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Diphylleia grayi

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Species of flowering plant

Skeleton flower
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Order: Ranunculales
Family: Berberidaceae
Genus: Diphylleia
Species: D. grayi
Binomial name
Diphylleia grayi
F.Schmidt

Diphylleia grayi, the skeleton flower, is a species of perennial plant in the family Berberidaceae. It is native to northern and central Japan.

Description

The fruit of Diphylleia grayi.

The plant grows up to 0.4 m (1.3 ft). The flowers are white, pedicellate, with six obovate petals and bloom from May to July. After it flowers, it bears dark blue/purple fruit with a white powdery coating from June to August. Its stems are terete and grow 30–60 cm (12–24 in) long. Its rhizomes are stout and knotty. The plant is known to have petals that become transparent when in contact with water, giving it its common name. Once it is dry, the petals return to white.

Distribution and habitat

The plant is distributed from north to central Honshu, Hokkaido, Mount Daisen, and Sakhalin. It grows in slightly moist places in the woods of high mountains.

Medical uses

In the 1960s, botanist Yanagi Kimura discovered that D. grayi crude extracts contain substances similar to, but more powerful than podophyllin and colchicine. The extract had anti-tumor effects on transplantable animal tumors.

Gallery

  • Fruit Fruit
  • Young fruits Young fruits
  • Flowers Flowers
  • Bud Bud

See also

References

  1. "Diphylleia grayi F.Schmidt — The Plant List". The Plant List. Retrieved 23 November 2021.
  2. "Diphylleia grayi F. Schmidt". Encyclopedia of Life. Archived from the original on 2019-04-22. Retrieved 23 November 2021.
  3. "Diphylleia grayi - F.Schmidt". Plants for a Future. Archived from the original on 2016-04-17. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  4. Citizen science observations for Diphylleia grayi at iNaturalist
  5. "Skeleton Flower". Our Breathing Planet. Archived from the original on 2015-05-25. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  6. 日本の高山植物. 山溪カラー名鑑. Yamakei. 1988. p. 431. ISBN 4635090191.
  7. Ohwi, Jisaburo (1965). Flora of Japan. Washington: Smithsonian Institution. p. 464. doi:10.5962/bhl.title.43786. LCCN 65062683. OCLC 182709297.
  8. Yamamoto, Kohtaro; Kimura, Yanagi (December 1964). "Cytological Effects of Chemicals on Tumors, XXV. : Further Studies on the Effect of Diphylleia grayi Extracts on Tumor Cells (With 2 Text-figures and 2 Tables)". 北海道大學理學部紀要. 15 (3). 北海道大學: 347–352.
Taxon identifiers
Diphylleia grayi


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