Heptacodium

''Heptacodium miconioides'', the seven-son flower, is a species of flowering plant. It is the sole species in the monotypic genus ''Heptacodium'', of the honeysuckle family Caprifoliaceae. The common name "seven-son flower" is a direct translation of the Standard Chinese name 七子花 qī zi huā.

Endemic to China, this species was discovered for Western horticulture in 1907 by the British plant hunter Ernest Wilson on behalf of the Arnold Arboretum. It was growing on mountain cliffs at 'Hsing-Shan Hsien' in present day Xingshan County in the west of Hubei Province in central China.''Heptacodium miconioides '' Rehder - online article in the series 'Tree of the Year' by Grimshaw, John http://www.dendrology.org/publications/tree-of-the-year/heptacodium-miconioides-2012/ Retrieved 11.14 on 16 May 2018 Considered rare even at that time, only nine populations are known to remain in the wild (e.g. one on Tiantai Mountain), all of them in Anhui and Zhejiang provinces and threatened by habitat loss. The species is now under second-class national protection in China. The Sino-American Botanical Expedition of 1980 collected viable seeds and sent them to the Arnold Arboretum where it was found to be readily cultivated. The plant is now grown as an ornamental around the
world.

Description

''Heptacodium miconioides'' is a deciduous large shrub or small tree, typically growing to a height of . The bark of the trunk is papery and thin, light tan in colour, and exfoliates in strips or sheets. The upright, spreading, quadrangular branches give the plant a rounded, often irregular shape. The dark-green cordate leaves are opposite, 8–10 cm long by 5–6 cm wide, with entire margins and deeply impressed venation running parallel to the margin.
In September, ''H. miconioides'' produces large shows of small fragrant white blooms attractive to butterflies and bumblebees, the flowers five-petalled, < 13 mm across.Stebbings, G. (2011). Autumn Glory - Late Developers. ''Garden Answers'', p. 48, September 2011. Bauer Media, London. When the white corollas have fallen, the calyces develop into deep red expanded lobes which persist into November. The plant may be found in scrub, woodlands, and on the margins of broadleaved evergreen forests, often on cliffs, at altitudes of 600-1000 metres.''Heptacodium miconioides '' Rehder - online article in the series 'Tree of the Year' by Grimshaw, John http://www.dendrology.org/publications/tree-of-the-year/heptacodium-miconioides-2012/ Retrieved 11.14 on 16/5/18

Six flowers, not seven

Noted plantsman John Grimshaw, director of the Yorkshire Arboretum, relayed the following observation of ''H. miconioides'' from distinguished botanist Allen J. Coombes, (formerly of the Hillier Gardens and currently coordinator of scientific collections at the University Botanic Garden Puebla, Mexico):

'Seven' is actually misleading, for the flowers in each capitulum are held in two rows of three clustered around a central bud, which is not a flower bud but in fact a continuation of the inflorescence axis, which will push up as the flowers fade and develop a new ring of six flowers, again around a central bud. Three such iterations have been observed.

Cultivation

Readily propagated from either seed or by softwood cuttings, the species has since become widely available in North America and Europe, and was stocked by 26 nurseries in the UK alone in 201

''H. miconioides'' is extremely hardy, and tolerant of temperatures as low as . It is also fast-growing, and can reach a height of in just five years; it is also very shade tolerant. All six of the first ''H. miconioides'' planted in the United States in 1980 at the Arnold Arboretum are still alive, indicating an expected lifespan greater than 40 years. This plant has gained the Royal Horticultural Society’s Award of Garden Merit.

Notable trees

In the UK, a specimen 8 m high (2012) planted in 1981 grows in the Flagpole Bed alongside Jermyn House at the Sir Harold Hillier Gardens, Ampfield, near Romsey.

Etymology

The generic name of ''Heptacodium'' has sometimes erroneously been said to mean 'seven bells' with a second element derived from Greek κώδων (codon) - 'bell', but was in fact coined by Arnold Arboretum taxonomist Alfred Rehder from the Greek κώδειά (codeia) - 'poppy head' with the prefix έπτά (hepta-) 'seven', giving the meaning 'having seven structures resembling poppy heads'. The specific epithet ''miconioides'' alludes to the similarities in the plant, particularly its boldly-veined leaves, to certain species belonging to the unrelated genus ''Miconia'' (family Melastomataceae).

The common name in Standard Chinese 七子花 (qī zi huā) is composed of the characters 七 (qī) 'seven', 子 (zi) 'son' / 'child' and 花 (huā) 'flower' - whence 'Seven Son(s) Flower' ('Flower with seven children'). Approximate pronunciation (not allowing for tonality of Chinese language) 'Chee-dzu-hwaa'.

Medicinal potential

Recent tests have demonstrated that extracts from the plant possess antibacterial activity.
The leaf blades of ''Heptacodium'' have been found to contain flavonoids, tannins, alkaloids, saponins, lignin and chlorogenic acid.YANG Bei-fen, SHAO Hong, JIN Ze-xin ( Ecology Institute of Taizhou University, Linhai, Zhejiang 317000,China ) ''Analysis of Secondary Metabolism Contents in Leafblades of Heptacodium miconioides'' http://en.cnki.com.cn/Article_en/CJFDTOTAL-XBLX200602035.htm retrieved 00.56 on 28/4/18.

Gallery

Image: IMG 2759 Heptacodium miconioides Rehder.jpg, Characteristic peeling bark of mature specimen.
Image: IMG 5292 Heptacodium miconioides Rehder.jpg, Four trunks of mature specimen, side view.
Image: IMG 5294 Heptacodium miconioides Rehder.jpg, Bifurcating trunks ( with fifth subsidiary trunk ) of mature specimen, viewed from above.
Image: Heptacodium leaf.jpg, Single leaf, showing characteristic, three, parallel, longitudinal veins.
Image: IMG 5281 Heptacodium miconioides Rehder.jpg, Spring foliage in canopy of mature specimen, viewed from beneath.
Image: Heptacodium miconiodes flowers.jpg, Close-up of small, scented, white flowers in late Summer / Early Autumn.
Image:Heptacodium miconioides (15227437017).jpg, Pink colouration of fruiting calyces.
Image: Heptacodium calyces 1.jpg, Close-up of fruiting Calyces in late October.

References

* Airy Shaw, H. K. (1952). A second species of the genus ''Heptacodium'' Rehd.(Caprifoliaceae). ''Kew Bulletin'' 1952, Number 2, pages 245-246.

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2700641

Endemic flora of China
Vulnerable plants
Flora of Zhejiang
Flora of Yunnan
Monotypic asterid genera
Caprifoliaceae genera
Taxonomy articles created by Polbot