Japanese name: トサミズキ（土佐水木） Scientific name:Corylopsis spicata
[Overview]
A deciduous shrub 2–3 m tall, found only on serpentine ground in Kochi.
Young branches, petioles and the undersides of the leaves are fairly densely covered with appressed long hairs and stellate hairs.
Leaves are simple and alternate, ovate-orbicular or broadly ovate, 4–10 cm in both length and width, with 7–8 lateral veins.
The petiole is 1.5 cm long.
The flowers open before the leaves unfold; racemes 2.5–4 cm long hang down from the leaf axils of the previous year and bear 7–10 flowers.
The flowers are yellow with 5 petals, and the anthers of the stamens are dark red.
The fruit is a spherical capsule 0.8–1 cm in diameter, fairly densely covered with stellate hairs.
[Cultivation]
Propagate from seed, by division, or from cuttings.
Sow seeds as soon as they are collected.
It prefers sunny, well-drained, moisture-retentive, well-aerated soil.
Avoid places that receive strong afternoon sun.
For potted plants, water thoroughly when the soil surface dries; for plants in the ground, rainfall is sufficient, but in dry places prevent evaporation with a mulch of straw or similar.
After flowering, apply a small amount of organic fertilizer around the base of the plant as a thank-you fertilizer.
Powdery mildew can occur.
