''Exochorda racemosa'', the pearlbush or common pearlbush, is a species of plant in the family

Rosaceae Rosaceae (), the rose family, is a family of flowering plants that includes 4,828 known species in 91 genera. The name is derived from the type genus '' Rosa''. The family includes herbs, shrubs, and trees. Most species are deciduous, but som ...

. This species is mostly found in

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

and

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

Taxonomy and etymology

''Exochorda racemosa'' was first described by

John Lindley John Lindley Fellow of the Royal Society, FRS (5 February 1799 – 1 November 1865) was an English botanist, gardener and orchidology, orchidologist. Early years Born in Old Catton, Catton, near Norwich, England, John Lindley was one of four c ...

. It is placed in the

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

'' Exochorda'' and family

, the rose family. The plant gets its common name, "common pearlbush", from its pearl-looking flowers.

Description

Pearlbush Exochorda racemosa Leaf Stalk 2000px

A loose, irregular or vase-shaped and upright

shrub A shrub or 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 trees by their multiple ...

, this species is

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 ...

. It has oblong leaves, about long and wide, that are rounded and toothed at the margin on the top. The flowers are white, and flower in late April to early May. The flowers have round

petal Petals are modified leaves that form an inner whorl surrounding the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often brightly coloured or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''corol ...

s, 12-25

stamen The stamen (: stamina or stamens) is a part consisting of the male reproductive organs of a flower. Collectively, the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filament ...

s, borne in racemes in groups of about six or ten. Their diameter is . Flowers give way to brown, dehiscent seed capsules.

Subspecies

* ''Exochorda racemosa'' subsp. ''serratifolia'' (S.Moore) F.Y.Gao & Maesen – Korean pearl bush

References

Exochordeae Plants described in 1847 {{Amygdaloideae-stub