involucrata – refers to the bracts (involucre is a whorl of bracts under an inflorescence)

Native range: Central and Southern China

Leaves:

• alternate
• simple
• distinctly cordate (heart-shaped)
• 2–5.5” long
• acuminate tip
• serrate
• long-petioled
• glabrous upper
• densely pubescent under
• vivid green

Flowers:

• andromonaceous (male & bi-sexual flowers)
• inflorescence – rounded clusters of one bisexual flower (functionally female) surrounded by many male flowers
• reddish purple flower heads
• flower has 2 large pendulous, unequally-sized, white bracts (largest one ~3” long)

Fruit:

• nut w/ 3–5 seeds
• green fleshy covering that disintegrates
• hard, dark-green nuts which turn purple when ripe
• golf-ball sized

Other characteristics:

• deciduous tree to 60 ft.
• bark orange-brown, scaly
• ~10 years old before flowers

Relevant info:

• related to Cornus (dogwood) and Nyssa (tupelo)
• millions of years ago, this ancient species was more widely distributed (including Japan and North America)
• sometimes referred to as a living fossil
• now limited in distribution and endangered in its native region due to human activity (development)
• introduced to Britain in 1901 after a 22-yr-old Kew-trained botanist was sent to China with a hand-drawn map and a few written instructions (and no ability to speak Chinese)
  • he suffered illness, near drowning, and other mishaps but found the tree and sent seeds back to the nurseryman who had sponsored his trip

Ecology & Adaptations:

• native to woodlands of Central and Southern China
• often found in evergreen broad-leaved forests or in mixed forests of deciduous broad-leaved trees at elevations of between 1100 and 2600 m
• also found in forests, on hillsides or beside streams a lower elevations (250-1500 m)
• shade tolerance:
  • leaves are relatively thin, which maximizes light capture area and minimizes investment in photosynthesizing structure
  • thinner and more loosely arranged structural layers and lower stomatal density in leaves (than leaves of sun plants) are consistent with a lower photosynthetic rate
• pollination:
  • by several genera of bees
  • bracts attract pollinators and protect the pollen from rain damage
• herbivory defense – tannins in plant tissue interfere with herbivore’s proteins (enzymes) involved in cell division and DNA transcription and repair