Turraea
Content
Description
Small trees or shrubs.
Leaves simple (pinnate in one African species), entire or (not in Malesia) sometimes sinuate or crenate.
Inflorescences axillary, fasciculate, cymose or paniculate, or flowers solitary (terminal or ramiflorous outside Malesia).
Flowers bisexual, greenish or white.
Petals (3) 4 or 5, free, imbricate or contorted.
Staminal tube cylindrical or rarely (not in Malesia) cyathiform, complete or filaments at least 2/3 united; margin shallowly lobed or entire (not in Malesia) or terminated by simple or bilobed appendages, as many as or twice as many as the anthers; anthers (7–)8–10(–20).
Ovary (3–)4–10(–20)-locular; locules biovulate; style usually expanded near apex forming a ‘receptaculum pollinis’ surmounted by a discoid stigmatic area.
Fruit a (3–)4–10(–20)-valved, loculicidal capsule; locules 1- or 2-seeded.
Seeds plano-convex, raphe-funicular- arillate; embryo embedded in thick endosperm, with rather narrow cotyledons.
Distribution
Africa present, Indomalesia present, Madagascar present, Mascarenes present, extending from India, through Malesia to tropical Australia present
About 30 species in Africa, perhaps 35 in Madagascar and the Mascarenes with one in Indomalesia, extending from India, through Malesia to tropical Australia