''Staphylea'', called bladdernuts, is a small genus of 10 or 11 species of flowering plants in the
family
Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Ideal ...
Staphyleaceae, native to
temperate
In geography, the temperate climates of Earth occur in the middle latitudes (23.5° to 66.5° N/S of Equator), which span between the tropics and the polar regions of Earth. These zones generally have wider temperature ranges throughout t ...
regions of the
Northern Hemisphere
The Northern Hemisphere is the half of Earth that is north of the Equator. For other planets in the Solar System, north is defined as being in the same celestial hemisphere relative to the invariable plane of the solar system as Earth's N ...
. The highest species diversity is in China, where four species occur.
They are large
shrub
A shrub (often also called a bush) is a small-to-medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from tree ...
s, occasionally small trees, growing to 2–5 m tall. The leaves are
deciduous
In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...
, arranged in opposite pairs, and
pinnate
Pinnation (also called pennation) is the arrangement of feather-like or multi-divided features arising from both sides of a common axis. Pinnation occurs in biological morphology, in crystals, such as some forms of ice or metal crystals, and i ...
, usually with three
leaflets, but ''S. pinnata'' and ''S. colchica''. The flowers are produced in drooping terminal
panicle
A panicle is a much-branched inflorescence. (softcover ). Some authors distinguish it from a compound spike inflorescence, by requiring that the flowers (and fruit) be pedicellate (having a single stem per flower). The branches of a panicle are of ...
s 5–10 cm long, with 5–15 flowers on each panicle; the individual flowers are about 1 cm long, with the five
sepal
A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coined ...
s and
petal
Petals are modified leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''corolla''. Petals are usually ...
s similar in size and in their white or pale pink colour. The fruit is an inflated papery two- or three-lobed
capsule 3–10 cm long, containing a few small nut-like seeds.
Species
''
Plants of the World Online
Plants of the World Online (POWO) is an online database published by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. It was launched in March 2017 with the ultimate aim being "to enable users to access information on all the world's known seed-bearing plants b ...
'' currently includes:
* ''
Staphylea affinis''
(Merr. & L.M.Perry) Byng & Christenh.
* ''
Staphylea arguta''
(Seem.) Byng & Christenh.
* ''
Staphylea bolanderi''
A.Gray – Sierra bladdernut. Western North America.
* ''
Staphylea bumalda''
DC. – Japanese bladdernut. Eastern Asia.
* ''
Staphylea campanulata''
J.Wen
* ''
Staphylea cochinchinensis''
(Lour.) Byng & Christenh. - Nepal to S. China and Indo-China.
* ''
Staphylea colchica''
Steven – Colchis bladdernut, jonjoli. Eastern Europe.
* ''
Staphylea emodi''
Wall. ex Brandis – Himalayan bladdernut. Himalaya.
* ''
Staphylea formosana''
(Nakai) Byng & Christenh.
* ''
Staphylea forrestii''
Balf.f. – China.
* ''
Staphylea holocarpa''
Hemsl. – China.
* ''
Staphylea indochinensis''
(Merr.) Byng & Christenh. - S. China, N. Vietnam
* ''
Staphylea insignis''
(Tul.) Byng & Christenh.
* ''
Staphylea japonica''
(Thunb.) Mabb.
* ''
Staphylea macrosperma''
(C.C.Huang) Byng & Christenh.
* ''
Staphylea megaphylla''
(Tul.) Byng & Christenh.
* ''
Staphylea pinnata''
L. – European bladdernut. Europe.
* ''
Staphylea pringlei''
S.Watson – Mexico.
* ''
Staphylea shweliensis''
W.W.Sm. – China.
* ''
Staphylea subsessilifolia''
(C.Y.Wu) Byng & Christenh.
* ''
Staphylea ternata''
(Nakai) Byng & Christenh.
* ''
Staphylea tricornuta''
(Lundell) Byng & Christenh.
* ''
Staphylea trifolia''
L. – American bladdernut. Eastern North America.
* ''
Staphylea yuanjiangensis''
K.M.Feng & T.Z.Hsu
Some
botanists previously included the closely related
genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial no ...
''
Turpinia'' in ''Staphylea''.
Cultivation and uses
Several species are grown as
ornamental plant
Ornamental plants or garden plants are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars that ...
s for their flowers and peculiar bladder-like fruit. The popular ''Staphylea × elegans'' is a
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 ...
of unknown origin, probably between ''S. colchica'' and ''S. pinnata''. The pickled flowers can be served as a side dish in
Georgian cuisine
Georgian cuisine () consists of cooking traditions, techniques, and practices of Georgia. Georgian cuisine has a distinct character, while bearing some similarities with various national cuisines of the Caucasus and the wider Eastern Europe. E ...
.
References
External links
EFloras: search results for ''Staphylea''Flora Europaea: ''Staphylea''
- at desert-tropicals.com
{{Taxonbar, from=Q158845
Rosid genera
Staphyleaceae