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Colubrina Brongn.

Reference
Mem.Fam.Rhamnees p61 (1826)
Name Status
Current
Image

Scientific Description

Family Rhamnaceae.

Habit and leaf form. Trees, or shrubs, or lianas (rarely). ‘Normal’ plants. Leaves well developed. Plants with roots; non-succulent; spiny, or unarmed; autotrophic. To 2 m high. Self supporting, or climbing. Not heterophyllous. Leaves medium-sized; alternate, or opposite; with blades; leathery; petiolate; ‘usually with minute glands’; simple; not peltate. Leaf blades entire; flat; broadly ovate (in WA); pinnately veined; cordate, or rounded at the base. Mature leaf blades adaxially glabrous (or scattered hairs on the veins); abaxially glabrous (or scattered hairs on the veins). Leaves with stipules. Stipules scaly; caducous. Leaf blade margins serrate; flat. Leaf anatomy. Hairs present, or absent.

Reproductive type, pollination. Fertile flowers hermaphrodite. Unisexual flowers absent. Plants hermaphrodite.

Inflorescence and flower features. Flowers aggregated in ‘inflorescences’. Inflorescence many-flowered. Flowers in clusters. Inflorescences simple; axillary. Flowers pedicellate; minute; regular; 5 merous; cyclic; tetracyclic. Free hypanthium present. Perianth with distinct calyx and corolla; 10; 2 -whorled; isomerous. Calyx present; 5; 1 -whorled; gamosepalous; lobed; hairy (outside), or glabrous; valvate; regular; green, or yellow. Calyx lobes ovate. Epicalyx absent. Corolla present; 5; 1 -whorled; alternating with the calyx; polypetalous; regular. Petals hooded. Androecium present. Fertile stamens present. Androecial members definite in number. Androecium 5. Androecial members adnate (to the base of the sepals); free of the gynoecium; free of one another; 1 -whorled. Stamens 5; all more or less similar in shape; isomerous with the perianth; alternisepalous; filantherous. Anthers separate from one another; dehiscing via longitudinal slits; bilocular; tetrasporangiate. Fertile gynoecium present. Gynoecium 3 carpelled. The pistil 1 celled. Carpels reduced in number relative to the perianth. Gynoecium syncarpous; synstylovarious; superior. Ovary plurilocular; 3 locular. Gynoecium stylate. Styles 1; sometimes 3-branched; apical. Stigmas 3 - lobed. Ovules 1 per locule (in WA); ascending; anatropous.

Fruit and seed features. Fruit aerial; 7–10 mm long; a schizocarp. Dispersal unit the seed, or the fruit. Seeds 1 per locule.

Geography, cytology, number of species. Native of Australia. Not endemic to Australia. Australian states and territories: Western Australia, Northern Territory, and Queensland. Northern Botanical Province. A genus of ca 30 species; 1 species in Western Australia; C. asiatica (L.) Brongn.; 1 endemic to Western Australia.