Łódź, Botanical Garden

It is native to Asia, where its range includes mainland China, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, Southeast Asia, Myanmar, and India. Edible plant - fruits raw; leaves cooked; possibly flowers. Herbal plant - the leaves are astringent, diuretic, used in the treatment of fluxes and gonorrhoea; the leaf juice is diaphoretic and laxative, it is also used in the treatment of dysentery and poulticed onto various skin disorders, bites etc; the stem bark is diuretic, haemostatic, a decoction is used in the treatment of ascites and menorrhagia; a decoction of the twigs is used in treating eruptions, whilst the juice extracted from them is used in the treatment of anuria; the resinous sap found in the bark is used as a vulnerary, and in treating wounds and insect bites; fruits are diuretic, mucilaginous, ophthalmic, stimulant, stomachic and tonic; roots are cooked with other foods as a galactagogue. Usable plant - when growing in areas polluted by heavy metals it has been shown to concentrate these metals in its tissues - especially lead, zinc and copper; it has a high potential for use in phytoremediation projects, either as a means of removing these metals or as a means of locking them up and helping to restore the fertility of the soil; the plant makes a good shelterbelt and windbreak; the light-coloured wood is straight and even-grained; soft, light in weight, brittle, not very durable, easily worked, it is used for making items such as cups, bowls, packing cases, cheap furniture etc; the tree (part not specified) produces a natural green to yellow-green dye; an oil from the seeds is used in soap and lacquer oil production.