紫玉兰 zi yu lan

Magnolia liliiflora Desrousseaux in Lamarck, Encycl. 3: 675. 1792; Lassonia quinquepeta Buc’hoz, nom. utique rej.; M. plena C. L. Peng & L. H. Yan; M. polytepala Y. W. Law et al.; M. quinquipeta (Buc’hoz) Dandy, comb. rej.; Yulania japonica Spach.

Shrubs, to 3 m tall, usually caespitose. Bark grayish brown. Twigs greenish purple to pale purplish brown. Stipular scar ca. 1/2 as long as petiole. Petiole 0.8-2 cm; leaf blade elliptic-obovate to obovate, 8-18 × 3-10 cm, abaxially grayish green and pubescent along veins, adaxially deep green and sparsely pubescent when young, secondary veins 8-10 on each side of midvein, base gradually narrowing along petiole to stipular scar, apex acute to acuminate. Peduncle thick and strong, with trichomes. Flower buds ovoid, pale yellow sericeous. Flowers appearing at same time with leaves, vase-shaped, erect, slightly fragrant. Tepals 9-12; outer 3 tepals purplish green, sepal-like, lanceolate, 2-3.5 cm, caducous; tepals of inner 2 whorls purple to purplish red outside and whitish inside, petal-like, elliptic-obovate, 8-10 × 3-4.5 cm, fleshy. Stamens purplish red, 8-10 mm; connective exserted and forming a mucro; anthers ca. 7 mm, dehiscing laterally. Gynoecium pale purple, ca. 1.5 cm, glabrous. Fruit dark purplish brown, cylindric, 7-10 cm; mature carpels subglobose, apex shortly beaked. Fl. Mar-Apr, fr. Aug-Sep. 2n = 76*.

● Forest margins, slopes; 300-1600 m. Chongqing, Fujian, Hubei, S Shaanxi, Sichuan, NW Yunnan.

This species is grown as an ornamental and used medicinally.