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Japanese Pittosporum
Pittosporum tobira
トベラ
An evergreen shrub to small tree growing along coasts. In spring, it produces strongly fragrant white flowers; in autumn, fruits split open to reveal orange-red sticky seeds. Tolerant of salt wind, it is widely used as a windbreak and garden tree.
Identification Points
- ✓Leaves coriaceous, obovate, entire-margined, clustered at branch tips
- ✓Flowers white to pale yellow with a strong sweet fragrance (May–June)
- ✓Fruits yellow-green, dehiscent, revealing orange-red sticky seeds
Habitat
Coasts, forest edges, gardens, and parks
Season
May–June (flowers), October–November (fruit)
Morphological TraitsAI-estimated, needs verification
Growth form
Tree
Evergreen/Deciduous
Evergreen
Leaf margin
Entire
Habitat
Coastal
Leaf type
Simple
Venation
Pinnate
Petal count
Many
Stipules
Absent
Leaf dissection
Undivided
Flower symmetry
Actinomorphic
Ovary position
Superior
Stamen count
5
Phylogenetic Positionトベラ科 →
Phylogenetic Position
Angiosperms > Eudicots > Core eudicots > Apiales > Pittosporaceae
Divergence Era
Paleogene to Neogene
Evolution Notes
Pittosporaceae belongs to Apiales; the sticky seeds adhere to birds for long-distance dispersal, demonstrating an adaptation strategy of coastal plants.
View on evolution timeline →Sources & References
AI-generated, needs verification