Masaki - Masaki

Japanese: マサキ - まさき

An evergreen shrub of the Celastraceae family (APG classification: Celastraceae). It grows to about 3 meters in height, but some can reach about 8 meters. The branches are green and smooth. The leaves are elliptical, 3-8 cm long, thick, and glossy. In June and July, it produces cymes with tetrameric pale green flowers, each about 5 mm in diameter. The fruits are spherical, about 7 mm in diameter, and orange-red in color. It commonly grows in forests near the coast, and is distributed from southern Hokkaido to Okinawa and Ogasawara, as well as the Korean Peninsula and China. It is most commonly planted as a hedge. It is a highly variable plant, with varieties such as Nagabamasaki, which has thin leaves, and Kawachimasaki, which has small, thin leaves. In China, it is used as a medicine, and is said to have diuretic and tonic properties.

[Yuichi Kadota February 17, 2020]

Cultural history

There are various theories about the origin of the name Masaki, including that it is a corrupted version of Masaki, Masaki, Masaki, or Maseki, but none of these are found in dictionaries from the Heian period. In Chinese medicine, Masaki is used as a substitute for Eucommia ulmoides (Tochu), and the bark is used as a tonic under the name Wanotchu.

During the Edo period, leaf mutations were discovered and it was cultivated as a horticultural plant. In the Kadanchikinsho (1695), only normal Euonymus japonicus was included, but the subsequent Augmented Chikinsho (1710) included a silver-covered "Usuyuki Euonymus japonicus." The Kusaki Kinyoshu (1829) included a variety of variegated Euonymus japonicus.

[Hiroshi Yuasa February 17, 2020]

Masaki
It is most commonly planted as a hedge. From June to July, it produces cymes and produces numerous pale green flowers. ©Shogakukan ">

Masaki

Euonymus japonicus Fruit
It is spherical, orange-red in color, and about 7 mm in diameter. It ripens and splits open around December to January. ©Shogakukan ">

Euonymus japonicus Fruit

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

Japanese:

ニシキギ科（APG分類：ニシキギ科）の常緑低木。高さ約3メートルであるが、約8メートルに達するものもある。枝は緑色で滑らかである。葉は楕円(だえん)形で長さ3～8センチメートル、質は厚く、光沢がある。6～7月、集散花序をつくり、4数性で径約5ミリメートルの淡緑色花を多数開く。果実は球形で径約7ミリメートル、橙赤(とうせき)色である。海岸近くの林に普通に生え、北海道南部から沖縄・小笠原(おがさわら)、および朝鮮半島、中国に分布する。生け垣などに、もっとも普通に植栽される。変異に富んだ植物で、葉が細いナガバマサキ、葉が小さく質が薄いカワチマサキなどの品種がある。中国では薬用とし、利尿、強壮に効能があるという。

［門田裕一　2020年2月17日］