Wikstroemia indica
Wikstroemia indica, also known as tie bush, Indian stringbush, bootlace bush, or small-leaf salago is a small shrub with glossy leaves, small greenish-yellow flowers and toxic red fruits. It grows in forests and on rocky, shrubby slopes in central and southeastern China, Vietnam, India, Australia and the Philippines.
Toxicity
W. indica is toxic and the poisoning caused by W. indica leads to dizziness, blurred vision, nausea, vomiting, abdominal distension, abdominal pain and diarrhea.Uses
It is one of the 50 fundamental herbs used in traditional Chinese medicine. As a traditional Chinese herb, this plant has long been employed as an antipyretic, detoxicant, expectorant, vermifuge, and abortifacient in clinical practice in China.In Vinh, paper made by hand from the phloem fibers of W. indica is used for packaging freshly caught fish. To make the paper, peeled bark of W. indica is harvested in Quỳnh Lưu and shipped in dehydrated bales to Nghi Lộc, where the fibers are rehydrated, scraped, cooked, beaten into pulp, bleached, rinsed, suspended in water, and cast into sheets using large moulds made of mosquito netting and rebar, which are then left in the sun. Once dry, the resulting sheets are peeled from their moulds, folded in quarters, and sold to fishermen in Vinh. The paper helps to keep fish fresh, and prevents it from drying out during cooking.