Taxillus chinensis (DC.) Danser

A traditional Chinese medicine “guang ji sheng” is made from the plants. Recorded hosts include Averrhoa carambola, Bombax malabaricum, Camellia oleifera, Dimocarpus longan, Ficus microcarpa, Glyptostrobus pensilis, Hevea brasiliensis, Litchi chinensis, Melia azedarach, Morus alba, Nerium indicum, Pinus massoniana, Prunus persica, P. salicina, and Vernicia montana.

Shrubs 0.5-1 m tall, young stems and leaves tomentose, becoming glabrous, hairs mostly closely adpressed, reddish brown, stellate, sometimes also with some short verticillate. Branches grayish brown, lenticellate. Leaves opposite or subopposite; petiole 8-10 mm; leaf blade ovate to ovate-oblong, 2.5-6 × 1.5-4 cm, papery, both surfaces glabrescent, lateral veins 3 or 4 pairs, base cuneate to broadly cuneate, apex obtuse. Umbels solitary or 2 together, sometimes at leafless nodes, (1-)2(-4)-flowered; peduncle 2-4 mm, stellate hairy; bracts triangular, ca. 0.5 mm. Pedicel 6-7 mm. Calyx ellipsoid or ovoid, ca. 2 mm, limb annular. Mature bud 2.5-2.7 cm, tip enlarged, ovoid. Corolla brownish, slightly curved, with adpressed stellate hairs, basal part inflated, lobes spatulate, ca. 6 mm, reflexed. Filaments ca. 1 mm; anthers ca. 3 mm, multilocellate. Style red; stigma capitate. Berry yellowish, ellipsoid or subglobose, 8-10 × 5-6 mm, verrucose, becoming smooth when mature. Fl. and fr. Feb-Dec.

S Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Hainan [Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam].

Forests, plains, mountain slopes, orchards, gardens, rubber plantations; 100-400 m.

Loranthus chinensis Candolle, Coll. Mem. 6: 28. 1830; L. estipitatus Danser; Scurrula chinensis (Candolle) G. Don; Taxillus estipitatus (Stapf) Danser.