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Torreya nucifera

Common name:	Kaya	Family:	Cephalotaxaceae
Author:	(L.)Siebold.&Zucc.	Botanical references:	11, 58, 200
Synonyms:	Taxus nucifera (L.)
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	E. Asia - C. and S. Japan.
Habitat:	Moist valley bottoms[81].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	5	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	2

Other Possible Synonyms:	From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below.
	Tumion nuciferum[G]
Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Japanese Torreya [P],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	nucifer = nut bearing; nucifera = nut bearing;
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Pinales. Plum Yew family
Other Range Info:	From the Ethnobotany Database
	China

Physical Characteristics

An evergreen tree growing to 20m by 10m at a slow rate. It is hardy to zone 7. It is in leaf all year, and the seeds ripen from September to November. The flowers are monoecious (individual flowers are either male or female, but both sexes can be found on the same plant) and are pollinated by Wind. The plant is self-fertile. We rate it 5/5 for edibility and 2/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It can grow in full shade (deep woodland) or semi-shade (light woodland). It requires moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Woodland, Secondary, Sunny Edge, Dappled Shade, Shady Edge, Deep Shade.

Cultivar 'Shibunashigaya': Woodland, Secondary, Sunny Edge, Dappled Shade, Shady Edge, Deep Shade.

Edible Uses

Oil; Seed.

Seed - raw, cooked or used in confectionery[1, 63, 105, 183]. An agreeable sweet slightly resinous flavour[11]. An aromatic flavour[46], it is much relished and is eaten in quantity[178] though it is said to be laxative if eaten in excess[2].
An edible oil is obtained from the seed[1, 2, 1, 63, 178, 183]. Used in cooking[183].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Anodyne; Anthelmintic; Carminative; Digestive; Laxative; Pectoral.

The seeds are anthelmintic[63, 147, 178, 218]. They are used in the treatment of several parasitic conditions including hookworm, tapeworms, pinworms and roundworms[279].
The plant is anodyne, carminative, digestive, laxative and pectoral[63, 147, 178, 218].

Other Uses

None known

Cultivation details

Succeeds in ordinary garden soil, tolerating some lime[1]. Prefers an acid soil[200]. Dislikes wind exposure[200]. Requires a sheltered position and either high humidity or a moist riverside soil[200]. Tolerates woodland shade very well[200]. Requires hot, very humid summers for best growth[200].
Trees are probably not hardy in all parts of Britain, but should succeed quite far north.
A tree at Wakehurst Place was 11 metres tall in 1970[185]. A shrub growing in the shade of coniferous trees at Kew was about 2.5 metres tall and 4 metres wide in September 1993[K], it was carrying a very heavy crop of fruit[K]. No fruit was formed in 1994[K]. A specimen at Cambridge Botanical Gardens was 6 metres tall and 6 metres wide, it was carrying an enormous crop of seed in the late summer of 1996[K]. This plant has an excellent potential as a nut crop in Britain[K].
Sometimes cultivated for its edible seed in Japan, the variety 'Shibunashigaya' is considered to be the best for seed production[46].
The seed takes two summers to mature[229].
Plants are dioecious so both male and female plants are required if seed is to be produced. Occasional trees are monoecious with dioecious branches. Solitary trees have been seen on a number of occasions with heavy crops of fertile seed, so it would appear that the tree is not dioecious[K].

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a cold frame. Some of the seed should germinate in the following spring though much of it might take another 12 months. Stored seed requires a period of cold stratification and can take 18 months or more to germinate. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots as soon as growth is observed and grow them on in light shade in the greenhouse for at least the next couple of winters, making sure to pot them on into larger pots as and when required. Plant them out into their permanent positions in early summer when the plants are at least 20cm tall.
Cuttings of half-ripe shoots in late summer[1]. Cuttings do not grow well[11].
Layering.

Cultivars

'Shibunashigaya': In Japan this cultivar is considered to be the best for seed production[46].

Suppliers

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

PFAF Web Pages

This plant is mentioned in the following web pages

Web References

[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for the family Cephalotaxaceae.

[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]).

[2] Hedrick. U. P. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications 1972 ISBN 0-486-20459-6
Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references.

[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.

[46] Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959
An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.

[58] Ohwi. G. Flora of Japan. (English translation) Smithsonian Institution 1965
The standard work. Brilliant, but not for the casual reader.

[63] Howes. F. N. Nuts. Faber 1948
Rather old but still a masterpiece. Has sections on tropical and temperate plants with edible nuts plus a section on nut plants in Britain. Very readable.

[81] Rushforth. K. Conifers. Christopher Helm 1987 ISBN 0-7470-2801-X
Deals with conifers that can be grown outdoors in Britain. Good notes on cultivation and a few bits about plant uses.

[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.

[147] ? A Barefoot Doctors Manual. Running Press ISBN 0-914294-92-X
A very readable herbal from China, combining some modern methods with traditional chinese methods.

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

[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.

[185] Mitchell. A. F. Conifers in the British Isles. HMSO 1975 ISBN 0-11-710012-9
A bit out of date (first published in 1972), but an excellent guide to how well the various species of conifers grow in Britain giving locations of trees.

[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.

[229] Elias. T. The Complete Trees of N. America. Field Guide and Natural History. Van Nostrand Reinhold Co. 1980 ISBN 0442238622
A very good concise guide. Gives habitats, good descriptions, maps showing distribution and a few of the uses. It also includes the many shrubs that occasionally reach tree proportions.

Readers Comments

Torreya nucifera

() Fri May 23 08:00:55 2003

This plant is used for traditional japanese go boards (a board game). See http://senseis.xmp.net/?Kaya

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Bibliography

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
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