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그루안

Thunberg's bay-tree

Machilus thunbergii · Lauraceae · 후박나무

How to spot it

Leaves cluster at twig tips; new shoots and fruit stalks are red. What is called 'hubak-namu' in the central region is a mistaken name for the thick-barked Japanese Magnolia.

Look

Leaves
Thick, obovate-elliptic leaves (7 to 15 cm long) appear to cluster at the twig tips, with smooth margins and no hairs on either side; the new spring shoots turn red like autumn leaves.
Flowers
In May, as new leaves emerge, conical panicles (4 to 7 cm) arise from the leaf axils bearing many yellow-green flowers.
Fruit
Round berries 1.4 cm across ripen blackish purple in late July to August; the fruit stalks are red.
Bark
Bark is smooth and greenish brown; on old trees it flakes off like scales, with grayish-white mottling.

Where it grows

In Korea
Native
Native to
China, Taiwan, Japan, and in Korea Jeollabuk-do, Jeollanam-do, Gyeongsangnam-do and Jeju-do; grows on Ulleungdo and southern islands and coastal areas.
Ecology
Grows well below 500 m on southern islands and coasts; strongly tolerates salt, wind and pollution but is weak against cold. Shade-tolerant as a seedling, but sun-loving when mature.

Famous Thunberg's bay-tree trees in Korea

Sources