Loquat

This article is about a species of flowering plants called Japanese medlar. For other uses, see Medlar. For the band, see Loquat (band).

Loquat
Loquat leaves and fruits
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Rosales
Family: Rosaceae
Genus: Eriobotrya
Species:
E. japonica
Binomial name
Eriobotrya japonica
Synonyms[1]
  • Crataegus bibas Lour.
  • Mespilus japonica Thunb.
  • Photinia japonica (Thunb.) Benth. & Hook. f. ex Asch. & Schweinf.

The loquat (Eriobotrya japonica, Chinese: 枇杷; Pinyin: pípá) [2] is a large evergreen shrub or tree grown commercially for its orange fruit. It is also cultivated as an ornamental plant.

The loquat is in the family Rosaceae and is native to the cooler hill regions of south-central China.[3][4] In Japan, the loquat has been grown for over 1,000 years. It has been introduced to regions with subtropical to mild temperate climates throughout the world.[5][6]

Eriobotrya japonica was formerly thought to be closely related to the genus Mespilus and is still sometimes mistakenly known as the Japanese medlar, which is the name it takes in other European languages, such as níspero japonés in Spanish or nespolo giapponese in Italian. It is also known as Japanese plum[7] and Chinese plum.[8]

  1. ^ "The Plant List: A Working List of All Plant Species". Retrieved 13 April 2014.
  2. ^ McKirdy, Andrew (June 6, 2019). "Chiba loquat grower loves his work, but frets over the future of the biwa business". Japan Times. Retrieved January 24, 2024.
  3. ^ "Loquat Fact Sheet". UC Davis College of Agricultural & Environmental Sciences.
  4. ^ "Flora of China". efloras.org.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference Staub was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ "Eriobotrya japonica (Thunb.) Lindl". gbif.org. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  7. ^ "Japanese Plum / Loquat". University of Florida, Nassau County Extension, Horticulture. Retrieved 20 March 2012.
  8. ^ Hunt, Linda M.; Arar, Nedal Hamdi; Akana. Laurie L. (2000). "Herbs, Prayer, and Insulin Use of Medical and Alternative Treatments by a Group of Mexican American Diabetes Patients". The Journal of Family Practice. 49 (3): 216–23. PMID 10735480. Archived from the original on 2013-06-29.