There's a saying, "If you love it, you know it and will come to see it. What you see then will not be the same as before." In our previous editions, this column introduced the various stories and the research findings of Amorepacific on ginseng. There are, however, many other natural oriental medicinal materials used in Sulwhasoo products other than ginseng. But how much do we know about the other core materials and ingredients used by Sulwhasoo? How about we take a deep look into these ingredients with a loving heart towards the Sulwhasoo brand?

 The ingredient that represents Sulwhasoo is ginseng. But what is the plant that signifies the origin of the name 'Sulwhasoo' and its unique pattern and design? It is the plum blossom (or, meihua in Korean). The plum blossom has beyond just a simple value of a material as a flower. It was a subject matter of many cultural symbols and stories in the Northeast Asian cultural region of Korea, China and Japan. But how much do we really know about the plum blossom? Let's find out more about the ingredient.

 The Japanese apricot tree (a.k.a. apricot tree) is from the Rosaceae family with a scientific name of Prunus mume (Siebold) Siebold & Zucc. The place of origin of the Japanese apricot is China but was first known to the West in the 17th century through Japan. Hence, its common name, Japanese apricot. Its scientific name 'Prunus mume' given in 1835 by German botanists Siebold and Zuccarici also includes the word 'mume', which is an old Japanese word for plum blossom.

 The fruit of the Japanese apricot tree is plum or Japanese apricot, and the flower is called the plum blossom or meihua . Many Koreans, however, call the Japanese apricot tree itself 'meihua' and then add the word for 'flower' again to use the term 'meihuakkot (or meihua flower)' . This is a type of word formation trying to make a word from Hanja (or Chinese characters) more Korean such as calling 'Donghae (the East Sea)' – a term that already includes the Chinese character for 'sea' in the word – as 'Donghae Sea (pronounced Donghaebada )'.

 Plum blossoms and cherry blossoms are flowers that represent the spring season. Both flowers attract visitors across different regions during spring, especially at flower festivals. But do you know how to differentiate between plum blossoms and cherry blossoms? Both flowers look very much alike. But if you take just a little bit of interest, you will be able to tell them apart even if you're not an expert. The key characteristics that tell them apart are flowering time, length of the peduncle, and fragrance. Now, let's find out more in detail one by one.

 The easiest way to differentiate plum blossoms from cherry blossoms is through their flowering time and the length of their flower stalks. The flowering period for the plum blossom is earlier than the cherry blossom. Plum blossoms flower during February and March (or January to February in lunar calendar), while cherry blossoms bloom during April and May (or March to April in lunar).

 A peduncle refers to the short stalk connecting the flower and the stem. Plum blossom's peduncle is short making the flower look like it's growing from the stem, while the cherry blossom peduncle is around 1~2cm, which is quite long.

 This difference between the plum blossom and the cherry blossom can also be found someplace interesting – hwatu cards. In hwatu cards, February is represented by the plum blossom, while March is cherry blossom. This reflects each of the flower's actual flowering time. The plum blossom cards have a short flower stalk, while the cherry blossom cards have a longer peduncle. Who would have known there were such detail in hwatu cards?

 Interestingly, there was an incident in 2017 when a celebrity's photoshoot sparked controversy that she damaged a Japanese apricot tree. The then-entertainment company of said celebrity explained that the flower prop used for the photoshoot was not a Japanese apricot, but a cherry blossom. But netizens argued that the flower in the photoshoot had a short flower stalk and therefore is a plum blossom, not a cherry blossom. There's no way to find out what happened in the end, but if the entertainment company had more understanding of plum blossoms, it might have responded to the incident better.

 Another aspect that plum blossoms have, and cherry blossoms don't is the scent. Have you ever smelled the scent of cherry blossoms at a cherry blossom festival? It's not that you don't remember. In fact, cherry blossoms have a very weak scent that you can hardly smell. You would only notice it if you placed the flower right to your nose. This is not the case for plum blossoms. You can smell the scent of plum blossoms if you just go nearby a plum blossom tree. Our ancestors called the scent of the plum blossom ' Amhyang (or, parfum discret )'. This referred to the soft and delicate scent of the plum blossom that is not strong but would permeate even from afar when all surroundings are still. According to research findings in Korea, plum blossoms have different scents depending on different types.

 The Japanese apricot tree is smaller than the cherry blossom tree, while its bark is rougher and darker. The cherry blossom tree is relatively larger with smoother and light-colored bark. It may be difficult to differentiate based on the color of the tree, but if you compare the size of the trees in general, you can see that the apricot tree is relatively smaller (as seen in the photos below).

 Plum blossoms have the strength to endure the cold as they bloom in snow. The scent of the plum blossom that sprouts despite the cold has symbolized its clear and pure character; its strong stem and beautiful flower represented its strength and dignity; and its beauty was used to express the start of spring. Plum blossoms' vigorous strength that bloomed in late winter or early spring fighting against the cold even though it could freeze to death was the symbol of constancy. This is why the plum blossom pattern was used to symbolize fidelity and was commonly used in binyeo (traditional Korean hairpin), chignon ornament, and daenggi (traditional Korean ribbon) worn by women during the Joseon dynasty. The plum blossom symbolized the virtue and beauty of a women's virginity. And it was also used in the names of many ginyeo (Korean 'Japanese geisha') or handmaidens like Maehyang, Seolmae, Okmae, and Wolmae to represent virginity and beauty as it was considered to be the best of the one hundred flowers that symbolize love. Plum blossom was also commonly used as a pattern in various household items such as clothing, mother-of-pearl lacquerware, furniture, or craftwork, and was drawn in many folk paintings popular among the working class during the late Joseon period.

 The standard number of flower petals of the plum blossom is five. Therefore, most of the decorative patterns of the plum blossom have five petals. Chinese philosopher Shao Yong famously described that the five petals of the plum blossom represent peace, reconciliation, good fortune, tolerance, and endurance. In the yin-yang and five elements theory, the fundamental unit of symbolism mostly is comprised of five elements, and therefore prefers flowers with five simple leaves.

 In oriental medicine, the variety of the medicinal ingredient and its harvest time are critical. This is because even plants with similar names can contain different benefits and effect depending on their variety and when they were harvested. Of course, such information may be based on conceptual theory or prejudice and must be scientifically proven.

 The variety of plum blossoms is very diverse. Plum blossoms are classified into hundreds of different types according to the color and number of petals, the color of the calyx, the shape of the tree and its branch, and the size of the plum. Among the classification, depending on the color of flower leaves, plum blossoms can be categorized as white plum blossom (white petals, red calyx), red plum blossom (red petals), or green plum blossom (white petals, green calyx).

 Plum blossom buds start to grow in summer (refer to the below photo A). Then, it maintains a dormant period while enduring the cold winter. An interesting fact is that a plum blossom must go through a cold season in order to bloom. When the plant greets the warm season of spring, the flower bud starts to develop into a flower (refer to the below photos B to F).

 How was the plum blossom used in oriental medicine?
The plum blossom is recorded in various literature on oriental medicine including the Compendium of Materia Medica and the Dongui Bogam using the names plum blossom (meihua) , white plum blossom or green plum blossom. It was mostly used to treat globus pharyngeus, loss of appetite, smallpox, scrofula, or melasma. We found an interesting feature of the plum blossom in our investigation of many literature on oriental medicine. The plum blossom was used differentiating its variety (mostly green plum blossoms) and only those of a certain time of harvest (half-bloomed plum blossom bud, or Stage D 'balloon stage') were used for medicinal purposes.

 After a deep study of literature on the plum blossom, we collected samples of three different varieties and those in different flowering stages from actual farms cultivating plum blossoms in order to study the ingredient. The R&D Center, then, conducted a comparative experiment of the samples' antioxidant effect. We were able to confirm, based on the result of the study, that the half-bloomed green plum blossom (Stage D, balloon stage) has the best antioxidant effect as written in literature. Amorepacific's additional research showed that it also protects the skin from aging and external harmful environment.

 This column on the plum blossom might seem to be a light introduction of the ingredient compared to the previous columns on ginseng. But please remember that the value of the plum blossom ingredient and Amorepacific's research results are not at all light. Even if it is an oriental medicinal ingredient of several thousand-year history, literature study as well as an in-depth and wide-range research led by the company's research team were there hidden behind the scenes for the plum blossom to be used in our cosmetic products. This is to provide better ingredients and benefits to our customers that cannot be provided by any other company. Now, don't miss our next column on one of Sulwhasoo's main ingredients, JAUM Balancing Complex. Thank you.