Sarcandra glabra

Sarcandra glabra
Sarcandra glabra
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Order:	Chloranthales
Family:	Chloranthaceae
Genus:	Sarcandra
Species:	S. glabra
Binomial name
Sarcandra glabra (Thunb.) Nakai
Synonyms [1]
List Ascarina serrataBlume Chloranthus brachystachysBlume Chloranthus ceylanicusMiq. Chloranthus denticulatusCordem. Chloranthus esquiroliiH.Lév. Chloranthus glaber(Thunb.) Makino Chloranthus hainanensisC.Pei Chloranthus monanderR.Br. Chloranthus montanusSiebold ex Miq. Sarcandra hainanensis(C.Pei) Swamy & I.W.Bailey

Sarcandra glabra is a herb native to Southeast Asia. It is also known as herba sarcandrae or glabrous sarcandra herb. Its common names include the nine-knotted flower and the bone-knitted lotus. ^[2]

Aromatic oils may be extracted from the leaves. This extract has been shown in mice to reduce immunologic attenuation due to stress. ^[3]

Morphology

Leaf blade elliptic or ovate-lanceolate, 6–17 × 2–6 cm, leathery, margin sharply coarsely-serrate. Stamen baculate to terete; thecae shorter than connective. Stigma subcapitate. Fruit globose or ovoid, 3–4 mm in diam. ^[4]

Distribution

Sarcandra glabra in Kowloon Peak

The plant is distributed in Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Cambodia, Malaysia, India, Japan, Korea, the Philippines and, in China (Jiangxi, Anhui, Fujian, Guizhou, Guangxi, Hong Kong, Hunan, Sichuan, Yunnan, Guangdong, Zhejiang and other places) ^[5] , growing at an altitude of 420 meters to 1,500 meters, often growing on wet slopes and in shaded valleys.

Use in Japanese culture

The plant is used during Japanese New Year for chabana decoration, normally along winter jasmine. ^{[6] [7]} Others plants used instead of Sarcandra glabra because of its similarity to it are coralberry trees and Ardisia japonica . ^[6]

References

1. The Plant List: A Working List of All Plant Species , retrieved 7 January 2017
2. "Sarcandra glabra (Bone-knitted Lotus, Caoshanhu, Glabrous Sarcandra Herb, Nine-Knotted Flower) | North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox". plants.ces.ncsu.edu. Retrieved 2024-12-12.
3. He, RR; Yao, XS; Li, HY; Dai, Y; Duan, YH; Li, YF; Kurihara, H (2009). "The anti-stress effects of Sarcandra glabra extract on restraint-evoked immunocompromise". Biol. Pharm. Bull. 32 (2): 247–52. doi: 10.1248/bpb.32.247 . PMID   19182384.
4. Nianhe Xia; Joël Jérémie (1999), "Sarcandra Gardner, Calcutta J. Nat. Hist. 6: 348. 1845", Flora of China, vol. 4, pp. 132–138
5. "Sarcandra glabra (Thunb.) Nakai". www.worldfloraonline.org. Archived from the original on 2022-11-23. Retrieved 2025-09-05.
6. "万両 千両 十両の見分け方 和風の自然な庭に似合う植物（12月）です - Hanana tree". 17 December 2017.
7. "千両/万両 せんりょう/まんりょう｜暦生活".