Chimonanthus
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 Chimonanthus praecox flower
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Chimonanthus (wintersweet) is a genus of flowering plants in the family Calycanthaceae, endemic to China. The genus includes three to six species depending on taxonomic interpretation; three are accepted by the Draft Flora of China. The name means winter flower in Greek.
They are deciduous or evergreen shrubs growing to 2–13 m tall. The leaves are opposite, entire, 7–20cm long and 3–7 cm broad. The flowers are 2–3 cm wide, with numerous spirally-arranged yellow or white tepals; they are strongly scented, and produced in late winter or early spring before the new leaves. The fruit is an elliptic dry capsule 3–4 cm long.
[edit] Species
- Chimonanthus nitens Oliver (syn. Meratia nitens (Oliver) Rehder & Wilson; C. campanulatus R.H.Chang & C.S.Ding; C. grammatus M.C.Liu; C. zhejangensis M.C.Liu). Anhui, Fujian, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Yunnan, Zhejiang. An evergreen shrub that grows up to 6 m tall, with leaves 2–18 cm long and 1.5–8 cm broad, and white to yellow flowers that appear in winter and are only slightly scented if at all.
- Chimonanthus praecox (L.) Link (syn. C. fragrans Lindl.; C. yunnanensis W.W.Smith, Calycanthus praecox L., Meratia praecox Rehder & E.H.Wilson). Anhui, Fujian, Guizhou, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Shandong, Shanxi, Sichuan, Yunnan, Zhejiang. A deciduous shrub up to 13 m tall with an erect trunk; with leaves 5–29 cm long and 2–12 cm broad. Its strongly scented flowers are produced in winter and are yellow or yellow with a red basal spot.
- Chimonanthus salicifolius S.Y.Hu. Anhui, Jiangxi, Zhejiang. A semi-evergreen shrub up to 4 m tall, with slender leaves 3–13 cm long and 1–3 cm broad; flowers yellowish, late summer or autumn.
[edit] Cultivation and uses
Chimonanthus praecox is widely grown as an ornamental plant for its scented winter flowers; these are also used in floristry as cut flowering branches. The plant prefers medium exposure to sunlight or partial shadow, fresh climate, and soft, acidic permeable ground. At the end of its flowering, it is thinned by pruning.
They are frequently subject to attacks from aphids, and may be attacked by mites and leaf beetles.
