Myrtaceae, the myrtle family, is a family of dicotyledonous plants placed within the order Myrtales. Myrtle, pōhutukawa, bay rum tree, clove, guava, acca (feijoa), allspice, and eucalyptus are some notable members of this group. All species are woody, contain essential oils, and have flower parts in multiples of four or five. The leaves are evergreen, alternate to mostly opposite, simple, and usually entire. The flowers have a base number of five petals, though in several genera, the petals are minute or absent. The stamens are usually very conspicuous, brightly coloured, and numerous.
The Greater Antilles is a grouping of the larger islands in the Caribbean Sea, including Cuba, Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, and Jamaica, together with Navassa Island and the Cayman Islands. Seven island states share the region of the Greater Antilles, with Haiti and the Dominican Republic sharing the island of Hispaniola. Together with the Lesser Antilles, they make up the Antilles, which along with the Lucayan Archipelago, form the West Indies in the Caribbean region of the Americas.
Psidium is a genus of trees and shrubs in the family Myrtaceae. It is native to warmer parts of the Western Hemisphere. Many of the species bear edible fruits, and for this reason several are cultivated commercially. The most popularly cultivated species is the common guava, Psidium guajava.
Eugenia is a genus of flowering plants in the myrtle family Myrtaceae. It has a worldwide, although highly uneven, distribution in tropical and subtropical regions. The bulk of the approximately 1,100 species occur in the New World tropics, especially in the eastern Brazil's northern Andes, the Caribbean, and the Atlantic Forest. Other centers of diversity include New Caledonia and Madagascar. Many species in the Old World have received a new classification into the genus Syzygium.
Argythamnia is a genus of plants of the family Euphorbiaceae first described as a genus in 1756. They are known commonly as silverbushes.
Plinia is a genus of flowering plants in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae described by Linnaeus in 1753. It is native to Central and South America as well as the West Indies.
Sideroxylon is a genus of trees in the family Sapotaceae described as a genus by Linnaeus in 1753. They are collectively known as bully trees. The generic name is derived from the Greek words σιδηρος (sideros), meaning "iron", and ξύλον (xylon), meaning "wood."
Calycolpus is a genus of the botanical family Myrtaceae, first described as a genus in 1856. It is native to the South America, Central America, and the West Indies.
Aegiphila is a genus of flowering plants in the mint family, Lamiaceae, first described in 1763. It was formerly classified in the Verbenaceae. It is native to Mexico, Central America, South America, the West Indies, and Florida.
Cameraria is a genus of plants in family Apocynaceae, first described for modern science by Linnaeus in 1753. It is native to southern Mexico, Central America, and the West Indies.
The Caribbean bioregion is a biogeographic region that includes the islands of the Caribbean Sea and nearby Atlantic islands, which share a fauna, flora and mycobiota distinct from surrounding bioregions.
Brya is a genus of flowering plants in the legume family, Fabaceae. It includes seven species of shrubs or small spreading trees native to Cuba and Hispaniola in the Caribbean. It belongs to the subfamily Faboideae, and was recently assigned to the informal monophyletic Pterocarpus clade of the Dalbergieae. Species include Brya ebenus, a valuable timber tree.
Citharexylum is a genus of flowering plants in the verbena family, Verbenaceae. It contains shrub and tree species commonly known as fiddlewoods or zitherwoods. They are native to the Americas, ranging from southern Florida and Texas in the United States to Argentina. The highest diversity occurs in Mexico and the Andes. The generic name is derived from the Greek words κιθάρα (kithara), meaning "lyre", and ξύλον (xylon), meaning "wood," referring to the use of the wood in the sounding boards of string instruments. Several species, especially C. caudatum and C. spinosum, are cultivated as ornamentals.
Tetramicra is a genus of flowering plants in the orchid family, Orchidaceae, native to the West Indies. Tetramicra canaliculata has also been reported from southern Florida, but these reports have been challenged. Tetramicra is abbreviated Ttma. in the horticultural trade.
Heterosavia is a genus of the family of Phyllanthaceae first described as a genus in 2008. It is native to the Caribbean and southern Florida. It is found in Bahamas, Cayman Islands, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Florida, Haiti, Jamaica, southwest Caribbean and Turks-Caicos Islands.
Mosiera is a genus of shrubs and small trees in the family Myrtaceae, first described as a genus in 1933. It is native to Mexico, Guatemala, the West Indies, Brazil, and Florida.
Guilandina is a genus of flowering plants in the legume family, Fabaceae. It belongs to the subfamily Caesalpinioideae and tribe Caesalpinieae.
Myrteae is the largest tribe in the plant family Myrtaceae. It includes most of the species of the family that have fleshy fruits.
