What Is Perilla? A Complete Introduction to This Plant

Other Names for Perilla

Perilla is an annual herbaceous plant in the Lamiaceae family. Its other names include guiren, white perilla, red perilla, hongsu, heisu, white perilla, green perilla, suma, shuishengma, and others.

Morphological Characteristics of Perilla

Perilla is an annual upright herbaceous plant. The stem is 0.3-2 m tall, green or purple, obtusely four-angled, and covered with long fine hairs.

The leaves are broadly ovate or round, 7-13 cm long and 4.5-10 cm wide. The leaf tip is short-pointed or abruptly pointed, the base is rounded or broadly wedge-shaped, and the margin has coarse serrations. The leaf color is green or purple, or purple only on the underside. The upper surface of the leaf has sparse fine hairs, and the lower surface has appressed fine hairs.

The verticillasters have 2 flowers, forming terminal and axillary racemes 1.5-15 cm long, densely covered with long soft hairs, and; the bracts are broadly ovate or nearly round, about 4 mm long and wide, with a short pointed tip, covered outside with reddish-brown glandular dots, hairless, and with a membranous margin; the pedicels are 1.5 mm long and densely covered with soft hairs.

The nutlets are spherical, grayish-brown, about 1.5 mm in diameter, with a reticulate pattern on the surface. Perilla flowers from August to November and fruits from August to December.

Growth Characteristics of Perilla

Perilla has strong adaptability and low environmental requirements. It generally grows in well-drained, fertile sandy loam, loam, and clay loam, around houses, and along ditches and field edges.