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= Schisandra chinensis =

Schisandra chinensis (common name: magnolia-vine, Chinese magnolia-vine, schisandra), whose fruit is called magnolia berry or five-flavor-fruit (from Chinese wǔ wèi zi), is a vine plant native to forests of Northern China, the Russian Far East and Korea. Wild varieties of Schisandra chinensis are also found in Japan. It is hardy in USDA Zone 4.

Taxonomy and Etymology
The genus Schisandra was first published by André Michaux in 1803. The name Schisandra derived from the Greek words schizein ('to split') and andros ('man') which refers to the separate anther cells on the stamens.

Today, Schisandra chinensis belongs to the family of Schisandraceae. In earlier years, it was assumed that the species belonged to the family of Magnoliaceae, hence the name Chinese magnolia-vine. However, many differences in plant phenology between  Schisandra  and members of  Magnoliaceae lead to the formation of Schisandraceae.

In Russia, Schisandra chinensis is also called Limonnik or Maximowich’s red grape. The name Limonnik comes from the lemony smell of different plant organs, especially the leaves. Its Chinese name comes from the fact that its berries possess all five basic flavors: salty, sweet, sour, pungent (spicy), and bitter. Sometimes, it is more specifically called běi wǔ wèi zi (literally "northern five-flavor berry") to distinguish it from another traditionally medicinal schisandraceous plant Kadsura japonica that grows only in subtropical areas. Another species of schisandra berry, Schisandra sphenanthera, has a similar but different biochemical profile; the Chinese Pharmacopeia distinguishes between S. chinensis (běi wǔ wèi zi) and  S. sphenanthera (nan wǔ wèi zi).

Vegetative plant organs
Schisandra chinensis is a perennial, deciduous woody vine plant that is found at high latitudes and in cool climatic conditions. It commonly grows in natural coniferous or mixed forests or along streams and climbs up other trees or shrubs to reach optimal light conditions. The lianas show a clockwise spiral growth pattern which gives them support, since the plant does not produce tendrils or other structures for climbing. The prostrate lianas usually grow 8-9m tall but can reach a length of up to 25m. They are dark brown in colour and can reach 1.5-2 cm in thickness.

S. chinensis produces new shoots in spring which grow out of the stems of the previous year. These shoots are typically short, but they continue their growth after flowering until late in the season. The leaves are simple, oval-shaped (5-11 cm long and 3-7 cm wide) and alternating and the petioles have a slight red colouring. Multicellular trichomes are located on the abaxial leaf lamina. Stomata show a irregular, random distribution.

The roots of Schisandra chinensis are branched and stay close to the soil surface. Nodes located on the stems can also produce roots.

Generative plant organs
The flowers of Schisandra are unisexual and the species itself is dioecious. The plant is therefore not self-fertile, hence flowers on a female plant will only produce fruit when fertilized with pollen from a male plant. However, a hybrid selection titled 'Eastern Prince' has perfect flowers and is self-fertile. Seedlings of 'Eastern Prince' are sometimes sold under the same name, but are typically single-sex plants.

The female flowers are white or cream-coloured and turn slightly reddish to the end of the flowering season. They have 5-12 waxy, spirally arranged tepals forming the perianth and 12-120 pistils. The tepals show a transition in colour from green for the outer tepals to more pigmentation for the inner ones. The flowers typically grow out of the leaf axils in clusters, later forming grape clusters with berries, but can also be found solitary. The male flower has 5 stamens with filaments of different lengths. The flowers of S. chinensis are important for various pollinators such as bees, beetles and small moths.

The fruits of Schisandra chinensis are red berries which are smooth and shiny, have a spherical shape and reach 5-10 mm in diameter. They grow in dense hanging clusters of 2-5 berries which reach a length of about 6-8 cm. Each berry usually contains 1-2 brownish yellow kidney-shaped seeds. The seeds have the capacity to stay dormant and to form seed banks. Distribution of seeds mainly occurs through birds.

Climate and soil requirements
Wild plants of Schisandra chinensis mostly grow in mixed forests, valleys and open forest spaces. The plant can grow in wet environments and tolerates cold temperatures of up to -30°C. However, its optimal growing temperature is at 20-25°C. Schisandra grows in acidic (pH of 6.5 – 6.8), deep and loose sandy loam soils. Furthermore, Schisandra cannot withstand dense and compact soils and prefers soils rich in humus.

Cultivation
Major cultivation of Schisandra chinensis is located in Korea and China. The production however has declined continuously due to the increased deforestation in Asia. Schisandra can be integrated in agroforestry farming systems as it climbs up trees to get better light conditions. On a large-scale production Schisandra plants are grown similar to grape vines and are tied up on stakes in vertical columns.

For cultivation male and female plants are required for the successful fertilization of the flowers. However, some cultivars are monoecious such as "Hong-zhen-zhu" and could facilitate the cultivation of Schisandra. "Hong-zhen-zhu" is next to "Bai Wu-wei-zi", "Chang-bai-hong", and "Da-chuan-hong" one of the main cultivars in China used for germplasm resources.

Schisandra seeds are planted in early May (the seasons mentioned in here refer to China), sprout after 15-20 days and the plants grow until late September. The seeds are sown at a density of 30 g/m2 and are then covered with fine soil and straw, pine needles or a grass mat. Alternatively, the seeds can be cultivated in pots and then transplanted to the field. The soil should be kept humid in order for the seeds to soak up with water. Three years after sowing, the plants will blossom for the first time. Normally, the plants start flowering from middle or late May to early June. As the flowers are prone to frost damage, they are best grown in areas where the chances for frost in May and June are low. Starting from June to July the fruits develop and ripen from August to September. In spring, summer or fall pruning of Schisandra vines is necessary to improve ventilation and light conditions, ensure an endogenous nutrition status and increase the number of female flowers and thus overall fruit yield. Furthermore, sprouting tillers that compete for nutrition with the main Schisandra vine should be cut away.

Pests and diseases
Schisandra chinensis is affected by many different diseases and pests, which some of them are mentioned in this section. Temperature dependent damages on Schisandra are sun scald or frost damages. Sun scald as a cause of heat injuries and ultraviolet radiation can lead to pathogenic infections. Sun scald can be controlled by applying more organic fertilizers, promoting vertical rooting, keeping an appropriate branch-fruit ratio and leaf-fruit ratio. These prevention measures enhance the plant’s tolerance to drought and prevent direct exposure of the fruits to the sun. Furthermore, irrigation can help to lower surface temperatures on the fruits. Frost damages can cause necrotic leaves and weaken the vitality of the plant. Frost damages can be prevented by covering the roots, maintaining temperatures through smoke or irrigation or by applying antifreeze fluid and P-K fertilizers (i.e. phosphorus and potassium fertilizers).

Control of weeds
To control weeds, the herbicides paraquat, pendimethalin and glufosinate can be applied.

Control of fungal diseases
To control fungal diseases on Schisandra different fungicides are applied such as pyraclostrobin, fluquinconazole, triforine, fenarimol, fenbuconazole, thiophanate-methyl, mancozeb, metalaxyl,benomyl and hexaconazole.

Prior to fungicidal application, prevention measures should be applied to lower the risk for fungal outbreaks. Only if economic thresholds are exceeded one should apply fungicides. Prevention measures in Schisandra cultivation could be:


 * no transplantation of infected seedlings,
 * use of fresh soil,
 * appropriate increase of P and K fertilizers (increased plant resistance to disease),
 * avoid complete coverage of frame areas and a too high plant density,
 * maintain a sufficient ventilation and light transmittance,
 * remove dead leaves from the ground in the fall and
 * avoid excessive watering.

Control of insect pests
Insects such as wireworms and nematodes can be controlled with e.g. ethoprophos and aphids can be controlled with e.g. endosulfan.

Prevention measures to control insects in Schisandra cultures could be:


 * remove the insects by hand if they appear in small numbers,
 * remove dead leaves and injured branches (sources of insects),
 * use insect traps and
 * biological control agents (e.g. parasitic wasps).

Control of soil-borne diseases
To lower infections of soil-borne diseases carbendazol hydratable powder or amobam can be applied after sowing.

Fertilization
For the cultivation of young Schisandra plants a nutrient rich soil is required, wherefore mostly manure is applied as organic fertilizer. Organic high-N and high-H fertilizer should be applied at the embryonic stage and later on it should be fertilized with high-P and high-K. During key growth stages it is best to undertake a foliar fertilization to ensure normal fruit production. As the quantity of female flowers is a key point to increase Schisandra berry yields, barax, ammonium molybdate, and lanthanum nitrate fertilizers can be applied in July as foliar fertilizer.

Harvesting and yield
The first profitable harvest of the Schisandra plant usually takes place 4-5 years after planting. The first possible harvest, which occurs 3 years after planting, is usually not profitable yet. In China, the ripe fruits are harvested in mid to late September, when the content of biologically active ingredients is optimal. The berries in Europe ripen earlier, in late August and early September. Fruits are optimally harvested on sunny days after the disappearance of morning dew.

The fruit yield fluctuates over a 2-year cycle. An average harvest in a typical forest containing Schisandra chinensis is around 200 kg/ha, and high-density woods can produce up to 1700 kg/ha. The fruit yield for a small tree is around 0.2 kg, large trees can carry up to 3-8 kg. In the eastern area of Russia, between 1800 and 2000 ha of the Taiga forest are occupied predominantly by trees of the species Schisandra chinensis. The annual berry yield from this region amounts to ca. 800 metric tons.

Processing and uses
The common edible plant parts of Schisandra are the fruits, the young leaves, and traditionally even the stems. The Schisandra leaves contain a high amount of vitamin C, five times more than the fruits. When crushed, the leaves release a lemony smell and can be used as a vegetable. The red fruits are usually dried by either a natural or an artificial drying procedure. Drying Schisandra in the shadow is more time-consuming, but has the advantage of keeping the losses of active compounds very low. Furthermore, shadow-drying maintains the color of the berries and is low in production costs. However, the sun-drying method enriches the fruits with oil and maintains their quality as long as solar-radiation is not excessive. A too intense radiation can discolor the berries and thus would lower their quality. The artificial drying process is rapid, and the temperature for baking is set at 50 °C and should not be higher, to prevent burning.

Its berries are used in traditional medicine. Chemical constituents include the lignans, schisandrin, deoxyschizandrin, gomisins, and pregomisin. Besides its use in traditional medicine, Schisandra chinensis can be used in various areas such as foods, functional health products, additives, drinks, liquors, and even textile dyes. Drinks made from Schisandrae Fructus can be stored for a long period of time without adding any preservatives, as the berries contain antioxidants. Furthermore, the strong red color of the berries reduces the need for color additives. Despite these versatile usage possibilities, many of them have not been commercialized yet.

In Korean, the berries are known as omija (오미자 (hangul) – five flavours). The cordial drink made from the berries is called omija-cha, meaning "omija tea"; see Korean tea. In Japanese, they are called gomishi. The Ainu people used this plant, called repnihat, as a remedy for colds and sea-sickness. Interest in limonnik (S. chinensis) in Russia was associated with investigations by Soviet scientists on berries and seeds.

Pharmacological properties
Apart from its uses as food, Schisandra chinensis is used in China and Russia as alternative medicine. In Chinese medicine  Schisandra chinensis  has been utilized to relieve cough and asthma, resolve sputum, treat spontaneous and night sweating, chronic diarrhea and neurasthenia. But not only in China this crop has been used as a natural remedy. Since the early 1960s, S. chinensis  was used in the official medicine of the USSR. Studies on animals have shown that  S. chinensis  can increase physical working capacity and provide a stress-protective effect against a broad spectrum of harmful factors including heat shock, skin burn, cooling, frostbite, immobilisation, swimming under load in an atmosphere with decreased air pressure, aseptic inflammation, irradiation, and heavy metal intoxication. Studies from the former USSR documented a broad variety of pharmacological effects of  S. chinensis. In healthy individuals S. chinensis  can increase endurance and the accuracy of movement, mental performance and working capacity, and generates alterations in the basal levels of nitric oxide and cortisol in blood and saliva with subsequent effects on the blood cells, vessels and central nervous system. The plant is considered to have various compounds with antimicrobial, antioxidative, anti-proliferative and anti-cancer activity. Due to these compounds Schisandra chinensis  is a promising crop and very interesting for future research. The fruit of  Schisandra chinensis  contain about 1.5% sugars, tannins, colour substances and about 3% of essential oils, organic acids, vitamin C and E, and metals such as copper, manganese, nickel and zinc. The dominant secondary metabolite components in the berries of S. chinesis  are the dibenzocyclooctadiene lignans, which are often called “Schisandra lignans”. Fruit maturity, harvest time, the habitat and climate influence the amount of dibenzocyclooctadiene lignans. Normally they contribute to around 4-19 % of dry weight.

Use in cosmetics
Schisandra chinensis  and its derivates can suppress skin photoaging, ameliorate sarcopenia and osteoarthritis. It is considered to increase physical endurance, inhibit stress-induced premature senescence and improve other effects that can be associated with aging. Extracts from  S. chinensis  are being used in skin care products  and are marketed to purify and strengthen the protective barrier of the skin and to soothe irritations.