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Botanical Name :Wikstroemia indica
Family: Thymelaeaceae
Genus: Wikstroemia
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Malvales
Species: W. indica
Common Name: Bootlace bush Tie bush
Other Names :Indian stringbush, bootlace bush, or small-leaf salago
ChineseName : li?o g? wáng
Habitat : Native of India to China, throughout Malaysia and the Malay Islands to Australia”.In Sri Lanka, “an introduced species now abundantly established on sandy roadside banks, grassland, forest margins”
Description:
Small twiggy shrub, c. 0.3-1.25 m tall. Branchlets and twigs slender, terete, with scattered fine hairs when very young but soon quite glabrous, striate, blackish-purple. Leaves oblanceolate to elliptic or oblong, 1.5-6 x 0.6-2 (-2.6) cm, subcoriaceous, shining on the upper surface but duller below, glabrous or almost so, cuneate to attenuate at the base, obtuse (sometimes more or less emarginate) or acute at the apex; petiole 1-2 mm, glabrous. Flowers yellow or green, in dense axillary or terminal few-flowered spikes, subsessile or shortly (to c. 3 mm) pedunculate; pedicels c. 2 mm, articulated below the middle. Calyx tube 5-9 mm, sparsely pilose on the outer surface, glabrous within; lobes 2-3 mm, oblong to ovate, obtuse, sparsely pilose dorsally, glabrous within. Anthers oblong, c. 0.75-1 mm. Ovary ellipsoid-oblong, c. 2 mm, glabrous or sparsely pilose about the style base; hypogynal scales 2, linear, acute or usually truncate or incised at the apex; style very short (less than 0.5 mm), stigma large and solitary. Fruit broadly ellipsoid to subglobose, 4-6 mm, naked, fleshy, red or green, glabrous. Seed globose-pyriform, 3.75-5.75 mm, with a short apical point, black”
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Stems hairless (smooth) or sparsely hairy on juveniles and new growth, later smooth and shiny.
Leaves to 6 cm, hairless, upper surface dark green and glossy, lower surface glaucous (ashy) and dull, petiole (leaf stalk) 1-2 mm.
The tough stringy bark is a rough and ready string if torn off in thin strips, hence the name Tie Bush. Also known as Bush Bootlace.
Pale green to cream flower heads with 1-4 flowers each.
Fruit a succulent, bright, egg-shaped red or orange berry. Fruit and leaves toxic if eaten.
Medicinal Uses:
It is one of the 50 fundamental herbs used in traditional Chinese medicine.
Studies of chemicals in Wikstroemia have suggested it contains chemicals that may prove useful in cancer research. click to learn more :
Disclaimer:
The information presented herein is intended for educational purposes only. Individual results may vary, and before using any supplements, it is always advisable to consult with your own health care provider.
Resources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikstroemia_indica
http://www.saveourwaterwaysnow.com.au/01_cms/details_pop.asp?ID=338
http://noosanativeplants.com.au/plants/502/wikstroemia-indica
http://www.hear.org/pier/species/wikstroemia_indica.htm
