Perilla (plant)

Perilla
Perilla frutescens
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Asterids
Order:	Lamiales
Family:	Lamiaceae
Genus:	Perilla L.
Species:	P. frutescens
Binomial name
Perilla frutescens (L.) Britton
Synonyms
Melissa cretica Lour. Melissa maxima Ard. Mentha perilloides Lam. Ocimum frutescens L. Perilla albiflora Odash. Perilla avium Dunn Perilla frutescens var. auriculatodentata C.Y.Wu & S.J.Hsuan ex H.W.Li Perilla frutescens f. crispidiscolor Makino Perilla frutescens var. frutescens Perilla frutescens var. laviniata W.Mill. & L.H.Bailey Perilla frutescens var. purpurascens (Hayata) H.W.Li Perilla ocymoides L. Perilla ocymoides f. discolor Makino Perilla ocymoides var. japonica Hassk. Perilla ocymoides var. purpurascens Hayata Perilla ocymoides f. purpurea Makino Perilla ocymoides f. viridicrispa Makino Perilla ocymoides f. viridis Makino Perilla shimadae Kudô Perilla urticifolia Salisb.

Perilla is a genus consisting of one major Asiatic crop species P. frutescens and a few recognized wild species in nature, belonging to the mint family, Lamiaceae. Perilla frutescens is the sole species of the monotypic genus Perilla in the mint family, Lamiaceae. This species encompasses several distinct varieties of Asian herb, seed, and vegetable crop, including shiso and deulkkae. The genus name Perilla is also a frequently employed common name ("perilla"), applicable to all varieties.

Perilla frutescens are annual plants with square stems and serrated leaves. The leaves are arranged in opposite pairs, and the leaf colours range from green to dark green, purple to purplish red. The flowers are white to purple and the seeds can be soft and hard, being white, grey, brown, and dark brown in colour. Perilla varieties are cross-fertile and intra-specific hybridization occurs naturally. Some varieties are considered invasive.

The classification of Perilla is confused, partly because botanists struggled with distinguishing the two distinct cultigens (as different species or variations). An early example of dividing the two cultigens into different species is found in Matsumura's nomenclature book in 1884, where the synonym P. arguta Benth. is applied to P. frutescens var. crispa, and the synonym P. ocymoides L. was applied to P. frutescens. However the species name P. ocymoides or P. ocimoides has been used to denote P. frutescens var. crispa for a long time, especially by the Japanese, so it should not be considered a synonym for either cultigen interchangeably.

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Wikipedia