Maesa montana
Credits
Article from New Trees by John Grimshaw & Ross Bayton
Recommended citation
'Maesa montana' from the website Trees and Shrubs Online (treesandshrubsonline.
Genus
Synonyms
- M. formosana Mez
- M. henryi Hu
- M. martinii H. Lév.
Other taxa in genus
Shrub or small tree 2–3(–10) m, multistemmed. Branchlets covered with soft white hairs, though later almost glabrous. Leaves evergreen, membranous, 7–14(–23) × 3–7(–9) cm, elliptic to oblong or lanceolate, covered with small bristly hairs or glabrous, 8–12 secondary veins on each side of the midrib, margins coarsely dentate or undulate, apex acute or acuminate; petiole 1–1.5 cm long with a deep channel. Inflorescences axillary, racemose or paniculate, 2–7(–10) cm long and hirsute; bracteoles tiny. Flowers very small, calyx lobed, corolla white and bell-shaped, lobed, stamens included. Fruit white, globose or ovoid and with orange spots. Flowering February to April, fruiting October to December (China). Chen & Pipoly 1996. Distribution CHINA: Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hainan, Sichuan, southeast Xizang, Yunnan; INDIA; MYANMAR; TAIWAN; THAILAND. Habitat Mixed forest between 400 and 2800 m asl. USDA Hardiness Zone 9. Conservation status Not evaluated. Illustration Chen & Pipoly 1996, Hudson 2004; NT472.
A small and usually multistemmed tree in the wild, Maesa montana has a toe-hold in cultivation in the United Kingdom. It is offered by one nursery in Cornwall, and at Tregrehan there is a plant of Yunnanese origin. This has so far failed to make a trunk, and is growing as a rather undistinguished shrub, but it has quite bold, handsome leaves of glossy dark green, and the small white fruits are pretty. A sheltered site in fertile moist soil will probably give the best chance of success to those who wish to make the attempt to grow it.