Toxicodendron vernicifluum Seed
LATIN NAME: Toxicodendron vernicifluum
COMMON NAME: Lacquer Tree
The lacquer tree is the tree that gave the East its fine, polished lacquer for thousands of years. The tall, handsome, deciduous tree carries the large, glossy, pinnate leaves that turn the fine, warm colours in the autumn, and the small, yellowish-green flowers open in the loose panicles, to be followed by the small, glossy, yellowish fruits. The milky sap that runs through the bark is the raw lacquer of the old crafts, and the tree has a very long and careful record of use in the fine arts of the region. It is a tree of the deep, rich, well-drained ground, and the sap is for the skilled hands of the craftsmen, never for the skin.
Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology
The lacquer tree has carved a quiet but solid place in the plant science, and the tree has been studied for the milky sap and its very long and careful record in the fine arts of the region. Researchers have looked at the chemistry of the sap, which hardens into the fine, glossy, durable lacquer of the old crafts, and the tree keeps showing up in the work on the natural polymers and the traditional finishes. The large, glossy, pinnate leaves and the fine autumn colours have also made it a handsome garden tree, and it is a regular subject of the studies of the trees of the old craft traditions.
Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications
The lacquer tree does a lot of work in the old crafts and the wider world. The milky sap has a very long and careful record of use in the fine, polished lacquer of the East, and the tree has been at the centre of the old craft traditions for thousands of years. The tall, handsome tree is also a fine, bold addition to the large garden, and the glossy, pinnate leaves turn the fine, warm colours in the autumn. The sap can irritate the skin, so the tree is best admired and left to the skilled hands of the craftsmen. It has drawn attention in the international botanical and the craft press for the fine, durable lacquer, and it is a fine, long-lived tree of the deep, rich, well-drained garden.
The lacquer tree is one of the great trees of the old craft traditions, and the large, glossy, pinnate leaves turn the fine, warm colours of the autumn before they fall. The milky sap of the bark has a very long and careful record of use in the fine, polished lacquer of the East, and the tree has been written about and prized for thousands of years.
To grow the lacquer tree from seed, sow the fresh seeds at a depth of about a centimetre in pots of moist, free-draining soil, covering them thinly, keep them in a bright, open spot and water gently. The seedlings come up within a few weeks and grow on steadily. Give them the sun and the deep, rich, well-drained ground, and keep the young tree away from the little ones, since the milky sap can irritate the skin.
A caustic, toxic sap, called urishiol, is tapped from the trunk of the Chinese lacquer tree to produce lacquer. This is done by cutting 5 to 10 horizontal lines on the trunk of a 10 year old tree, and then collecting the greyish yellow sap that exudes. The sap is then filtered, heat-treated, or coloured before applying onto a base material that is to be lacquered. Curing the applied sap requires "drying" it in a warm, humid chamber or closet for 12 to 24 hours where the urushiol polymerizes to form a clear, hard, and waterproof surface. In its liquid state, urushiol can cause extreme rashes, even from vapours. Once hardened, reactions are possible but less common.
Products coated with lacquer are recognizable by an extremely durable and glossy finish. Lacquer has many uses; some common applications include tableware, musical instruments, fountain pens, jewelry, and bows. There are various types of lacquerware. The cinnabar-red is highly regarded. Unpigmented lacquer is dark brown but the most common colors of urushiol finishes are black and red, from powdered pigments of iron and ferric oxide, respectively. Lacquer is painted on with a brush and is cured in a warm and humid environment.
Artistic application and decoration of lacquer can be a long process, requiring many hours or days of careful and repetitive layers and drying times. The creation of a single piece of urushi art, such as a bowl or a fountain pen, may take weeks to months to complete. Lacquer is a very strong adhesive.
The leaves, seeds, and the resin of the Chinese lacquer tree are sometimes used in Chinese medicine for the treatment of internal parasites and for stopping bleeding. Compounds butein and sulfuretin are antioxidants, and have inhibitory effects on aldose reductase and advanced glycation processes