Luan tree, alias: Muluan, Luanhua, etc., is a plant of the family Sopinaceae and the genus Luan. It is a deciduous tree or shrub; the bark is thick, gray-brown to gray-black, longitudinally split when old; the lenticels are small, gray to dark brown; the branchlets are warty points, and the leaf shafts and petioles are all wrinkled pubescent or absent hair.
Luan tree grows in calcium-based soil produced by limestone weathering and is cold-resistant. In China, it is only distributed in the Yellow River Basin and the lower reaches of the Yangtze River Basin. Luan tree germinates later in spring and leaves early in autumn, so the annual growth period is short and the growth is slow. The wood can only be used to make some small utensils, and the seeds can be used to squeeze industrial oil.
The young leaves of the Luan tree in spring are mostly red leaves. In summer, the trees are full of yellow flowers, and the leaves turn yellow in autumn. The fruit is purple-red and looks like a lantern. It is suitable for garden shade trees, street trees and landscape trees. Luan trees are also good tree species for planting in industrially polluted areas. Ornamental characteristics Luan tree leaves in spring, flowers in summer, and fruits in autumn and winter. It has been widely used as shade trees, sidewalk trees and garden trees, and also as a green tree species for residential areas, factories and villages.
