Litsea cubeba Seeds | Aromatic Litsea

Categories：Herb

Aromatic Litsea seeds (Litsea cubeba)

LATIN NAME: Litsea cubeba

COMMON NAME: Aromatic Litsea, May Chang, Mountain Pepper

Plant Profile

Aromatic Litsea (Litsea cubeba) grows as an evergreen shrub in the laurel family, native to China, taiwan, southeast Asia and the Himalayas. Aromatic litsea is a quiet shrub with a very bright scent, and it has perfumed hills of Asia for centuries. Fruit is source of the plant’s fame: it is rich in a strongly lemon-scented essential oil that is prized in perfumery and flavour, and the whole plant, from leaf to bark, carries a fresh, spicy, citrusy scent. It is a member of laurel family, native to China, Taiwan, Southeast Asia and the Himalayas, and it is known by many local names, including maqaw to the Atayal people of Taiwan. Given room and time, it reaches roughly Five to twelve metres. For the gardener, the sum of these traits is a plant that is easy to live with.

Science & Biotechnology

Seed science, comparative botany and horticultural selection all touch on Litsea cubeba, a representative of the laurel family with clear practical value. Plant is also studied in flavour and fragrance industry, where its oil is valued as a natural source of lemon-like scent, and in Taiwan and elsewhere, fruit is a prized traditional seasoning. Interest from collectors and breeders has never lapsed, and good seed continues to circulate.

Uses & Benefits

Aromatic Litsea brings genuine presence to the garden and earns its keep across the growing season. Ecologically, aromatic litsea is a generous plant of mountain forest. Its early flowers feed bees and other pollinators, its berries feed birds, and its aromatic foliage adds to rich life of warm forests where it grows. For a grower, aromatic litsea is a valuable and fragrant plant, and for a gardener it brings a fresh, lemony scent to the garden. Mature plants need little attention in a well-chosen position.

Litsea cubeba supplies may chang oil, the world’s main natural source of citral for flavor, fragrance and vitamin-A synthesis; the peppery fruits are a traditional spice and digestive in southern China.

Growing from Seed

Seed is the natural starting point for Aromatic Litsea, and the process is uncomplicated. Growing an aromatic litsea from seed is easy and rewarding. Seeds sit inside small, dark berries, and they are best sown fresh, since they lose vigour quickly. Fill a pot with a light seed compost, sow evenly on the surface, cover thinly and stand it somewhere warm, bright and evenly moist. Shift the seedlings into small pots as soon as they can be handled, and give them bright light until planting-out time.

Our Take

Aromatic Litsea, May Chang, Mountain Pepper settles in quickly once it finds its footing. After establishment, care settles into an easy routine.

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