringa reticulata; (Blume) H.Hara

Syringa reticulata, the Japanese tree lilac,^[1] is a species of flowering plant in the family Oleaceae. It is native to eastern Asia, and is grown as an ornamental in Europe and North America.

Description

It is a deciduous small tree growing to a height of 12 m (39 ft), rarely to 15 m (49 ft), with a trunk up to 30 cm (12 in), rarely 40 cm (16 in) in diameter; it is the largest species of lilac, and the only one that regularly makes a small tree rather than a shrub. The leaves are elliptic-acute, 2.5–15 cm (0.98–5.91 in) long and 1–8 cm (0.39–3.15 in) broad, with an entire margin, and a roughish texture with slightly impressed veins. The flowers are white or creamy-white, the corolla with a tubular base 0.16–0.24" (4–6 mm) long and a four-lobed apex 0.12–0.24" (3–6 mm) across, and a strong fragrance; they are produced in broad panicles 5–30 cm (2.0–11.8 in) long and 3–20 cm (1.2–7.9 in) broad in early summer. The fruit is a dry, smooth, brown capsule (15–25 mm long), splitting in two to release the two winged seeds.^[2]^[3]^[4]^[5]

Distribution

Syringa reticulata is found in northern Japan (mainly Hokkaidō), northern China (Gansu, Hebei, Heilongjiang, Henan, Jilin, Liaoning, Nei Mongol, Ningxia, Shaanxi, Shanxi, Sichuan), Korea, and far southeastern Russia (Primorye).^[2]^[3]^[6]

Names

Chinese: 暴馬丁香; pinyin: Bào mǎ dīngxiāng; Japanese: ハシドイ (丁香花), romanized: hashidoi

The Latin specific epithet reticulata means "netted".^[7]

Subspecies

There are three subspecies:^[2]

Syringa reticulata subsp. reticulata (syn. Syringa japonica (Maxim.), also syn. S. amurensis var japonica (Maxim.) Franch et Sav.- Ligustrina japonica (Maxim.) ) - Japan.
Syringa reticulata subsp. amurensis (Rupr.) P.S.Green & M.C.Chang (syn. S. reticulata var. mandschurica (Maxim.) H.Hara) - Northeastern China, Korea, southeastern Russia.
Syringa reticulata subsp. pekinensis (Rupr.) P.S.Green & M.C.Chang - North-central China. It has very distinct reddish-brown peeling bark.

References

^ USDA, NRCS (n.d.). "Syringa reticulata". The PLANTS Database (plants.usda.gov). Greensboro, North Carolina: National Plant Data Team. Retrieved 7 December 2015.
^ ^a ^b ^c Flora of China: Syringa reticulata
^ ^a ^b Hanaki Kawahara Gardens: Syringa reticulata Archived 2012-02-09 at the Wayback Machine (in Japanese; google translation)
^ Mitomori: Syringa reticulata (in Japanese; google translation)
^ Huxley, A., ed. (1992). New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. Macmillan ISBN 0-333-47494-5.
^ Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families Syringa reticulata
^ Harrison, Lorraine (2012). RHS Latin for Gardeners. United Kingdom: Mitchell Beazley. ISBN 978-1845337315.

[1] USDA, NRCS (n.d.). "Syringa reticulata". The PLANTS Database (plants.usda.gov). Greensboro, North Carolina: National Plant Data Team. Retrieved 7 December 2015.

[foc-2] Flora of China: Syringa reticulata

[hanaki-3] Hanaki Kawahara Gardens: Syringa reticulata Archived 2012-02-09 at the Wayback Machine (in Japanese; google translation)

[mitomori-4] Mitomori: Syringa reticulata (in Japanese; google translation)

[rhs-5] Huxley, A., ed. (1992). New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. Macmillan ISBN 0-333-47494-5.

[6] Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families Syringa reticulata

[RHSLG-7] Harrison, Lorraine (2012). RHS Latin for Gardeners. United Kingdom: Mitchell Beazley. ISBN 978-1845337315.

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