''Rhodotypos scandens'', the sole

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), 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 ...

of the

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...

''Rhodotypos'', is a

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, a ...

shrub in the family

Rosaceae Rosaceae (), the rose family, is a medium-sized family of flowering plants that includes 4,828 known species in 91 genera. The name is derived from the type genus ''Rosa''. Among the most species-rich genera are '' Alchemilla'' (270), '' Sorbu ...

, closely related to '' Kerria'' and included in that genus by some botanists. It is native to China,

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republi ...

, possibly also Japan.

Description

It grows to 2–5 m tall, with (unusually for a species in the Rosaceae) ''opposite'' (not alternate) leaves, simple ovate-acute, 3–6 cm long and 2–4 cm broad with a serrated margin. The

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 mechanism ...

s are white, 3–4 cm diameter, and (also unusually) have ''four'' (not five) petals; flowering is from late spring to mid-summer. 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 partic ...

is a cluster of 1-4 shiny black drupes 5–8 mm diameter. It does not have a widely used English name, most commonly being known by its genus name rhodotypos, also occasionally as jetbead or jet-bead. It is an

invasive species An invasive species otherwise known as an alien is an introduced organism that becomes overpopulated and harms its new environment. Although most introduced species are neutral or beneficial with respect to other species, invasive species adv ...

in some parts of eastern North America.

References and external links

Flora of China
Kerrieae Monotypic Rosaceae genera Flora of China {{Amygdaloideae-stub