Osmanthus

Orange osmanthus.

Osmanthus is a plant that represents autumn in Asia. And it has such a delicate fragrance that people are attracted. Nowadays, it is well known all over the world starting from China.[1] The species of osmanthus is the Oleaceae family and is an evergreen small tree.[2] It is also being classified as a variant of silver osmanthus.[3] The universal name osmanthus comes from the Greek language.[4]

Distribution

The place of origin is Asia. Osmanthus range spreads from Assam, Cambodia, China North-Central, China South-Central, China Southeast, East Himalaya, Hainan, Japan, Myanmar, Nepal, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, West Himalaya, Korea, and Mariana Islands.[5]

Ecology

Osmanthus breed as an evergreen tree or shrub with no turn red.[6] Tree height is about 10 to 20 feet (from 3 to 6 meters) in general.[7] The leaf is evergreen, a plant that leaves green through the years, glossy and dark green. From summer to fall, osmanthus blooms with the flower. The petals are four-petalled and the flowers are small and about 5mm. The flower colours are creamy-white or orange and strongly smells sweet.[8]

Uses and benefits

A cuisine used osmanthus.

Commonly, osmanthus are prefered as garden tree and street tree and it is popular as an ornamental plant because osmanthus is a plant that admires flowers, not fruits. However, osmanthus flowers also have the effect of medicine. Furthermore, they are used in perfumery and cooking. Moreover, the flowers have various uses such as hair care, skin care, cosmetics, fragrance and so on. Bark from the stems has components that tones the skin problem and essential oils from the plant are effective as a medicine that repels insects. Osmanthus roots also are effective for treatment of rheumatism, bruising and dysmenorrhea.[9] In east China, osmanthus is used to make honey, tea, jam, liquor and desserts, and is also used as a spice to add a bit of fragrance and color to cuisine.[10] By drinking and eating osmanthus, you can help in losing weight.[11]

History

Osmanthus has long been planted in Asian countries other than China because it has variable uses and benefits as worthy flowers. The history of osmanthus goes back to in 1789, an osmanthus specimen was launched to the Kew Gardens, which is located in England as a botanical garden. However, the specimen is from Southern China, so it was unable to survive the cool English climate. In the 18th century, Jean Marie Delavay, who was a French botanist, traveled China. And he explained some kinds of specimens after he brought them back to his country. Among them, there were specimens including osmanthus. In the mid-19th century, Delavay re-introduced osmanthus to European gardeners.[12]

Flower Language

Osmanthus have multiple flower languages such as humility, noble people, truth, and  temptation. Osmanthus give off a strong fragrance but the flowers are small and discreet. From this aspect, osmanthus was connected with the flower language that is “humility”. Also, “noble” meaning is originally having or indicating high personal qualities. So, osmanthus fragrance was considered as elegant and noble from long ago. Moreover, the unique sweet fragrance emitted by osmanthus gives the impression of tempting someone as is the case many people like the fragrance. As a consequence, it is said that this flower language came from the image of attracting people.[13]

How to grow osmanthus

Tree of osmanthus.

Osmanthus are easy to treat and care for because it has winter hardiness, drought resistance, and insect resistance. Osmanthus can grow up in any good garden soil. However, watery and well-drained soil is the best. It needs sunlight as much as possible but the necessity of watering is not many. Like this, osmanthus is a plant that anyone can easily grow.[14]

References

1.Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. (n.d.). Osmanthus fragrans Lour. |. Plants of the World Online. Retrieved January 13, 2022, from https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:610878-1

2.Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. (n.d.). Osmanthus fragrans Lour. |. Plants of the World Online. Retrieved January 13, 2022, from https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:610878-1

3.ウェザーニュース. (2020、 November 4). ギンモクセイを知っていますか？キンモクセイとの違いは？. Retrieved January 13, 2022, from https://weathernews.jp/s/topics/202010/120055/

4.Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. (n.d.). Osmanthus fragrans Lour. |. Plants of the World Online. Retrieved January 13, 2022, from https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:610878-1

5.Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. (n.d.). Osmanthus fragrans Lour. |. Plants of the World Online. Retrieved January 13, 2022, from https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:610878-1

6.Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. (n.d.). Osmanthus fragrans Lour. |. Plants of the World Online. Retrieved January 13, 2022, from https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:610878-1

7.Evans, L. (2021, December 21). Osmanthus Flower Meaning and Symbolism. Petal Republic. Retrieved January 13, 2022, from https://www.petalrepublic.com/osmanthus-flower/

8.Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. (n.d.). Osmanthus fragrans Lour. |. Plants of the World Online. Retrieved January 13, 2022, from https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:610878-1

9.Evans, L. (2021, December 21). Osmanthus Flower Meaning and Symbolism. Petal Republic. Retrieved January 13, 2022, from https://www.petalrepublic.com/osmanthus-flower/

10.CGTN. (2019, August 20). China’s Flora Tour: The Sweet city with sweet osmanthus. Retrieved January 13, 2022, from https://news.cgtn.com/news/2019-08-20/China-s-Flora-Tour-The-Sweet-city-with-sweet-osmanthus-Jjg7DMTLXi/index.html

11.Zesta Ceylon Tea. (2020, December 17). Benefits of Drinking Osmanthus Tea. Retrieved January 13, 2022, from https://www.zestaceylontea.com/blog/tea-benefits/benefits-of-drinking-osmanthus-tea/

12.Evans, L. (2021, December 21). Osmanthus Flower Meaning and Symbolism. Petal Republic. Retrieved January 13, 2022, from https://www.petalrepublic.com/osmanthus-flower/

13.ハナイロ. (n.d). キンモクセイ（金木犀）の花言葉. Retrieved January 13, 2022, from  https://www.flower-color.com/keywords/kinmokusei.html

14.Heath, S. (2021, June 10). How to Grow Tea Olive. The Spruce. Retrieved January 13, 2022, from https://www.thespruce.com/growing-osmanthus-5094815

15.Shweta. (2023, March 7). Osmanthus: The Fragrant and Versatile Plant. Retrieved March 07, 2023, from https://dgmnews.com/osmanthus-plant/ Archived 2023-03-07 at the Wayback Machine