Sambucus sieboldiana, commonly called the Japanese red elder, is a deciduous shrub in the moschatel family (Adoxaceae). It is native to East Asia, where it is found in Japan and Korea.[1] Its natural habitat is in thickets and forest edges, in low elevations.[2] It is a common species throughout its range.

Sambucus sieboldiana
Shrub in flower
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Dipsacales
Family: Adoxaceae
Genus: Sambucus
Species:
S. sieboldiana
Binomial name
Sambucus sieboldiana
(Miquel) Blume ex Schwerin

Description

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It is a deciduous shrub or small tree growing up to a height of 4 metres (13 ft) tall. Its leaves are opposite and pinnately compound, with 5-7 toothed leaflets. It produces a panicle of small white flowers in late spring, which are insect pollinated and hermaphroditic.[3] Its fruits are ~4 mm long, red, and round.[2] They are dispersed by birds.[4]

Taxonomy

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The Latin specific epithet sieboldiana refers to German physician and botanist Philipp Franz von Siebold (1796-1866).[5]

A closely related plant in China, Sambucus williamsii, was once included in Sambucus sieboldiana but is now classified as a separate species.[1]

Toxins

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Members of this genus are poisonous and the fruit has been known to cause stomach upsets in some people, but no records of this have been found for S. sieboldiana; any toxins that may be in the fruit would be destroyed upon cooking and would have a low toxicity.

References

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  1. ^ a b Sambucus racemosa ssp. sieboldiana (in Japanese), Flora of Mikawa
  2. ^ a b Ohwi, Jisaburo (1965). Flora of Japan. Smithsonian Institution. p. 771.
  3. ^ "Sambucus sieboldiana PFAF Plant Database". www.pfaf.org. Retrieved 2017-12-29.
  4. ^ Sambucus racemosa ssp. sieboldiana (in Japanese), Okayama University Plant Ecology Laboratory
  5. ^ D. Gledhill The A to Z of Plant Names: A Quick Reference Guide to 4000 Garden Plants, p. 107, at Google Books