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Rhus succedanea - L.

Wax Tree

Author	L.	Botanical references	11, 51, 200
Family	Anacardiaceae	Genus	Rhus
Synonyms	Toxicodendron succedaneum - (L.)Kuntze.
Known Hazards	This plant contains toxic substances which can cause severe irritation to some people. The fresh sap causes skin blisters[145]. The leaves contain the ubiquitous carcinogen shikimic acid[218].
Range	E. Asia - China, Japan, Himalayas.
Habitat	Forests and shrubberies to 2400 metres in the Himalayas[51].
Edibility Rating	1 (1-5)	Medicinal Rating	2 (1-5)

Physical Characteristics

A decidious Tree growing to 9m by 9m.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It requires moist soil.

Habitats

Woodland Garden; Secondary; Sunny Edge; Dappled Shade;

Edible Uses

Edible Parts: Fruit.

Edible Uses: Drink.

Fruit[105]. The acid pulp is eaten[158, 272]. The edible fruit contains ellagic acid[218]. These reports need to be treated with some caution due to the general toxicity of the species[K].

Medicinal Uses

Plants For A Future can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. Always seek advice from a professional before using a plant medicinally.

Antidote; Antivinous; Cancer; Cholagogue; Febrifuge; Ophthalmic.

Antidote, antivinous, cholagogue, febrifuge, ophthalmic. Used as a wash to counteract varnish poisoning[178]. Use with extreme caution, see notes above on toxicity. The fruit is used in the treatment of phthisis[240]. A wax from the fruits is used in ointments[218]. An ethanolic extract of the leaves exhibits anticancer and antiviral activities[218].

Other Uses

Dye; Lacquer; Mordant; Oil; Varnish; Wax.

The leaves contain about 20% tannin[218]. They can be collected as they fall in the autumn and used as a brown dye or as a mordant[169]. The sap is tapped and used as a lacquer[57, 64, 146, 158, 171]. It is much used in Japanese art and needs to be kept in a cool humid place for it to dry properly. The Japanese traditionally kept their paintings in a damp cave until the lacquer had dried. A yellow dye is obtained from the wood[178]. A wax obtained from the fruit is used to make candles, floor wax, varnish etc[1, 4, 11, 51, 64, 158, 171]. The fruit contains about 17% wax[174]. The fatty acid composition of the wax is 77% palmitic, 5% stearic and arachidic, 6% dibasic, 12% oleic and a trace of linoleic[218]. The seed oil contains 25% glycerides of palmitic, 47% oleic and 28% linoleic[218].

Cultivation details

Succeeds in a well-drained fertile soil in full sun[11, 200]. Plants are not very hardy in Britain, though they succeed outdoors in the mildest areas of the country[1, 11]. The young growth in spring can be damaged by late frosts. Plants have brittle branches and these can be broken off in strong winds[200]. Plants are also susceptible to coral spot fungus[11]. Plants in this genus are notably resistant to honey fungus[200]. This species is frequently cultivated in Japan for its sap and the wax obtained from its fruit[11]. Many of the species in this genus, including this one, are highly toxic and can also cause severe irritation to the skin of some people, whilst other species are not poisonous. It is relatively simple to distinguish which is which, the poisonous species have axillary panicles and smooth fruits whilst non-poisonous species have compound terminal panicles and fruits covered with acid crimson hairs[1, 4]. The toxic species are sometimes separated into their own genus, Toxicodendron, by some botanists[200]. Dioecious. Male and female plants must be grown if seed is required.

Propagation

Seed - best sown in a cold frame as soon as it is ripe. Pre-soak the seed for 24 hours in hot water (starting at a temperature of 80 - 90c and allowing it to cool) prior to sowing in order to leach out any germination inhibitors[200]. The stored seed also needs hot water treatment and can be sown in early spring in a cold frame[200]. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts. Cuttings of half-ripe wood, 10cm with a heel, July/August in a frame[200]. Root cuttings 4cm long taken in December and potted up vertically in a greenhouse. Good percentage[78, 200]. Suckers in late autumn to winter[200].

Links

This plant is also mentioned in the following PFAF articles: Alternative Lighting: Plant Oils and Waxes.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[4] Grieve. A Modern Herbal. Penguin 1984 ISBN 0-14-046-440-9
Not so modern (1930's?) but lots of information, mainly temperate plants.

[11] Bean. W. Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Vol 1 - 4 and Supplement. Murray 1981
A classic with a wealth of information on the plants, but poor on pictures.

[51] Polunin. O. and Stainton. A. Flowers of the Himalayas. Oxford Universtiy Press 1984
A very readable and good pocket guide (if you have a very large pocket!) to many of the wild plants in the Himalayas. Gives many examples of plant uses.

[57] Schery. R. W. Plants for Man. 0
Fairly readable but not very comprehensive. Deals with plants from around the world.

[64] Howes. F. N. Vegetable Gums and Resins. Faber 0
A very good book dealing with the subject in a readable way.

[78] Sheat. W. G. Propagation of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers. MacMillan and Co 1948
A bit dated but a good book on propagation techniques with specific details for a wide range of plants.

[105] Tanaka. T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing 1976
The most comprehensive guide to edible plants I've come across. Only the briefest entry for each species, though, and some of the entries are more than a little dubious. Not for the casual reader.

[145] Singh. Dr. G. and Kachroo. Prof. Dr. P. Forest Flora of Srinagar. Bishen Singh Mahendra Pal Singh 1976
A good flora of the western Himalayas but poorly illustrated. Some information on plant uses.

[146] Gamble. J. S. A Manual of Indian Timbers. Bishen Singh Mahendra Pal Singh 1972
Written last century, but still a classic, giving a lot of information on the uses and habitats of Indian trees. Not for the casual reader.

[158] Gupta. B. L. Forest Flora of Chakrata, Dehra Dun and Saharanpur. Forest Research Institute Press 1945
A good flora for the middle Himalayan forests, sparsly illustrated. Not really for the casual reader.

[169] Buchanan. R. A Weavers Garden. 0
Covers all aspects of growing your own clothes, from fibre plants to dyes.

[171] Hill. A. F. Economic Botany. The Maple Press 1952
Not very comprehensive, but it is quite readable and goes into some a bit of detail about the plants it does cover.

[174] Kariyone. T. Atlas of Medicinal Plants. 0
A good Japanese herbal.

[178] Stuart. Rev. G. A. Chinese Materia Medica. Taipei. Southern Materials Centre 0
A translation of an ancient Chinese herbal. Fascinating.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[218] Duke. J. A. and Ayensu. E. S. Medicinal Plants of China Reference Publications, Inc. 1985 ISBN 0-917256-20-4
Details of over 1,200 medicinal plants of China and brief details of their uses. Often includes an analysis, or at least a list of constituents. Heavy going if you are not into the subject.

[240] Chopra. R. N., Nayar. S. L. and Chopra. I. C. Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants (Including the Supplement). Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi. 1986
Very terse details of medicinal uses of plants with a wide range of references and details of research into the plants chemistry. Not for the casual reader.

[272] Manandhar. N. P. Plants and People of Nepal Timber Press. Oregon. 2002 ISBN 0-88192-527-6
Excellent book, covering over 1,500 species of useful plants from Nepal together with information on the geography and peoples of Nepal. Good descriptions of the plants with terse notes on their uses.

Readers Comments

Plants for a Future does not verify the accuracy of reader comments, use at your own risk. In particular Plants For A Future can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. You should always consult a professional before using plants medicinally.

Rhus succedanea

Volker Alles Mon Apr 4 12:08:26 2005

core of tree, the yellow wood, is used to build traditional japanese bows, japanese name is haze

Rhus succedanea

Doug Culver Mon Dec 26 2005

What is the Chinese Name for this? Is it Huang Lu? decccu2001@yahoo.com

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