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Euonymus

{{Short description|Genus of plants}}

{{Distinguish|Euronymous}}

{{Use British English|date=January 2016}}

{{For-multi|the mythical figure|Euonymus (mythology)|the ancient Greek settlement|Euonymeia}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2016}}

{{Automatic taxobox

|image = Euonymus europaeus.jpg

|image_caption = Euonymus europaeus foliage and fruit

|taxon = Euonymus

|authority = L.{{cite POWO |title=Euonymus L. |id=331601-2 |access-date=8 October 2024}}

|diversity = c. 140 species

|diversity_link = List of Euonymus species

|synonyms =

{{Species list

| Genitia | Nakai

| Kalonymus | (Beck) Prokh.

| Masakia | (Nakai) Nakai

| Melanocarya | Turcz.

| Pragmatropa | Pierre

| Pragmotessara | Pierre

| Quadripterygium | Tardieu

| Sphaerodiscus | Nakai

| Turibana | (Nakai) Nakai

| Vyenomus | C.Presl

}}

|synonyms_ref =

}}

Euonymus {{IPAc-en|j|uː|ˈ|ɒ|n|ɪ|m|ə|s}} is a genus of flowering plants in the staff vine family Celastraceae. Common names vary widely among different species and between different English-speaking countries, but include spindle (or spindle tree), burning-bush, strawberry-bush, wahoo, wintercreeper, or simply euonymus. It has about 140 species[http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=2&taxon_id=112340 Euonymus.] Flora of China.Du, C., et al. (2013). [http://www.mapress.com/phytotaxa/content/2013/f/p00109p053f.pdf Revision of three species of Euonymus (Celastraceae) from China.] Phytotaxa 109(1) 45-53. of deciduous and evergreen shrubs, small trees and lianas. They are mostly native to East Asia, extending to the Himalayas,Botanica: The Illustrated A-Z of over 10000 Garden Plants and How to Cultivate Them. Könemann, 2004. pg. 358. {{ISBN|3-8331-1253-0}} and they are also distributed in Europe, Australasia, North America, and Madagascar. Fifty species are endemic to China.

Description

The inconspicuous flowers occur in small groups, and can be green, yellow, pink or maroon in color depending on species. The leaves are opposite (rarely alternate) and simple ovoid, typically 2–15 cm long, and usually with a finely serrated margin. The fruit is a pink or white four- or five-valved pod-like berry, which splits open to reveal the fleshy-coated orange or red seeds.

The seeds are eaten by frugivorous birds, which digest the fleshy seed coat and disperse the seeds in their droppings. Many species are used in traditional medicines, and parts of the plants can be poisonous to humans.Plants for a Future: [http://www.pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Euonymus+europaeus Euonymus europaeus]

Cultivation and uses

Image:Spindle fruit.jpg

The wood of some species was traditionally used to make spindles for spinning wool;Clapham, A. R. (1975). The Oxford Book of Trees. Oxford: Oxford University Press. p.31. this use is the origin of the British English name of the shrubs.

Euonymus are popular garden shrubs, grown for their foliage, the deciduous species often exhibiting very bright red autumnal colours, and also for the decorative berries. Euonymus alatus (winged euonymus or burning-bush) is considered an invasive species in the woodlands of the northeastern United States.

Selected species

{{Main|List of Euonymus species|l1=List of Euonymus species}}

File:Euonymus plants growing in New Jersey in April.jpg in a nursery]]

File:Euonymus verrucosus 3 RF.jpg in Austria]]

References

{{Commons category|Euonymus|Euonymus}}

{{Reflist}}

{{Taxonbar|from=Q161113}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:Celastrales genera

Category:Plants described in 1753

Category:Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus