Cornus elliptica

(Pojarkova) Q. Y. Xiang & Boufford

Jian ye si zhao hua

CornaceaeFruit

iNaturalist · cc-by-nc
(c) 江国彬, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

iNaturalist · cc-by-nc
(c) jiuheng92, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

What to Eat

Edible parts: Fruit

The fully ripe fruit is sweet and edible, measuring up to 25mm in diameter.

Where to Find It

A tropical and subtropical plant. It grows in forest slopes and near streams between 300-2,200 m altitude in southern China. In Sichuan.

Asia, China,

Countries: United Arab Emirates, Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Bahrain, Brunei, Bhutan, China, Georgia, Indonesia, Israel, India, Iraq, Iran, Jordan, Japan, Kyrgyzstan, Cambodia, North Korea, South Korea, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Laos, Lebanon, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Mongolia, Maldives, Malaysia, Nepal, Oman, Philippines, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Syria, Thailand, Tajikistan, Timor-Leste, Turkmenistan, Turkey, Taiwan, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, Yemen

How to Identify

A shrub or tree. It grows 4-12 m high. The bark is dark grey. The leaves are oval and 7-9 cm long by 2-4 cm wide. The flowers are in round heads 1 cm cross and have 55-80 flowers. The fruit are up to 2.5 cm across. THey are red when ripe.

How to Grow

It can be grown from seeds or by cuttings.

Propagation: Seed is best sown as soon as it is ripe, either in a cold frame or an outdoor seedbed if there is sufficient seed. The seed must be separated from the fruit flesh, which contains germination inhibitors. Stored seed should be cold stratified for 3–4 months and sown as early in the year as possible. Scarification may help, as may a period of warm stratification before the cold stratification. Germination — particularly of stored seed — can be very slow, taking 18 months or more. Prick out cold-frame seedlings into individual pots once large enough to handle and grow on through their first winter in a greenhouse, planting out in spring after the last expected frosts. Take half-ripe side-shoot cuttings in July or August in a frame, or cuttings of mature wood from the current year's growth taken with a heel if possible in autumn in a cold frame — a high percentage will take. New growth can also be layered in June or July, taking about 9 months.

Medicinal Uses

None known.

Other Uses

The wood is hard and used for making tools.

Wikipedia

Source ↗

Cornus elliptica is a species of dogwood found in Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi, Sichuan provinces of China at elevations of 300–2200 meters.

Names & Synonyms

Possibly now Dendrobenthamia elliptica (Pojarkova) H. YuCynoxylon ellipticum Pojarkova

References (3)

Ann. Bot. Fennici 43:315, 2006. (As Dendrobenthamia elliptica)
Flora of China. Vol. 14, p 216 (As Cornus elliptica), 2005, and Flora of China. www.eFloras.org
Lee, Y. M., 2014, Important Plants of East Asia II: Endemic Plant Stories. East Asia Biodiversity Conservation Network p 60