日本厚朴 ri ben hou po

Basionym: Magnolia obovata Thunberg, Trans. Linn. Soc. London 2: 336. 1794; Liriodendron liliiflorum Steudel; M. glauca Thunberg (1784), not (Linnaeus) Linnaeus (1759); M. honogi P. Parmentier; M. hoonokii Siebold; M. hypoleuca Siebold & Zuccarini; M. hypoleuca var. concolor Siebold & Zuccarini; Yulania japonica Spach var. obovata (Thunberg) P. Parmentier.

Trees, to 30 m tall. Twigs green at first then becoming purple, glabrous; vegetative buds glabrous. Stipular scar ca. 1/2 as long or longer than petiole. Leaves clustered on twigs; petiole 2.5-4.5(-7) cm, at first white villous; leaf blade obovate, 20-38(-45) × 12-18(-20) cm, abaxially glaucous, adaxially green and white curved villous, secondary veins 20-24 on each side of midvein, base cuneate to broadly cuneate, apex shortly acute. Flowers cupular, 14-20 cm in diam., erect, very fragrant. Tepals 9-12, milky white; outer 3 tepals yellowish green but outside flushed red, shorter; inner 6 or 9 tepals obovate to elliptic-obovate, 8.5-12 × 1.5-4.5 cm. Stamens 1.5-2 cm; filaments purplish red; connective exserted and forming a mucro. Gynoecium ca. 3 cm. Fruit red when mature, terete, 12-20 × ca. 6 cm, pendulous; mature carpels long beaked, basal ones decurrent along receptacles and becoming cuneate at base; testa bright red; endotesta black. Fl. Jun-Jul, fr. Sep-Oct.

Cultivated in NE China as well as in Guangdong [native to Japan].

This species is grown as an ornamental. It is used medicinally and for timber.