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Styrax officinalis

Common name:	Storax Tree	Family:	Styracaceae
Author:	L.	Botanical references:	11, 45, 200
Synonyms:
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	Europe - E. Mediterranean.
Habitat:	Dry rocky slopes, often on limestone, to 1500 metres[182]. Woods and thickets, also by streams[45].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	2	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	1

Other Possible Synonyms:	From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below.
	Darlingtonia rediviva[B] S. californicus[B] S. californicus var. fulvescens[B] S. officinale[E,H] S. officinalis ssp. fulvescens[B] S. officinalis var. californicus[B] S. officinalis var. fulvescens[B] S. officinalis var. redivivus[B] S. rediviva[B,CPHOTO,CAL,CAL]
Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Drug Snowbell [P], Storax [H,E], Styrax [E],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	officinalis = sold as an herb
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Ebenales. Storax family
Other Range Info:	From the Ethnobotany Database
	Egypt Europe

Physical Characteristics

A decidious shrub growing to 5m by 2m at a slow rate. It is hardy to zone 9 and is frost tender. It is in flower in June, and the seeds ripen in October. The scented flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs). We rate it 2/5 for edibility and 1/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid and neutral soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It requires moist soil and can tolerate drought.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Woodland, Secondary, Sunny Edge, By Walls, By South Wall, By West Wall.

Edible Uses

Condiment.

A highly perfumed balsamic gum is obtained from the branches and stems[183]. It is occasionally used as a condiment[183]. This gum is almost certainly the resin described below[K].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Antiseptic Expectorant.

A resin obtained from the stems of the plant is antiseptic and expectorant[11, 103, 240].

Other Uses

Beads Resin.

The fragrant resin 'storax' is obtained by wounding the stem[64, 89]. It is used medicinally, in perfumes, incense etc[11, 148].
The fruits are used as beads in rosaries etc[89, 148, 182].

Cultivation details

Requires a light lime-free soil in sun or semi-shade[11, 200]. If planted out when young into a planting hole that has been filled with a light lime-free soil the plants will successfully grow into the surrounding soil[11]. Prefers a warm sheltered position with protection from the morning sun[11]. Dislikes wet soils. Established plants are drought tolerant, they grow better in Britain when the summer is dry.
This species is not very hardy outdoors in Britain. Dormant plants tolerate temperatures down to about -5° c[200] but the young growth is liable to be damaged by late frosts[11]. Succeeds in the milder parts of the country[1]. Plants were growing and fruiting well on a west-facing wall at Kew in 1992[K].
Plants do not flower freely unless in a warm sunny spot or on a south facing wall[182]. The flowers are very fragrant[219].
Plants in this genus are notably resistant to honey fungus[200].

Propagation

Seed - requires stratification and is best sown in a cold frame as soon as it is ripe[11]. Stored seed requires 3 months warm then 3 months cold stratification[113]. Germination is usually good, prick out the seedlings into individual pots once they are large enough to handle. Overwinter in a greenhouse for the first winter and plant out in late spring.
Cuttings of half-ripe wood, July/August in a frame[113].
Layering in autumn.

Scent

Flowers: Fresh: The flowers are fragrant[245].

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[C] Taxon data. from the CalFlora database.
[C] Taxon data. from the CalFlora database.
Images from the CalPhoto database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for Styrax officinale (a possible synonym).

[H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.

References for Styrax rediviva (a possible synonym).

[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.

References for the family Styracaceae.

[CHINA] Data Very detailed botanical/identification info. from the Flora of China.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

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]).

[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.

[45] Polunin. O. Flowers of Greece and the Balkans. Oxford University Press 1980 ISBN 0-19-217626-9
A good pocket flora, it also lists quite a few plant uses.

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

[89] Polunin. O. and Huxley. A. Flowers of the Mediterranean. Hogarth Press 1987 ISBN 0-7012-0784-1
A very readable pocket flora that is well illustrated. Gives some information on plant uses.

[103] Haywood. V. H. Flowering Plants of the World. Oxford University Press ISBN 0-19-217674-9
Very readable and well illustrated, it lists plants by families giving the basic diagnostic features and some details of plant uses.

[113] Dirr. M. A. and Heuser. M. W. The Reference Manual of Woody Plant Propagation. Athens Ga. Varsity Press 1987 ISBN 0942375009
A very detailed book on propagating trees. Not for the casual reader.

[148] Niebuhr. A. D. Herbs of Greece. Herb Society of America. 1970
A pleasant little book about Greek herbs.

[182] Thomas. G. S. Ornamental Shrubs, Climbers and Bamboos. Murray 1992 ISBN 0-7195-5043-2
Contains a wide range of plants with a brief description, mainly of their ornamental value but also usually of cultivation details and varieties.

[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.

[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.

[219] Grey-Wilson. C. & Matthews. V. Gardening on Walls Collins 1983 ISBN 0-00-219220-0
A nice little book about plants for growing against walls and a small section on plants that can grow in walls.

[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.

[245] Genders. R. Scented Flora of the World. Robert Hale. London. 1994 ISBN 0-7090-5440-8
An excellent, comprehensive book on scented plants giving a few other plant uses and brief cultivation details. There are no illustrations.

Readers Comments

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
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