洋甘草 yang gan cao

Glycyrrhiza alalensis X. Y. Li; G. brachycarpa Boissier; G. glabra var. caduca X. Y. Li; G. glabra subsp. glandulifera (Waldstein & Kitaibel) Ponert; G. glabra var. glandulifera (Waldstein & Kitaibel) Regel & Herder; G. glabra var. glandu­losa X. Y. Li; G. glabra var. laxifoliolata X. Y. Li; G. glabra var. violacea (Boissier & Noë) Boissier; G. glandulifera Waldstein & Kitaibel; G. pallida Boissier; G. violacea Boissier & Noë; Liquiritia officinarum Medikus, nom. illeg. superfl.

Herbs, perennial. Stem 50-150 cm tall, woody at base, densely scaly glandular punctate, white hairy. Leaves 5-14 cm, 11-17-foliolate; stipules caducous, linear, 1-2 mm; petiole densely yellow-brown glandular hairy and villous; leaflets ovate-oblong, oblong-lanceolate, or elliptic, 1.7-4 × 0.8-2 cm, abaxially densely yellow scaly glandular punctate and pubes­cent on veins, adaxially glabrescent or pilose, base rounded, apex rounded or retuse and with mucro. Racemes much and densely flowered; rachis densely brown scaly glandular punc­tate, white villous and tomentose; bracts lanceolate, ca. 2 mm, membranous. Calyx campanulate, 5-7 mm, sparsely yellow glandular punctate and pubescent, 5-toothed; upper 2 teeth mostly joined. Corolla purple or light purple, 9-12 mm; stan­dard ovate or oblong, 1-1.1 cm, base clawed, apex retuse; wings 8-9 mm; keel straight, 7-8 mm. Ovary glabrous. Leg­ume oblong, flat, 17-35 × 4.5-7 mm, rarely constricted be­tween seeds, glabrous or sparsely hairy, rarely glandular hairy. Seeds 2-8, dark green, ca. 2 mm in diam., smooth. Fl. May-Jun, fr. Jul-Sep. 2n = 16*.

Margins of farms, roadsides, saline areas; 500-1300 m. Xinjiang [Afghanistan, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Pakistan, Rus­sia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan; N Africa, SW Asia, E and S Europe, Indian Ocean islands (Maldives); introduced in Australia, C Eu­rope, and North America].