Aphananthe aspera

Aphananthe aspera
Conservation status
Not evaluated (IUCN 2.3)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Rosids
Order:	Rosales
Family:	Cannabaceae
Genus:	Aphananthe
Species:	A. aspera
Binomial name
Aphananthe aspera Thunb.

Aphananthe aspera (English: Muku Tree; Chinese: 糙叶树) is a flowering plant. It is found on slopes and stream banks between 100 and 1600 m. It is native to the Anhui, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Shaanxi, Shandong, Shanxi, Sichuan, Yunnan, Zhejiang provinces of China, and Taiwan. It also is found in Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.^[1]

Uses

It is used as an ornamental plant in Chinese classical gardens. Aphananthe aspera is a source of fibre and wood, and has been used for making paper. Leaves gathered in autumn are used as a fine sandpaper for polishing wood and similar materials.^[2][1][2] It is not clear from the sources referred to, whether the effectiveness of the leaves as sandpaper depends on their roughness, or whether they contain abrasive phytoliths.

Notes

1. ^ eflora, 2009
2. ^ Anon, Nature, August 7 1884, pp 337-338

References

• eFloras, Missouri Botanical Garden & Harvard University Herbaria (Vol. 5 Page 12), Aphananthe aspera, http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=2&taxon_id=200006307, retrieved 2009 

External links