Neolitsea sericea is a native tree species of Shanghai

　　Neolitseasericea(Bl.)Koidz.

LAURACEAE Current status: rare species. Distributed only in a relatively narrow area along the eastern coast of China. According to literature records, it is also distributed in Chongming Sheyu, Shanghai. Due to excessive felling for firewood, few adult trees remain, and most of them have grown from sprouts.

Morphological characteristics: Evergreen tree, up to 12 m tall; branchlets greenish, smooth, current-year branches often covered with brown-yellow silky hairs. Leaves alternate, leathery, oblong or ovate-oblong, 6-18 cm long, 3-7 cm wide, gradually narrowed at both ends, apex acuminate, tip blunt, triplinerved from above the base, dark green above, powdery white below, young leaves pendulous, underside covered with brown-yellow silky hairs, later becoming glabrous or with residual appressed hairs; petiole 2-3 cm long. Flowers unisexual, dioecious; umbels clustered in leaf axils at branch tips, without a common peduncle, densely covered with yellowish-brown silky hairs; bracts large, decussate, late deciduous, tepals 4, ovate; staminate flowers with 8 stamens, 6 fertile stamens, anthers 4-locular, introrse dehiscence by valves; staminodes of pistillate flowers with long villous hairs at the base, ovary ovoid, glabrous. Drupe somewhat elliptic, 1.1-1.2 cm long, 0.7-0.8 cm in diameter, often borne on branches together with flowers, bright red when mature; pedicel 7-10 mm long in fruit, upper part somewhat thickened; seed nearly spherical, 7-8 mm long, 5.5-5.6 mm in diameter, surface smooth, apex with a short point. Geographical distribution: Distributed on Putuo and Taohua, two islands of the Zhoushan Archipelago, Zhejiang. There was once a record from Sheshan Yu, Chongming, Shanghai. In the Zhoushan Archipelago it grows in hilly valleys at altitudes between 150-350 m. It is also distributed in Japan and Korea.

Ecological and biological characteristics: The distribution area is located on coastal islands of the mid-subtropical zone. The climate is characterized by warm winters and cool summers, with an annual mean temperature of 16.2°C, a January mean temperature of 5.5°C, and a mean temperature of 26.8°C in the hottest month (August), with the maximum not exceeding 30.1°C, and the mean temperature of the coldest month not lower than 3°C. Spring is foggy, with a long fog period, and relative humidity often reaches about 90%; the average annual precipitation is 1202 mm. The soil is red earth, pH 5.5-5.7, with a relatively thick soil layer and organic matter content above 40%. Neolitsea sericea is a shade-tolerant tree species, growing in secondary evergreen broad-leaved forests with more cloud and mist and relatively high humidity, in the sub-tree layer. The main associated tree species include Cinnamomum japonicum Sieb., Machilus thunbergii Sieb. et Zucc., Viburnum awabuki K. Koch, Cephalotaxus sinensis (Rehd. et Wils.) Li, etc. Neolitsea sericea has a well-developed root system and possesses drought tolerance and wind resistance, with relatively strong sprouting ability from the root crown. It flowers in early November, and the fruits mature successively from October to November of the following year, with a relatively high fruiting rate.

Conservation value: Neolitsea sericea has a disjunct distribution in Japan, Korea and the eastern coastal areas of China, and is of certain significance for studying the flora of the above areas and conserving germplasm resources. Conservation measures: Putuo Island has been designated as a natural scenic reserve, and attention has been paid to the protection of rare plants. To prevent visitors from breaking them, some plants have been fenced and managed. On Taohua Island, this species is protected by local authorities.

Cultivation points: Propagated by seeds. After the mature fruits are harvested, they should promptly be placed in water and soaked for 2-3 days, then the flesh should be rubbed off, and then they should be washed, dried and stored in sand. The seeds have a short lifespan. Sowing is done in March of the following year, and seedlings emerge in early May; shading is required during the seedling stage. Current-year seedlings are 10-12 cm tall, with a well-developed taproot and sparse lateral roots. In the following year they remain in the seedbed for 1 year, still requiring shade, and by March of the 3rd year they can be transplanted with soil. Cuttings can also survive.