Abeliophyllum Explained

Abeliophyllum, the miseonnamu,[1] Korean abeliophyllum, white forsythia, or Korean abelialeaf, is a monotypic genus of flowering plants in the olive family, Oleaceae. It consists of one species, Abeliophyllum distichum, endemic to Korea, where it is endangered in the wild, occurring at only seven sites. It is related to Forsythia, but differs in having white, not yellow, flowers.

Description

It is a deciduous shrub growing to 1- tall and rounded in outline with multi-stemmed and arching branches. The leaves are opposite, simple, 5- long and 3- wide, pubescent both above and below. The flowers are produced in early spring before the new leaves appear; they are white or pink tinged, and fragrant, about 1- in diameter, with a four-lobed corolla. The fruit is a round, winged samara 2- diameter. Almost looking like an elm tree fruit.[2]

It is cultivated as an ornamental plant in Europe and North America. Hardy to USDA Zone 4.[2]

Taxonomy

The genus name of Abeliophyllum is in honour of Clarke Abel (1780–1826), a British surgeon and naturalist.[3] With the latin suffix of 'phyllum' meaning leaf. The Latin specific epithet of distichum means in two ranks, referring to the leaves.[4] It was first described and published in Bot. Mag. (Tokyo) Vol.33 on page 153 in 1919.[5]

Conservation status

In 1998, a review of the plant's conservation status found that "it is close to extinction and qualifies for the IUCN Category of 'Critically Endangered', indicating a high risk of extinction in the near future.";[6] but as of 2009 it has not yet been formally assessed for the IUCN Red List.

In 2015, IUCN classed the species as endangered.[7]

References

Notes and References

  1. Book: English Names for Korean Native Plants . . 2015 . 978-89-97450-98-5 . Pocheon . 332 . 19 December 2016 . . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20170525105020/http://www.forest.go.kr/kna/special/download/English_Names_for_Korean_Native_Plants.pdf . 25 May 2017 .
  2. Web site: Abeliophyllum distichum Landscape Plants Oregon State University . landscapeplants.oregonstate.edu . 30 January 2022 . 27 May 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240527112949/https://landscapeplants.oregonstate.edu/plants/abeliophyllum-distichum . live .
  3. Book: Burkhardt, Lotte . Eine Enzyklopädie zu eponymischen Pflanzennamen . Encyclopedia of eponymic plant names . Botanic Garden and Botanical Museum, Freie Universität Berlin . 2022 . 978-3-946292-41-8 . pdf . German . Berlin . 10.3372/epolist2022 . 246307410 . January 27, 2022 . August 31, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230831232306/https://www.bgbm.org/de/eine-enzyklopadie-zu-eponymischen-pflanzennamen . live .
  4. Book: Harrison, Lorraine . RHS Latin for Gardeners . 2012 . Mitchell Beazley . United Kingdom . 978-1845337315 .
  5. Web site: Abeliophyllum Nakai Plants of the World Online Kew Science . Plants of the World Online . 30 January 2022 . en . 27 May 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240527113535/https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:28314-1 . live .
  6. Kim, Y. S. . Maunder, M. . amp . 1998 . Plants in Peril, 24: Abeliophyllum distichum . . 15 . 2 . 141–146 . 10.1111/1467-8748.00155.
  7. Son, S.-W. . Kim, Y.-S. . Kim, H. . 2016 . Abeliophyllum distichum . 2016 . e.T13188339A13189399 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-1.RLTS.T13188339A13189399.en . 6 September 2021.

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