Discophora
Description
Trees or sometimes shrubs, bark smooth; branches short-strigose or glabrous. Leaves large, entire. Inflorescences axillary panicles. Flowers small, polygamous or unisexual, with short pedicels, bracteate, articulate below calyx; calyx short campanulate, 5-lobed, lobes often unequal, small, deltoid; petals free, glabrous or glabrescent, the apex inflexed, the midrib prominent; stamens 5, filaments flattened, with pubescent swelling or appendage just above middle, abruptly narrowed below anthers, anthers versatile, introrse, ovate, thecae diverging at base; disk fleshy, in female flowers crescent-shaped; ovary 1-celled, cylindric-conic, angled and slightly compressed, with lateral basal fleshy appendage, stigma capitate, nearly sessile, fleshy, rugose, wider than ovary. Drupe oblong, flattened, slightly arcuate, ridged, sharply so on convex side, with a fleshy appendage on concave side; seed with copious endosperm, embryo minute.
Distribution
Guianas present, Southern America: Colombia (Colombia present); Panamá (Panamá present); Peru (Peru present); Venezuela (Venezuela present)
2 species, one widespread in Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, the Guianas, Peru and Brazil, one only known from Colombia.
Wood
Vessels diffuse, solitary (30-45%), and irregular clusters of 2-4, and radial chains of 3-5(7), angular, 15-22(10-35) per sq. mm, diameter 69-80(58-92) μm. Vessel-member length: 1314-1319(764-2058) μm. Perforations simple and scalariform, 8-15 bars per plate. Intervascular pits alternate, polygonal, 5-7 μm. Vessel-ray and vessel-parenchyma pits slightly larger than the intervascular pits.
Rays in two types, 3-5 per mm, uni-(bi-)seriate, up to 2900 μm (= 21 cells) high, heterogeneous, composed of upright and square cells; and multiseriate, 5-7 cells wide, up to 5800 μm (= 125 cells) high, often with uniseriate tails, heterogeneous, composed of _procumbent and square cells in the multiseriate part, and of upright cells at the margins. Multiseriate rays with many sheath cells. Amorphic substance common in the ray cells.
Parenchyma apotracheal in short, wavy, tangential bands, one cell wide, and diffuse, and some scanty paratracheal cells.Strands 4-8 cells.
Amorphic substance in some parenchyma cells.
Fibres non-septate, very thick-walled, lumen ca. 2μm, walls 15(12-18) μm. Pits bordered, on radial and tangential walls, 12-15μm in diameter. Length: 3381-3685(2352-4263) μm. F/V ratio: 2.56-2.80.
Rays in two types, 3-5 per mm, uni-(bi-)seriate, up to 2900 μm (= 21 cells) high, heterogeneous, composed of upright and square cells; and multiseriate, 5-7 cells wide, up to 5800 μm (= 125 cells) high, often with uniseriate tails, heterogeneous, composed of _procumbent and square cells in the multiseriate part, and of upright cells at the margins. Multiseriate rays with many sheath cells. Amorphic substance common in the ray cells.
Parenchyma apotracheal in short, wavy, tangential bands, one cell wide, and diffuse, and some scanty paratracheal cells.Strands 4-8 cells.
Amorphic substance in some parenchyma cells.
Fibres non-septate, very thick-walled, lumen ca. 2μm, walls 15(12-18) μm. Pits bordered, on radial and tangential walls, 12-15μm in diameter. Length: 3381-3685(2352-4263) μm. F/V ratio: 2.56-2.80.