Coriaria nepalensis Wall.

The fruit is said to be eaten but is known to cause serious digestive upsets, thirst and death in some cases. The branches are browsed by sheep.

Spreading to erect, 3-4 m tall shrub with rough brown bark. Branches numerous, opposite, divaricate, puberulous to glabrescent. Leaves o posite, super-posed, almost sessile, blade ovate to broad ovate or elliptic, 12-40 mm long, 8-24 mm broad, apex obtuse, apiculate or mucronate, margin almost entire or minutely denticulate, glabrous, 3-5 costate, with convergent reticulate venation, costae pubescent below. Inflorescence many-flowered, axillary or terminal, 2-5 cm long, raceme surrounded at the base with bud scales. Flowers bisexual, greenish-yellow, 5-merous, 3-4 mm across; pedicel filiform, 5-8 mm long, up to 12 mm in fruit, hirsute; bracts sessile, oblong or oblong-pandurate, 3.5-4.5 mm long, 1.5-2 mm broad, concave, embracing the pedicel, obtuse, glabrous, margin fimbriate-ciliate. Sepals ovate to broad ovate or somewhat orbicular in fruit, 2.5-3 mm long, 1.5-2(-3) mm broad, yellowish-green, obtuse, apiculate, glabrous, margin membranous crenate. Petals oblong, 1.5-2 mm long, up to 5-7 mm long in fruit, with the keel inserted in the interestices between achenes, apex mucronate, margin undulate. Stamens 10, outer 5 antisepalous free, inner 5 adnate to petals, exesrted, filaments purplish, 3-4 mm long, anthers basifixed, ovate-oblong, 1.5-2 mm long. Carpels 5, inserted on fleshy conical thalamus; each ovary falcate, compressed, c. 1.5 mm long, glabrous; styles 5, 4-5 mm long, exserted, puberulous throughout, purple, stigma linear, acute, somewhat uncinate. Achenes 5, each somewhat ovate, ridged c. 3.5 mm long; separated by inwardly projecting keel of petals, blue, or deep purple. Seed ovate, testa membranous, cotyledons ovate.

Shrubs decumbent, 1.5-2.5 m tall, with horizontally spreading branches; branchlets tetragonous or narrowly 4-winged; young branches purplish red, puberulent or glabrescent; old branches purplish brown, with clearly prominent lenticels; bud scales purplish red, ovate or ovate-triangular, 1-2 mm, membranous, glabrous. Leaves opposite; petiole purple, 2-3 mm, puberulent, inflated into pad at base; leaf blade elliptic or broadly elliptic, 2.5-8 × 1.5-4 cm, papery to thinly leathery, both surfaces glabrous or puberulent on midrib and lateral veins, 3-veined to apex, veins raised abaxially, slightly impressed adaxially, base rounded, margin entire, apex acute. Inflorescences axillary. Male inflorescence 1.5-2.5 cm, densely multiflorous, flowers opening before leaves, rachis glandular puberulent; bracts and bracteoles ovate-orbicular, ca. 2.5 × 2 mm, membranous, translucent, concave, margins fringed denticulate upward; pedicel ca. 1 mm, glabrous; sepals ovate, 1.5-2 × 1-1.5 mm, margins translucent, fringed denticulate; petals ovate, very small, ca. 0.3 mm; filaments linear, ca. 1 mm, elongating in anthesis, 3-3.5 mm, anthers oblong, ca. 2 mm; sterile pistils small. Female inflorescence with flowers opening at same time that leaves appear, 4-6 cm, rachis glandular puberulent; bracts purplish, ca. 4 mm; pedicel 1.5-2.5 mm; sepals same as in male flower; petals small, fleshy; stamens short, filaments ca. 0.5 mm; carpels 5, compressed, auriculate, ca. 0.7 × 0.5 mm, styles ca. 1 mm, stigma purplish red. Fruit red to dark purple or purplish black when mature, subglobose, 4-6 mm in diam. Seeds ovoid-oblong. Fl. Feb-May, fr. May-Aug. 2n = 40.

Distribution: Endemic to the Indo-Pakistan subcontinent; in the Himalayas from Indus eastward to Bhutan, usually between 800-2500 m.

Gansu, Guangxi, Guizhou, Henan, Hong Kong, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Shaanxi, Sichuan, Xizang, Yunnan [Bhutan, India, Kashmir, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan].

Fl. Per. March-April.

Thickets, mountain slopes; 200-3200 m.

Coriaria kweichowensis Hu; C. sinica Maximowicz; Morus calva H. Léveillé.