bark smooth , the bark is brownish-gray to dark gray, split into irregular plates.
Shoots
produces two types of shoots:
macroblasts – long shoots, leaves grow on them individually in a spiral
brachyblasts – shortened shoots, formed on two-year-old and older branches, they bear bundles of leaves and flowers
Leaves (assimilation organs)
3 - 6 x 4 - 10 cm large, fan-shaped, two-lobed, deciduous. whorls
on brachyblasts in bunches of 3 - 5 flowers
Flowers
dioecious woody plant, blooms V
flowers grow only on brachyblasts:
♂ - yellow, lamb-shaped cones
♀ - grow from leaf axils on a 3 - 4 cm long stalk, the end is expanded with two naked eggs under the scales (usually only one of them develops)
Fruits – seeds
fruit is a seed drupe, spherical, Ø 2 - 3 cm, green, yellow on the surface when ripe
seeds are fleshy, smelly!
inside is a stone 1.5 x 1 cm large, oval, compressed, double-edged, ripens in autumn after falling (on the ground)
Extension
the only living representative of its family - a prehistoric relic
its current natural distribution can only be determined with difficulty
natural occurrence - only a few locations in South-Eastern China
It was brought to Europe in 1727
Ecology
light-loving woody plant, undemanding to soil
tolerates frost well, but needs protection from frost when young
Significance
aesthetic - parks, gardens
pharmaceutical industry
botanical rarity with great aesthetic value
ancient cultural and cult plant of the Far East cultivated in the vicinity of human settlements and monasteries, it creates various decorative, tall and colorful forms (columnar, mourning, cut-leaved, golden yellow, ...)
