''Exochorda'' is a small
genus of
flowering plants in the
family Rosaceae,
native
Native may refer to:
People
* Jus soli, citizenship by right of birth
* Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory
** Native Americans (disambiguation)
In arts and entert ...
to China and central Asia (Turkestan). They are used as ornamental plants with the common name pearl bush, or pearlbush. Numerous
species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of ...
have been described on the basis of differing appearance and geographical separation, but a systematic study
[Gao Fangyou. 1998. Exochorda: ''five species or one?: a biosystematic study of the Rosaceous genus'' Exochorda. Wageningen University Dissertation published as a book.] revealed that the different types are closely related and probably all descended from a single species that formerly had a wide distribution that has been fragmented by habitat loss. As a single species the correct name is ''
E. racemosa''.
[
]
Description
They are deciduous shrubs growing tall. The leaves
A leaf ( : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, ste ...
are paddle-shaped oval, long, with an entire or bluntly serrated margin. The flowers are white, with five petals, produced in spring on the ends of the branches. The fruit is a dry coccetum consisting of five fused carpel
Gynoecium (; ) is most commonly used as a collective term for the parts of a flower that produce ovules and ultimately develop into the fruit and seeds. The gynoecium is the innermost whorl of a flower; it consists of (one or more) ''pistils' ...
s, which split to release the flattened seeds. Lindley wrote in the original description of the genus "The free placentary chords external to the carpels have suggested the name of the genus."
Cultivation
A valuable garden hybrid
Hybrid may refer to:
Science
* Hybrid (biology), an offspring resulting from cross-breeding
** Hybrid grape, grape varieties produced by cross-breeding two ''Vitis'' species
** Hybridity, the property of a hybrid plant which is a union of two dif ...
is known as ''E.'' × ''macrantha'' C.K.Schneid. or ''Exochorda'' 'The Bride'. Lemoine Lemoine or Le Moine is a French surname meaning "Monk". Notable people with the surname include:
* Adolphe Lemoine, known as Lemoine-Montigny (1812–1880), French comic-actor
* Anna Le Moine (born 1973), Swedish curler
* Antoine Marcel Lemoine (17 ...
's catalog of 1904 C._K._Schneider,_translated_by_Wikipedia.html" ;"title="Camillo_Karl_Schneider.html" ;"title="s cited by Camillo Karl Schneider">C. K. Schneider, translated by Wikipedia">Camillo_Karl_Schneider.html" ;"title="s cited by Camillo Karl Schneider">C. K. Schneider, translated by Wikipediastated "We obtained this hybrid by fertilizing ''E. alberti'' with pollen from ''E. grandiflora''. The clusters of flowers which terminate each shoot, are erect or horizontal, each one with 8 to 10 large flowers, well opened and unfolded, snow white. This new shrub has the vigorous growth of ''E. grandiflora''. As an isolated specimen the effect is magnificent." This plant has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.
Gallery
Image:Pearlbush Exochorda racemosa Leaf Stalk 2000px.jpg, Leaves
Image:Exochorda x macrantha flowers.jpg, ''E.'' × ''macrantha'' 'The bride', flowers
Image:Exochorda the bride E.jpg, Young fruit
Image:Exochorda ripe fruit.jpg, Fully open fruit after the seeds have dispersed
References
External links
Flora of China: ''Exochorda''
*Huxley, A. (1992). ''The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening'' 2: 274. Macmillan.
*''Trees & Shrubs'', Botanica, 1987, pg. 373.
*http://www.bbc.co.uk/gardening/plants/plant_finder/plant_pages/310.shtml BBC Gardening Plant Finder
{{Taxonbar, from=Q137339
Exochordeae
Monotypic Rosaceae genera