|
The "Abura-susuki" (Eccoilopus cotulifer) belongs to Poaceae (the Grass family). It is a perennial that is distributed throughout Japan, as well as Taiwan, the southern Korean Peninsula, China, and India. It grows on hillsides and mountain forest margins and grows 90 to 120 cm tall. The stems are rather thick, cylindrical, and erect in a tussock. From August to October, conical inflorescences appear at the top of the stem, with sparse twigs hanging down in whorled. The stems and branches have an oil-like sheen. In Taiwanese Chinese, it is called "油芒" and "油芒" (you mang).
In Korean, it's called "gi-reum-sae" (기름새). This is a compound word consisting of "oil" (gi-reum: 기름) + "grass" (sae: 새). It was named for the oily odor it emits or the glossy sheen it has, as if it had been coated with oil.
|