Ctenolophonaceae

Abstract

Buttressed trees with simple and stellately tufted hairs on young shoots, stipules, and the outside of sepals and petals. Leaves opposite, petiolate, entire, simple, pinnately veined; stipules interpetiolar, caducous. Inflorescences thyrso-paniculate, axillary or terminal; bracts present, prophylls 0. Flower buds elongate-ellipsoid; flowers hypogynous, bisexual, 5-merous, diplostemonous, regular, hypogynous; sepals basally shortly connate, quincuncially imbricate, subequal, indurate, swollen and persistent in fruit; petals contorted, caducous, spoon-shaped at the base and often shortly clawed; disk well developed, extrastaminal, cup-like; stamens 10, inserted on inner side of the disk and basally connate into an androecial tube, dorsally surrounded by a 10-lobed corona-like tube; antepetalous stamens shorter than antesepalous ones; anthers dorso-versatile, 2-celled, introrse; connective protruding, acute-triangular; gynoecium syncarpous, 2-carpellate; ovary 2-celled; ovules 2 per cell, axile, collateral, pendant, anatropous, epitropous, bitegmic; style simple, apically ± cleft with 2 capitate stigmas; ovary tube joining near its base the androecial tube to form a short androgynophore. Fruit a 1-celled capsule, the woody pericarp eventually splitting lengthwise into 2 valves. Seed solitary, persisting after falling of the pericarp and pendulous from the top of a filiform columella; aril pectinate-fimbriate, surrounding the lower half of the seed; endosperm copious; embryo straight.