Syringa reticulata, the Japanese tree lilac, is a species of flowering plant in the family Oleaceae. It is native to eastern Asia, and is grown as an ornamental in Europe and North America.
Description It is a deciduous small tree growing to a height of , rarely to , with a trunk up to , rarely in diameter; it is the largest species of lilac, and the only one that regularly makes a small tree rather than a shrub. The leaves are elliptic-acute, long and broad, with an entire margin, and a roughish texture with slightly impressed veins. The flowers are white or creamy-white, the corolla with a tubular base 0.16–0.24" (4–6 mm) long and a four-lobed apex 0.12–0.24" (3–6 mm) across, and a strong fragrance; they are produced in broad panicles long and broad in early summer. The fruit is a dry, smooth, brown capsule (15–25 mm long), splitting in two to release the two winged seeds.Mitomori: Syringa reticulata (in Japanese; google translation)Huxley, A., ed. (1992). New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. Macmillan .
Distribution Syringa reticulata is found in northern Japan (mainly Hokkaidō), northern China (Gansu, Hebei, Heilongjiang, Henan, Jilin, Liaoning, Nei Mongol, Ningxia, Shaanxi, Shanxi, Sichuan), Korea, and far southeastern Russia (Primorye).Flora of China: Syringa reticulataHanaki Kawahara Gardens: Syringa reticulata (in Japanese; google translation)Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families Syringa reticulata
Names
The Latin specific epithet reticulata means "netted".
Subspecies There are three subspecies: Syringa reticulata subsp. reticulata (syn. Syringa japonica (Maxim.), also syn. S. amurensis var japonica (Maxim.) Franch et Sav.- Ligustrina japonica (Maxim.) ) - Japan. Syringa reticulata subsp. amurensis (Rupr.) P.S.Green & M.C.Chang (syn. S. reticulata var. mandschurica (Maxim.) H.Hara) - Northeastern China, Korea, southeastern Russia. Syringa reticulata subsp. pekinensis (Rupr.) P.S.Green & M.C.Chang - North-central China. It has very distinct reddish-brown peeling bark.
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