Aspidistra (pronounced /ˌæspɨˈdɪstrə/)^[1] is a genus of flowering plants native to Asia, common worldwide as house plants.

Contents [hide] 1 Ecology and diversity 2 Cultivation and uses 3 In popular culture 4 Species 5 References 6 External links

[edit] Ecology and diversity

Several species of Aspidistra inhabit the floors of east Asian forests from eastern India, Indochina, China and Japan. Aspidistra is a genus that has been ignored by field botanists until quite recently, and there has been a very rapid rise in the number of recognised species in recent years.

Many books state that there are eight to ten species, which repeats the knowledge of the late 1970s. In the 1980s, thirty new species were described from China.

Based on current knowledge, China has the most species with some fifty-nine, of which fifty-four are endemic. The biodiversity 'hotspot' of the genus seems to be Guangxi Province, from where no fewer than thirty-nine species have been recorded.

New species are still being found, and the focus has shifted to Vietnam, from where 28 new species have recently been described; it is known that there are many more Vietnamese species. Currently 93 Aspidistra species have been formally described, and it has been speculated that there may be between two and three hundred. (Tillich 2008).

It has long been erroneously assumed that slugs and snails pollinate Aspidistra flowers. Research in Japan has shown that tiny terrestrial crustaceans called amphipods are responsible for pollinating Aspidistra elatior.

Australian amphipods have also been shown to pollinate introduced Aspidistra sp. and collembolans may also be implicated. Fungus gnats have also been suggested as possible pollinators.

[edit] Cultivation and uses

Aspidistra elatior ("cast-iron plant") is a popular foliage plant, grown as a landscape plant in shaded spots in areas with mild winters, or as a houseplant elsewhere. They are grown for their ability to survive neglect and very shady conditions, indoors and out. In Japan, leaves of this species have traditionally been cut into pieces and used in Bento and Osechi boxes to keep each food separated. However, imitations called 'Baran' are commonly used now. Several other species and cultivars are also in cultivation.

[edit] In popular culture

As a popular foliage houseplant (particularly in British boarding houses), the plant became popular in late Victorian Britain, and was so commonplace that it became a symbol of middle class values. As such it was central to George Orwell's novel Keep the Aspidistra Flying, as a symbol of the middle class's need to maintain respectability - according to Gordon Comstock, the novel's protagonist. It was further immortalised in the 1938 song "The Biggest Aspidistra in the World", which as sung by Gracie Fields became a popular wartime classic.

In Dorothy Sayers' novel Busman's Honeymoon, written shortly after Orwell's above book, aspidistras are emblematic of the tasteless furniture in the Herefordshire house into which Lord Peter Wimsey and his newly wedded wife Harriet Vane move. By the end of the book, to the couple's great relief, the aspidistras (a whole row of them) are removed together with the rest of the house's furniture.

In an earlier Sayers book, "Unnatural Death", a minor character remarks "It really is terrible, living in a little town like this, so full of aspidistras and small gossip" ^[2]

It was also referenced in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows in the "Fallen Warrior" chapter, when Rubeus Hagrid knocked it over in Ted Tonks' house.

On the BBC's 1980s-era The Adventure Game television programme, Rangdo is a bad tempered "cross" Aspidistra for whom celebrity contestants have to complete a number of tasks.

Referenced in the 2010 Xbox 360 video game "Dead Rising 2" in the mission "Fortune City Botany Club" where the player is instructed to collect the "Fortuna Aspiditra" the rare, though fictional member of the aspidistra family.

[edit] Species

This is a list of documented species. The indexing order is Aspidistra {Sub-species-name} but listed alphabetically. This list is by no means complete as it is understood that there may easily be 200 species in the Aspidistra family.

1. Aspidistra acetabuliformis Y. Wan & C. C. Huang. Acta Phytotax. Sin., 25(5): 396 (1987). Distribution: China (Guangxi)
2. Aspidistra alata Tillich. Blumea 52 (2): 336 (2007). Distribution: Vietnam (Cao Bang)
3. Aspidistra alternativa D. Fang & L. Y. Yu. Acta Phytotax. Sin. 40(2): 161 (2002). Distribution: China (Guangxi)
4. Aspidistra arnautovii Tillich. Feddes Repert. 116(5-6): 314 (316, 335-336; fig. 1b-d). (2005). Distribution: Vietnam (Hai Phong)
5. Aspidistra atroviolacea Tillich. Feddes Repert. 116(5-6): 317 (335-336; fig. 1i). (2005). Distribution: Vietnam (Thua Thien)
6. Aspidistra attenuata Hayata. Ic. Pl. Formosan. 2. 145 (1912). Distribution: Taiwan
7. Aspidistra austrosinensis Y. Wan & C .C. Huang. Guihaia, 7(3): 221 (1987). Distribution: China (Guangxi)
8. Aspidistra bicolor Tillich. Feddes Repert. 116(5-6): 317 (335-337; figs. 1g, 2a-b). (2005). Distribution: Vietnam (Thai Nguyen)
9. Aspidistra bogneri Tillich. Feddes Repert. 116(5-6): 317 (-318, 335-336; fig. 1e-f). (2005). Distribution: Vietnam (Ninh Binh)
10. Aspidistra brachystyla L. V. Averyanov & H.-J. Tillich, Feddes Repertorium 119 (1 - 2): 37 (2008). Distribution: Vietnam
11. Aspidistra campanulata Tillich. Blumea 52 (2): 337 (2007). Vietnam (Tuyen Quang)
12. Aspidistra caespitosa C. P'ei. Contrib. Biol. Lab. Sc. Soc. China, Bot. Ser., 12. 101, fig. 4. (1939). Distribution: China (Sichuan)
13. Aspidistra carinata Y. Wan & X. H. Lu. Bull. Bot. Res., Harbin, 9(2): 97, fig. 1. (1989). Distribution: China (N Guangxi)
14. Aspidistra carnosa Tillich. Feddes Repert. 116(5-6): 318 (335, 338; fig. 3h). (2005). Distribution: Vietnam (Lam Dong)
15. Aspidistra cavicola D. Fang & K. C. Yen. Acta Phytotax. Sin., 31(2): 180, fig. 1. (1993). Distribution: China (NW Guangxi)
16. Aspidistra cerina G. Z. Li & S. C. Tang. Guihaia 22(4): 289, fig. 1. (2002). Distribution: China (Guangxi)
17. Aspidistra claviformis Y. Wan. Bull. Bot. Res. North-East. Forest. Inst., 4(4): 166 (1984). Distribution: China (W Guangxi)
18. Aspidistra connata Tillich. Feddes Repert. 116(5-6): 318 (-319, 335, 337; fig. 2c-d). (2005). Distribution: Vietnam (Gialai-Kontum)
19. Aspidistra cruciformis Y. Wan & X. H. Lu. Guihaia, 7(3): 217, fig. 1. (1987). Distribution: China (NW Guangxi)
20. Aspidistra cryptantha Tillich. Blumea 52 (2): 338 (2007). Vietnam (Cao Bang)
21. Aspidistra cyathiflora Y. Wan & C. C. Huang. Bull. Bot. Res., Harbin. 9(2): 100, fig. 3. (1989). Distribution: China (Guangxi)
22. Aspidistra daibuensis Hayata. Ic. Pl. Formosan. 9. 143 (1920). Distribution: Taiwan
23. Aspidistra dodecandra (Gagnep.) Tillich. Feddes Repert. 116(5-6): 323. (2005). Distribution: Indo-China
24. Aspidistra dolichanthera X. X. Chen. Guihaia, 2(2): 77, fig. 1. (1982). Distribution: China (SW Guangxi)
25. Aspidistra ebianensis K. Y. Lang & Z. Y. Zhu. Acta Phytotax. Sin., 37(5): 492, fig. 13. (1999). Distribution: China (Sichuan)
26. Aspidistra elatior Blume. Tijdschr. 1. 76. t. 4. (1834). Distribution: Japan (Osumi Islands)
27. Aspidistra fasciaria G. Z. Li. Acta Phytotax. Sin., 37(5): 484, fig. 13. (1999). Distribution: China (?Guangxi)
28. Aspidistra fenghuangensis K. Y. Lang. Acta Phytotax. Sin., 37(5): 494, fig. 13. (1999). Distribution: China (W Hunan)
29. Aspidistra fimbriata F. T. Wang & K. Y. Lang. Acta Phytotax. Sin., 16(1): 76, fig. 1. (1978). Distribution: China (Fujian, Guangdong, Hainan)
30. Aspidistra flaviflora K. Y. Lang & Z. Y. Zhu. Acta Phytotax. Sin., 20(4): 485, fig. 1. (1982). Distribution: China (SC Sichuan)
31. Aspidistra foliosa Tillich. Feddes Repert. 116(5-6): 319 (335-336; fig. 1h). (2005). Distribution: Vietnam (Thua Thien)
32. Aspidistra fungilliformis Y. Wan. Bull. Bot. Res., Harbin. 4(4): 165, fig. 1. (1984). Distribution: China (W Guangxi)
33. Aspidistra geastrum Tillich. Feddes Repert. 116(5-6): 319 (-320, 335, 337; fig. 2e-f). (2005). Distribution: Vietnam (Thua Thien)
34. Aspidistra glandulosa (Gagnep.) Tillich. Feddes Repert. 116(5-6): 323. (2005). Distribution: Laos (La Khon)
35. Aspidistra grandiflora Tillich. Blumea 52 (2): 341 (2007). Vietnam (Hoa Binh)
36. Aspidistra guangxiensis S. C. Tang & Y. Liu. Novon 13(4): 480, fig. 1. (2003). Distribution: China (Guangxi)
37. Aspidistra hainanensis W. Y. Chun & F. C. How. Fl. Hainan., 4: 533 (1977). Distribution: China (S Guangdong, EC Guangxi, S Hainan)
38. Aspidistra hekouensis H. Li, C. L. Long & Bogner. Sendtnera 5: 15, fig. 1. (1998). Distribution: China (SE Yunnan)
39. Aspidistra huanjiangensis G. Z. Li & Y. G. Wei. Acta Phytotax. Sin. 41(4): 384, fig. 2. (2003). Distribution: China (Gunangxi)
40. Aspidistra insularis Tillich. Feddes Repert. 117(1-2): 145 (144; fig. 4). (2006). Distribution: Japan (Kuroshima Island)
41. Aspidistra larutensis W. J. de Wilde & A. Vogel. Folia Malaysiana 6(3-4): 126 (125-130; figs. 1-5). (2005). Distribution: Malaysia (Perak)
42. Aspidistra lateralis Tillich. Feddes Repert. 116(5-6): 320 (335, 338; fig. 3d). (2005). Distribution: Vietnam (Thua Thien)
43. Aspidistra leshanensis K. Y. Lang & Z. Y. Zhu. Acta Bot. Yunnanica, 6(4): 385, fig. 1. (1984). Distribution: China (SC Sichuan)
44. Aspidistra leyeensis Y. Wan & C. C. Huang. Guihaia, 7(3): 219, fig. 2. (1987). Distribution: China (NW Guangxi)
45. Aspidistra linearifolia Y. Wan & C. C. Huang. Guihaia, 7(3): 220, fig. 3. (1987). Distribution: China (W Guangxi)
46. Aspidistra lobata Tillich. Feddes Repert. 117(1-2): 141 (-142; fig. 2). (2006). Distribution: China (Sichuan)
47. Aspidistra locii Arnautov & Bogner. Willdenowia 34(1): 203 (-208; figs.). (2004). Distribution: Vietnam
48. Aspidistra longanensis Y. Wan. Acta Phytotax. Sin., 23(2): 151, fig. 1. (1985). Distribution: China (WC Guangxi)
49. Aspidistra longifolia Hook.f. Fl. Brit Ind. 6. 326. (1892). Distribution: India
50. Aspidistra longiloba G. Z. Li. Acta Phytotax. Sin., 26(2): 156, fig. 1. (1988). Distribution: China (Guangxi)
51. Aspidistra longipedunculata D. Fang. Guihaia, 2(2): 78, fig. 2. (1982). Distribution: China (SW Guangxi)
52. Aspidistra longipetala S. Z. Huang. Guihaia, 6(4): 273, fig. 1. (1986). Distribution: China (C Guangxi)
53. Aspidistra luodianensis D. D. Tao. Acta Phytotax. Geobot., 43(2): 121, fig. 1 (1992). Distribution: China (NW Guangxi, S Guizhou)
54. Aspidistra lurida Ker Gawl. Bot. Reg. 8. t. 628. (1822). Distribution: China (Guangdong, NC Guangxi, SC Guizhou)
55. Aspidistra lutea Tillich. Feddes Repert. 116(5-6): 320 (-321, 335-336, 338; figs. 1k, 3c). (2005). Distribution: Vietnam (Son La)
56. Aspidistra marasmioides Tillich. Feddes Repert. 116(5-6): 321 (335, 337; fig. 2h). (2005). Distribution: Vietnam (Hai Phong)
57. Aspidistra marginella D. Fang & L. Zeng. Acta Phytotax. Sin., 31(2): 182, fig. 1. (1993). Distribution: China (SW Guangxi)
58. Aspidistra minutiflora Stapf. Journ. Linn. Soc. 36. 113. (1903). Distribution: China (N Guangdong, Guangxi, ?Guizhou, Hainan, Hong Kong, SW Hunan)
59. Aspidistra molendinacea G. Z. Li & S. C. Tang. Guihaia 22(4): 290, fig. 3. (2002). Distribution: China (Guangzi)
60. Aspidistra muricata F. C. How ex K. Y. Lang. Acta Phytotax. Sin., 19(3): 383, fig. 1. (1981). Distribution: China (NC & W Guangxi)
61. Aspidistra mushaensis Hayata. Ic. Pl. Formosan. 9. 144 (1920). Distribution: Taiwan
62. Aspidistra nanchuanensis Tillich. Feddes Repert. 117(1-2): 139 (-141; fig. 1). (2006). Distribution: China (Sichuan)
63. Aspidistra nikolaii L. V. Averyanov & H.-J. Tillich, Feddes Repertorium 119 (1 - 2): 37 (2008). Distribution: Vietnam (Annamite Mts.)
64. Aspidistra oblanceifolia F. T. Wang & K. Y. Lang. Acta Phytotax. Sin., 20(4): 487, fig. 2 (1982). Distribution: China (S Guizhou, W Hubei, Sichuan)
65. Aspidistra obliquipeltata D. Fang & L. Y. Yu. Acta Phytotax. Sin. 40(2): 162, fig. 1. (2002). Distribution: China (Guangxi)
66. Aspidistra oblongifolia F. T. Wang & K. Y. Lang. Acta Phytotax. Sin., 37(5): 476, fig. 13. (1999). Distribution: China (N Guangxi)
67. Aspidistra omeiensis Z. Y. Zhu & J. L. Zhang. Acta Phytotax. Sin., 19(3): 386, fig. 1. (1981). Distribution: China (Sichuan)
68. Aspidistra opaca Tillich. Feddes Repert. 116(5-6): 321 (335, 337-338; figs. 2g, 3a). (2005). Distribution: Vietnam (Khanh Hoa)
69. Aspidistra papillata G. Z. Li. Acta Phytotax. Sin. 41(4): 382, fig. 1. (2003). Distribution: China (Guangxi)
70. Aspidistra patentiloba Y. Wan & X. H. Lu. Bull. Bot. Res., Harbin. 9(2): 99, fig. 2. (1989). Distribution: China (C Guangxi)
71. Aspidistra petiolata Tillich. Feddes Repert. 116(5-6): 321 (-322, 335, 338; fig. 3b, e). (2005). Distribution: Vietnam (Thua Thien)
72. Aspidistra pileata D. Fang & L. Y. Yu. Acta Phytotax. Sin. 40(2): 159, fig. 1. (2002). Distribution: China (Guangxi)
73. Aspidistra punctata Lindl. Bot. Reg. 12. t. 977. (1826). Distribution: China (Guandong, Hong Kong)
74. Aspidistra quadripartita G. Z. Li & S. C. Tang. Guihaia 22(4): 289, fig. 2. (2002). Distribution: China (Guangxi)
75. Aspidistra recondita Tillich. Blumea 52 (2): 341 (2007). (Vietnam but location not known)
76. Aspidistra renatae Bräuchler. Blumea 50(3): 527 (-529; photos). (2005). Distribution: Vietnam (central)
77. Aspidistra retusa K. Y. Lang & S. Z. Huang. Acta Phytotax. Sin., 19(3): 379, fig. 1. (1981). Distribution: China (NE Guangxi)
78. Aspidistra saxicola Y.Wan. Guihaia, 4(2): 129, fig. 1. (1984). Distribution: China (WC Guangxi)
79. Aspidistra sichuanensis K. Y. Lang & Z. Y. Zhu. Acta Bot. Yunnanica, 6(4): 387, fig. 1. (1984). Distribution: China (Guangxi, Guizhou, W Hunan, Sichuan, Yunnan)
80. Aspidistra spinula S. Z. He. Acta Phytotax. Sin. 40(4): 377, fig. 1. (2002). Distribution: China (Guizhou)
81. Aspidistra stricta Tillich. Feddes Repert. 116(5-6): 322 (335, 338; fig. 3f-g). (2005). Distribution: Vietnam (Lam Dong)
82. Aspidistra subrotata Y. Wan & C. C. Huang. Guihaia, 7(3): 223, fig. 5. (1987). Distribution: China (S & W Guangxi), Vietnam (Thai Nguyen)
83. Aspidistra superba Tillich. Feddes Repert. 116(5-6): 323 (335, 338; fig. 3i,k). (2005). Distribution: Vietnam (Ninh Binh)
84. Aspidistra sutepensis K. Larsen. Dansk Bot. Ark. 20(1). 41, fig. 1. (1961). Distribution: Vietnam (Paypa)
85. Aspidistra tonkinensis (Gagnep.) F. T. Wang & K. Y. Lang. Acta Phytotax. Sin., 16(1): 77 (1978) & Fl. Reipubl. Popul. Sin., 15: 19 (1978). Distribution: China (NW Guangxi, S Guizhou, SE Yunnan), Vietnam
86. Aspidistra triloba F. T. Wang & K. Y. Lang. Acta Phytotax. Sin., 19(3): 380, fig. 1. (1981). Distribution: China (SC Hunan, W Jiangxi)
87. Aspidistra tubiflora Tillich. Feddes Repert. 117(1-2): 141 (143, 145; fig. 3). (2006). Distribution: China (Sichuan)
88. Aspidistra typica Baill. Bull. Soc. Linn. Paris, 2. 1129. (1894). Distribution: China (SW Guangxi, SE Yunnan), Vietnam
89. Aspidistra umbrosa Tillich. Blumea 52 (2): 342 341 (2007). (Vietnam but location not known)
90. Aspidistra urceolata F. T. Wang & K. Y. Lang. Acta Phytotax. Sin., 19(3): 381, fig. 1. (1981). Distribution: China (Guizhou)
91. Aspidistra xilinensis Y. Wan & X. H. Lu. Acta Phytotax. Sin., 25(5): 397, fig. 1. (1987). Distribution: China (NW Guangxi)
92. Aspidistra yingjiangensis L. J. Peng. Acta Bot. Yunnanica, 11(2): 173, fig. 1. (1989). Distribution: China (W Yunnan)
93. Aspidistra zongbayi K. Y. Lang & Z. Y. Zhu. Acta Phytotax. Sin., 20(4): 486, fig. 1. (1982). Distribution: China (Sichuan)

Notes:

• A. longifolia from India and A. attenuata, A. daibuensis and A. mushaensis from Taiwan are poorly described in the literature.
• A. kouytchensis = A. lurida.
• A. bimoda = A. fungilliformis.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

Constantine, D. R. (1999): Aspidistra - an annotated list of the species and cultivars [1]