Styrax
Also known as Storax, Benzoin
Styrax (common names storax or snowbell) is a genus of about 130 species of large shrubs or small trees in the family Styracaceae, mostly native to warm temperate to tropical regions of the Northern Hemisphere, with the majority in eastern and southeastern Asia, but also crossing the equator in South America. The resin obtained from the tree is called benzoin or storax (not to be confused with the Liquidambar storax balsam), often used as a vanilla-like component in perfumery.
Species
FamilyStyracaceae
General: species in New Guinea: Styrax agrestis (Lour.) G.Don.
via · Kew POWO
Research
329 papers- Styrax spp.: Habitat, Phenology, Phytochemicals, Biological Activity and Applications.Plants (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025
- Chemical Constituents and Their Biological Activities from Genus Styrax.Pharmaceuticals (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023
- [Study on changes of Styrax varieties].Zhongguo Zhong yao za zhi = Zhongguo zhongyao zazhi = China journal of Chinese materia medica · 2024
- Herb-drug interaction between Styrax and warfarin: Molecular basis and mechanism.Phytomedicine : international journal of phytotherapy and phytopharmacology · 2020
- The Chinese herb Styrax triggers pharmacokinetic herb-drug interactions via inhibiting intestinal CYP3A.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2022
~10 min read
Article
11 sectionsContents
- Uses
- Uses of resin
- History of sources
- Use as incense
- Medical uses
- Horticultural uses
- Uses of wood
- Ecology and conservation
- Selected species
- Footnotes
- References
Styrax (common names storax or snowbell) is a genus of about 130 species of large shrubs or small trees in the family Styracaceae, mostly native to warm temperate to tropical regions of the Northern Hemisphere, with the majority in eastern and southeastern Asia, but also crossing the equator in South America. The resin obtained from the tree is called benzoin or storax (not to be confused with the Liquidambar storax balsam), often used as a vanilla-like component in perfumery.
The genus Pamphilia, sometimes regarded as distinct, is now included within Styrax based on analysis of morphological and DNA sequence data. The spicebush (Lindera benzoin) is a different plant, in the family Lauraceae.