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Gleditsia sinensis Lam. © Flora of China

Botanical classification

Gleditsia sinensis Lam.

Order:

Fabales

Family:

Caesalpiniaceae

Synonyms:

Gleditsisa horrida Willd.

Gleditsisa macracantha Desf.

Gleditsisa officinalis Hemsl.

Plant growing area

China (Anhui, Fujian, Gansu, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hebei, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Shanxi, Sichuan, Yunnan, Zhejiang).

Grows on mountain slopes, forests, valleys, near roads; 200-2500 m.

Use area in the manufacture of paper

China, Korea.

Plant cultivation and use

Gleditsia sinensis is a tree of average size but which can reach 30m in height.

Thorns of Gleditsia sinensis are used in China and Korea for their medicinal properties.

China:

Gleditsia sinensis would be one of the 50 fundamental herbs in traditional Chinese medicine.

The plant is used as a detergent in China for 2000 years. The pods are ground into powder which is used as soap.

The powder was used to clean the paintings, but also to size the paper, or mixed with the mounting paste.

It is also possible to make a paste for printing patterns on the surface of paper. The recipe is to reduce the pod into powder to make a kind of glue which is mixed with croton oil (Codiaeum variegatum) and colors.

Vernacular names

Chinese

Zao jia	皂荚

Japanese

Saikachi	さいかち
Shinasaikachi	シナサイカチ

Korean

Juyeopnamu	주엽나무

French

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English

Chinese honey locust
Soap bean
Soap pod

Used part of the plant:

Fruit

Use for paper making:

Sizing agent

Dyeing aid

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Gleditsia sinensis Lam.