''Acer griseum'', the paperbark maple or blood-bark maple, is a
species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of 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 the appropriate s ...
of
flowering plant
Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...
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. Idea ...
Sapindaceae,
native to central China.
[Flora of China (draft)]
''Acer griseum''
/ref> ''Acer griseum'' is found in the Chinese provinces of Gansu, Henan
Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country. Henan is often referred to as Zhongyuan or Zhongzhou (), which literally means "central plain" or "midland", although the name is al ...
, Hubei
Hubei (; ; alternately Hupeh) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, and is part of the Central China region. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Dongting Lake. The ...
, Hunan
Hunan (, ; ) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the South Central China region. Located in the middle reaches of the Yangtze watershed, it borders the province-level divisions of Hubei to the north, Jiangxi ...
, Shaanxi
Shaanxi (alternatively Shensi, see § Name) is a landlocked province of China. Officially part of Northwest China, it borders the province-level divisions of Shanxi (NE, E), Henan (E), Hubei (SE), Chongqing (S), Sichuan (SW), Gansu (W), N ...
, Shanxi and Sichuan
Sichuan (; zh, c=, labels=no, ; zh, p=Sìchuān; alternatively romanized as Szechuan or Szechwan; formerly also referred to as "West China" or "Western China" by Protestant missions) is a province in Southwest China occupying most of the ...
, at altitudes of .[
]
Description
It is a small to medium-sized 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, ...
tree
In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are ...
, reaching tall and wide, with a trunk up to in circumference.[
The leaves are compound, with a 2–4 cm petiole with three leaflets, each 3–10 cm long and 2–6 cm broad, dark green above, bright glaucous blue-green beneath, with several blunt teeth on the margins.][
The yellow ]flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...
s are androdioecious, produced in small pendent corymb
Corymb is a botanical term for an inflorescence with the flowers growing in such a fashion that the outermost are borne on longer pedicels than the inner, bringing all flowers up to a common level. A corymb has a flattish top with a superficial ...
s in spring, the fruit
In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering.
Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...
being a paired samara with two winged seed
A seed is an embryonic plant enclosed in a protective outer covering, along with a food reserve. The formation of the seed is a part of the process of reproduction in seed plants, the spermatophytes, including the gymnosperm and angiospe ...
s about 1 cm long with a 3 cm wing.[Rushforth, K. (1999). ''Trees of Britain and Europe''. Collins .]
Cultivation and uses
''Acer griseum'' was introduced to cultivation in Europe in 1901 by Ernest Henry Wilson
Ernest Henry "Chinese" Wilson (15 February 1876 – 15 October 1930), better known as E. H. Wilson, was a notable British plant collector and explorer who introduced a large range of about 2000 Asian plant species to the West; some sixty bear ...
for the Veitch Nurseries
The Veitch Nurseries were the largest group of family-run plant nurseries in Europe during the 19th century. Started by John Veitch sometime before 1808, the original nursery grew substantially over several decades and was eventually split into t ...
in the UK, and to North America shortly after. It is one of many species of maples widely 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 in temperate regions. It is admired for its decorative exfoliating
Exfoliation is the removal of dead skin cells and built-up dirt from the skin's surface. The term comes from the Latin word ''exfoliare'' (to strip off leaves). This is a regular practice within the cosmetic industry, both for its outcome of pro ...
bark, translucent
In the field of optics, transparency (also called pellucidity or diaphaneity) is the physical property of allowing light to pass through the material without appreciable scattering of light. On a macroscopic scale (one in which the dimensions ...
pieces of which often stay attached to the branches until worn away. It also has spectacular autumn foliage which can include red, orange and pink tones. Cultivars include the columnar ''Copper Rocket.''
This plant has gained the Royal Horticultural Society
The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity.
The RHS promotes horticulture through its five gardens at Wisley (Surrey), Hyde Hall (Essex), Harlow Carr (Nor ...
's Award of Garden Merit.
In 2015, the North America-China Plant Exploration Consortium (NACPEC) conducted an expedition specifically targeting ''Acer griseum'' for seed collection with the object of increasing the genetic diversity of plants in cultivation.Propagation
Propagation can refer to:
* Chain propagation in a chemical reaction mechanism
*Crack propagation, the growth of a crack during the fracture of materials
* Propaganda, non-objective information used to further an agenda
* Reproduction, and other fo ...
of ''Acer griseum'' is somewhat difficult as seeds have the same parthenocarpic
In botany and horticulture, parthenocarpy is the natural or artificially induced production of fruit without fertilisation of ovules, which makes the fruit seedless. Stenospermocarpy may also produce apparently seedless fruit, but the seeds are ac ...
tendencies as those of '' Acer maximowiczianum''.[van Gelderen, C. J., & van Gelderen, D. M. (1999). ''Maples for Gardens: A Color Encyclopedia''.]
Photo gallery
Image:Paperbark Maple, Acer Griseum.jpg, Trunk (UBC Botanical Garden
UBC Botanical Garden, at the University of British Columbia, was established in 1916 under the directorship of John Davidson, British Columbia's first provincial botanist. It is the oldest botanical garden at a university in Canada.
The garden me ...
)
Image:Acer griseum3.jpg, Trunk
Image:Acer griseum5.jpg, Foliage and immature seeds
Image:Paperbark Maple Acer griseum Brown Seeds 2000px.jpg, Foliage and seeds
File:Acer griseum MHNT.BOT.2010.4.1.jpg, Seeds
File:Paperbark Maple Acer griseum Bark Vertical.JPG, Bark
Image:Paperbark Maple Acer griseum Bark 3008px.jpg, Bark
File:Paperbark Maple Acer griseum Branch.JPG, Bark peeling closeup
File:Paperbark Maple Acer griseum Contrast.JPG, Bark peeling only on the live branch
References
External links
* Del Tredici, Peter.
"The Paperbark Maple—One Hundred Years Later."
Arnoldia'' 65 (2) (2007).
* Meyer, Paul W
"Paperbark Maple ''Acer griseum."''
''Arnoldia'' 68 (2) (2010).
{{Taxonbar, from=Q203985
griseum
Plants described in 1902
Trees of China