Leucaena

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Leucaena

Description

Unarmed shrubs or trees. Leaves bipinnate, not sensitive to the touch, rachis and pinnae usually with extrafloral nectaries; Stipules not spinescent, caducous. Inflorescences composed of pedunculate glomerules, either single or a few axillary, or arranged in terminal racemes. Flowers pentamerous, uniform, male or bisexual. Petals free, valvate. Stamens 10, free, anthers eglandular (hairy in L. leucocephala). Seeds brown, compressed, with areole, wingless, aril absent, endosperm present.

Distribution

Aoutside merica present, Asia-Tropical, tropical America present
About 50 species in tropical America; also Aoutside merica one species, L. leucocephala, is introduced, cultivated and naturalized, amongst others in Malesia, another species, L. pulverulenta (Schldl.) Benth., is rarely cultivated.

Citation

Benth. 1875 – In: Trans. Linn. Soc.: 442
Hutch. 1964 – In: Gen. Fl. Pl.: 281
Benth. & Hook.f. 1865 – In: Gen. Pl.: 463
Taubert 1891 – In: E. & P., Nat. Pflanzenfam. 3: 115