''Firmiana simplex'', commonly known as the Chinese parasol tree, Chinese parasoltree, or wutong (), is an

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 th ...

of tree size assigned to the family

Malvaceae Malvaceae (), or the mallows, is a family of flowering plants estimated to contain 244 genera with 4225 known species. Well-known members of economic importance include Theobroma cacao, cacao, Cola (plant), cola, cotton, okra, Hibiscus sabdariffa, ...

that was formerly in the family

Sterculiaceae Sterculiaceae was a family of flowering plant based on the genus '' Sterculia''. Genera formerly included in Sterculiaceae are now placed in the family Malvaceae, in the subfamilies: Byttnerioideae, Dombeyoideae, Helicteroideae and Sterculioide ...

in the order

Malvales The Malvales are an Order (biology), order of flowering plants. As circumscribed by Angiosperm Phylogeny Group, APG II-system, the order includes about 6000 species within nine Family (biology), families. The order is placed in the eurosids II, w ...

, and is native to

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

. It grows up to tall.

Description

It has alternate,

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 Leaf, leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...

leaves up to 30 cm (12 inches) across and small fragrant, greenish-white flowers borne in large inflorescences. A flowering tree varies in fragrance with weather and time of the day, having a lemony odor with citronella and chocolate tones. A tall, stately specimen grows in the botanical garden in Florence, Italy. Bumble bees and Giant Mason Bees readily visit the flowers in Maryland, U.S. People grow this tree as an ornamental in warm regions of

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

. The seedpod is like a pair of brown ovate leaves with seeds along the edges. Up to five pairs are produced by each flower.

Uses

Due to its sonic properties, the wood is used for the soundboards of several Chinese instruments, including the ''

guqin The ''guqin'' (; ) is a plucked seven-string Chinese musical instrument. It has been played since ancient times, and has traditionally been favoured by scholars and literati as an instrument of great subtlety and refinement, as highlighted b ...

'' and ''

guzheng The zheng (), or guzheng (), is a Chinese List of Chinese musical instruments#Plucked, plucked zither. The modern guzheng commonly has 21, 25, or 26 strings, is long, and is tuned in a Major scale, major pentatonic scale. It has a large, reson ...

''. According to an article in the journal ''Nature'' of 1884, the leaves of ''Sterculia platanifolia'' were dried for smoking; the reason for smoking it was not given, but another source simply says that it was used as a substitute for tobacco. The roasted seeds have reportedly been used to make into a tea. The

Taivoan people The Taivoan or Tevorangh are a Taiwanese indigenous peoples, Taiwanese indigenous people. The Taivoan originally settled around hill and basin areas in Tainan County, Tainan, especially in the , which the Taivoan called ''Tamani'', later transl ...

in the Nanzixian River basin of

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

harvest the tough bark of 2–3-year-old trees. After soaking it by the river for about a month, they remove the rotted bark and twist the remaining fibers into ropes. These ropes can be used for making traps or other binding purposes, particularly for constructing wild boar traps. The robust nature of these ropes helps prevent the boars from escaping.

Invasive species

This species is an aggressive, invasive weed in the warmer parts of North America Some people promote its removal and give instructions for drastic measures, including destruction of nursery stock. This plant is self-fertile, and its seeds spread readily, especially along watercourses, growing rapidly after germination in favorable sites. Offspring effectively compete with many other species.Miller, J.H., E.B, Chambliss, N.J. Loewenstein. 2010. A Field Guide for the Identification of Invasive Plants in Southern Forests. General Technical Report SRS-119. Asheville, NC. United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service.

References

External links

''Firmiana simplex''
- The University of Alabama in Huntsville
''Firmiana simplex''
- Louisiana State University
''Firmiana simplex''
- PlantList Retrieved 20210102 {{Taxonbar, from=Q776705 Sterculioideae Trees of China Trees of Japan Flora of the Ryukyu Islands Trees of Taiwan Trees of Vietnam Garden plants of Asia Ornamental trees