Lindera obtusiloba: Uses (Ethnobotany)
Young leaves are fried and used as a Buddhist ceremonial dish
Plant Profile: Lindera obtusiloba
Names
Blunt-Lobed Spicebush, Japanese Spicebush, Japanese Spice Bush
Phonetic Spelling:lin-DER-ah ob-tew-sil-o-ba
Genus:Lindera
Species:obtusiloba
Family:Lauraceae
The Japanese Spicebush is a deciduous shrub or small tree native to Asia, typically reaching heights and widths of 10 to 15 feet. Its leaves can vary significantly, featuring anywhere from one to three lobes, or sometimes none at all. In the autumn, the foliage transforms into a vibrant yellow that can last for several weeks. This shrub is dioecious, meaning that only female plants bear fruit.
When it comes to soil preferences, the Japanese Spicebush is quite adaptable, thriving in a range of soil types but favoring moist, well-drained conditions and full to partial sunlight. It performs best in soils with an acid to neutral pH. This plant is ideal for use in shrub borders or as a standout specimen in a garden.
Lindera obtusiloba Feature Summary
Lindera obtusiloba Image Gallery
Tags
#deciduous
Similar Plants
Lindera obtusiloba Feature Summary
Attributes
Young leaves are fried and used as a Buddhist ceremonial dish
Young buds and leaves used in teas.
Perennial
Fruit
small red fruit that turns black on female plants.
Berry
Red/Burgundy
Black
Flowers
Greenish-yellow flowers without petals in umbels in spring
Gold/Yellow
Green
Insignificant
Umbel
Spring
Leaves
Alternate, simple, leathery, lustrous dark green leaves; 2.5 to 5 in. long; brilliant golden yellow fall color. Ovate, cordate at base, margins entire or 1, 2, or 3 lobed.
Deciduous
Green
Gold/Yellow
Simple
Alternate
Ovate
Entire
Lobed
3-6 inches
Leathery
Stem
Branchlets yellow-green, smooth and striate when young. With age become brown and scurfy with corky lenticels
Brown/Copper
Green
Gold/Yellow
Corky Ridges
Whole Plant Traits
Shrub
Tree
Deciduous
Multi-stemmed
Rounded
Slow
Cultural Conditions
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
Acid (<6.0)
Neutral (6.0-8.0)
Good Drainage
Moist
12-24 feet
Coastal
Mountains
Piedmont
6a
6b
7a
7b
8b
8a
9a
9b
Clay
Loam (Silt)
Sand
Lindera obtusiloba Image Gallery
Lindera obtusiloba Attributes
Lindera obtusiloba: Edibility
Young buds and leaves used in teas.
Lindera obtusiloba: Life Cycle
Annual
Biennial
Bulb
Perennial
Woody
Lindera obtusiloba Fruit
Lindera obtusiloba: Fruit Description
small red fruit that turns black on female plants.
Lindera obtusiloba: Fruit Type
Achene
Aggregate
Berry
Capsule
Caryopsis
Drupe
Follicle
Legume
Nut
Pome
Samara
Schizocarp
Siliqua
Lindera obtusiloba: Fruit Color
Black
Red/Burgundy
Lindera obtusiloba Flowers
Lindera obtusiloba: Flower Description
Greenish-yellow flowers without petals in umbels in spring
Lindera obtusiloba: Flower Color
Gold/Yellow
Green
Lindera obtusiloba: Flower Inflorescence
Catkin
Corymb
Cyme
Head
Insignificant
Panicle
Raceme
Solitary
Spadix
Spike
Umbel
Lindera obtusiloba: Flower Bloom Time
Winter
Spring
Summer
Fall
Lindera obtusiloba Leaves
Lindera obtusiloba: Leaf Description
Alternate, simple, leathery, lustrous dark green leaves; 2.5 to 5 in. long; brilliant golden yellow fall color. Ovate, cordate at base, margins entire or 1, 2, or 3 lobed.
Lindera obtusiloba: Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics
Broadleaf Evergreen
Deciduous
Needled Evergreen
Semi-evergreen
Lindera obtusiloba: Leaf Color
Green
Lindera obtusiloba: Deciduous Leaf Fall Color
Gold/Yellow
Lindera obtusiloba: Leaf Type
Compound (Pinnately , Bipinnately, Palmately)
Fronds
Needles
Sheath
Simple
Lindera obtusiloba: Leaf Arrangement
Alternate
Opposite
Other/more complex
Rosulate
Whorled
Lindera obtusiloba: Leaf Shape
Acicular
Auriculate
Cordate
Cuneate
Deltoid
Elliptical
Filiform
Lanceolate
Linear
Oblanceolate
Oblong
Obovate
Obtuse
Orbicular
Ovate
Palmasect
Palmatifid
Peltate
Pinnatifid
Pinnatisect
Reniform
Rhomboidal
Spatulate
Subcordate
Subulate
Lindera obtusiloba: Leaf Margin
Crenate
Crenulate
Dentate
Denticulate
Doubly Crenate
Doubly Dentate
Doubly Serrate
Entire
Lobed
Serrate
Sinuate
Undulate
Lindera obtusiloba: Hairs Present
No
Yes
Lindera obtusiloba: Leaf Length
< 1 inch
1-3 inches
3-6 inches
> 6 inches
Lindera obtusiloba: Leaf Feel
Fleshy
Glossy
Leathery
Papery
Prickly
Rough
Rubbery
Slippery
Smooth
Soft
Velvety
Waxy
Lindera obtusiloba Stem
Lindera obtusiloba: Stem Description
Branchlets yellow-green, smooth and striate when young. With age become brown and scurfy with corky lenticels
Lindera obtusiloba: Stem Color
Brown/Copper
Gold/Yellow
Green
Lindera obtusiloba: Stem Is Aromatic
No
Yes
Lindera obtusiloba: Stem Surface
Corky Ridges
Covered with a powdery bloom (glaucous)
Dull
Hairy (pubescent)
Polished
Smooth (glabrous)
Lindera obtusiloba Whole Plant Traits
Lindera obtusiloba: Plant Type
Annual
Bulb
Carnivorous
Edible
Epiphyte
Fern
Ground Cover
Herb
Herbaceous Perennial
Houseplant
Mushroom
Native Plant
Ornamental Grasses and Sedges
Perennial
Poisonous
Rose
Shrub
Succulent
Tree
Turfgrass
Vegetable
Vine
Water Plant
Weed
Wildflower
Lindera obtusiloba: Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics
Broadleaf Evergreen
Deciduous
Needled Evergreen
Semi-evergreen
Lindera obtusiloba: Habit/Form
Arching
Ascending
Broad
Cascading
Climbing
Clumping
Columnar
Conical
Creeping
Dense
Erect
Horizontal
Irregular
Mounding
Multi-stemmed
Multi-trunked
Open
Oval
Prostrate
Pyramidal
Rounded
Spreading
Vase
Weeping
Lindera obtusiloba: Growth Rate
Slow
Medium
Rapid
Lindera obtusiloba Cultural Conditions
Lindera obtusiloba: Light
Dappled Sunlight (Shade through upper canopy all day)
Deep shade (Less than 2 hours to no direct sunlight)
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
Lindera obtusiloba: Soil pH
Acid (<6.0)
Alkaline (>8.0)
Neutral (6.0-8.0)
Lindera obtusiloba: Soil Drainage
Frequent Standing Water
Good Drainage
Moist
Occasional Flooding
Occasionally Dry
Occasionally Wet
Very Dry
Lindera obtusiloba: Available Space To Plant
12 inches-3 feet
12-24 feet
24-60 feet
3 feet-6 feet
6-feet-12 feet
Less than 12 inches
more than 60 feet
Lindera obtusiloba: NC Region
Coastal
Mountains
Piedmont
Lindera obtusiloba: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone
6a
6b
7a
7b
8a
8b
9a
9b
Lindera obtusiloba: Soil Texture
Clay
High Organic Matter
Loam (Silt)
Sand
Shallow Rocky
