Cornus officinalis - Cornus officinalis

A deciduous shrub of the family Stachentaceae (APG classification: Stachentaceae). It is about 3 meters tall. It has many branches and brown bark. The leaves are alternate, egg-shaped, elliptical, and pointed. In spring, before the leaves appear, the racemes hang down and many yellow flowers are lined up. It is dioecious. It has four calyxes, tinged with blackish brown, and four petals. The male flowers are large with eight stamens, and the female flowers are small with one pistil. The fruit is spherical and contains many seeds. It is distributed from Hokkaido to Kyushu. The fruit contains tannin and is used as a substitute for oak gallnuts, and the flowering branches are used in flower arrangements. The variety, Nanban-Kibushi, has large leaves with powdery white undersides. The fruit is also large. It is distributed on the Pacific side of Shikoku and Kyushu, as well as Amami-Oshima and Tokunoshima.

[Kyoshio Furusawa September 17, 2020]

There is a great deal of variation in Cornus officinalis depending on the region, and there are varieties such as Hachijo Cornus, Long-leaf Cornus, and Hazakura Cornus.

[Editorial Department, September 17, 2020]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

キブシ科（APG分類：キブシ科）の落葉低木。高さ約3メートル。分枝が多く、樹皮は褐色。葉は互生し、卵状楕円(だえん)形で先がとがる。春、葉が出る前に総状花序を下垂し、多数の黄色花が連なってつく。雌雄異株。萼(がく)は4枚で黒褐色を帯び、花弁は4枚。雄花は大形で雄しべは8本、雌花は小形で雌しべは1本。果実は球形で、種子が多数ある。北海道から九州に分布する。果実はタンニンを含み、五倍子(ごばいし)の代用となり、花枝はいけ花に用いる。変種のナンバンキブシは葉の裏面が粉白色で大形。果実も大形。四国、九州の太平洋側と奄美(あまみ)大島、徳之島に分布する。

［古澤潔夫　2020年9月17日］

　キブシは地域によって非常に変異が多く、ハチジョウキブシ、ナガバキブシ、ハザクラキブシなどがある。

［編集部　2020年9月17日］

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