First, the botanical characteristics of mountain chicken pepper
1. Name and classification status
Mountain chicken pepper is the official middle name, this name comes from the "Chinese Higher Plant Atlas", in the "Flora of China" as a formal middle name; the scientific name is Litsea cubeba; alias is recorded in the "Flora of Taiwan" as mountain pepper; in Guangdong, Guangxi, Hunan, Jiangxi, Sichuan, Yunnan and other places called mountain cangshu; in Guangxi, Jiangxi, Sichuan called wood ginger; in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Sichuan, Yunnan called Bi Cheng, Cheng eggplant; in Guangdong called tempeh ginger, mountain ginger; in Fujian called stinky camphor, Sai Zi tree In Yunnan, it is called stinky oil fruit tree, etc.; in plant taxonomy, it belongs to the deciduous shrub or small tree of the genus Lauraceae.
2, distribution and growth environment
Mountain chicken pepper is mainly distributed in Guangdong, Guangxi, Fujian, Taiwan, Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Anhui, Hunan, Hubei, Jiangxi, Guizhou, Sichuan, Yunnan, Tibet and other provinces and regions in China; it usually grows in sunny mountains, shrublands, sparse forests, forest roadsides, and watersides.
3, appearance characteristics
For deciduous shrubs or small trees, about 8 meters tall, young bark yellow-green, smooth, old bark gray-brown; small branches are slender, green hairless, branches and leaves have an aromatic fragrance; single-leaf alternate, leaf lanceolate or oblong, 4-10 cm long, papery, dark green surface,
Pink-green on the back, glabrous on both sides, full margin of the leaf edge, pinnate veins, lateral veins 6-10 pairs, thin, midrib and lateral veins protruding on both sides, petiole length 6-20 mm, smooth;
Umbel-shaped inflorescences are solitary or clustered, with a total peduncle slender, 6–10 mm long; each inflorescence has 4-6 flowers, with first leaves flowering or simultaneous opening with leaves, 6 flowers by lobes, yellowish white, broadly ovate, flowering in February-March;
The fruit is nearly spherical, about 5 mm in diameter, glabrous, green when young,
It is black when ripe, the stem is thickened at the apex, and the fruit ripens in July to August.
Second, the main use of mountain chicken pepper
First, its wood material is medium, resistant to moisture and insects, but easy to split, and it is a common furniture and building material.
Second, its flowers, leaves and peels are raw materials for the preparation of citral, which can be used for pharmaceutical products and the preparation of flavors. Its seed kernel oil content is about 60%, and the oil can be used industrially.
Third, its roots, stems, leaves, and fruits can be used medicinally, and according to the data, its taste is spicy, bitter, and warm, and it has the effect of dispelling wind and cold, reducing swelling and relieving pain. Please follow your doctor's advice when using medicines.
The above is for personal reference only.
(Image quoted from the Internet)