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Styrax officinalis
Styrax officinalis is a species of shrub in the family Styracaceae, commonly called the storax tree,[3] or Snowdrop bush.[1] DescriptionStyrax officinalis is a deciduous shrub reaching a height of 2–5 metres (6 ft 7 in – 16 ft 5 in).[3] It has a simple, relaxed form, with very thin elliptical leaves 5–10 cm (2–4 in) long and 3.5–5.5 cm (1+1⁄2–2 in) wide, alternate and widely spaced on thin, reddish stems, with a tight, dark bark on basal stems. A small very light green, stalked axillary bud is associated with each leaf.  The inflorescence is short and few-flowered. The flowers are axillary, bell-shaped, white and fragrant, about 2 cm (1 in) long. The corolla has 5–7 petals and many yellow anthers, the calyx is 5-lobed. Flowering period extends from spring to summer (May–June).[4] Styrax officinalis subsp. redidivus, Styrax officinalis subsp. fulvescens (both native to California) and Styrax officinalis subsp. jaliscana (native to Mexico), were included here, but recent molecular analysis has suggested that they may be diverged to the point of being separate species.[5]  DistributionThis species is native to southern Europe and the Middle East.[3][5] It prefers dry rocky slopes, woods and thickets at an elevation up to 1,500 metres (4,900 ft) above sea level.[3] .jpg) UsesThis plant is the "official" source of styrax (storax), a herbal medicine known from ancient times; it was identified as such by Linnaeus. Some believe its oleoresin to have been the stacte used together with frankincense, galbanum, and onycha to make Ketoret, the Tabernacle incense of the Old Testament.[6] Averroës referred to the reddish-brown oleoresin or exudate taken from the Storax tree (Styrax officinalis, syn. Liquidambar styraciflua). Ibn Ǧanāḥ (c. 990–c. 1050), speaking of the biblical incense galbanum, wrote in his Sefer Ha-Shorashim, s.v. ח-ל-ב (end): "And then there is ḥelbanah (galbanum) which is called in Arabic lūbnī," meaning, the resin of the storax tree. Some speculate that the storax of the ancients was probably extracted from a different tree, Liquidambar orientalis which grows wild in northern Syria. This may be the biblical balm, though other sources conclude that the biblical balm is balsam (opobalsamum).[7] References Wikimedia Commons has media related to Styrax officinalis.
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