Synechanthus | |
---|---|
Synechanthus fibrosus | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Monocots |
Clade: | Commelinids |
Order: | Arecales |
Family: | Arecaceae |
Subfamily: | Arecoideae |
Tribe: | Chamaedoreeae |
Genus: | Synechanthus H. Wendl. [1] |
Species | |
Synechanthus is a monoecious genus of flowering plant in the palm family found in Mexico, Central and South America. Commonly called bola, palmilla, or jelly bean palm, they are closely related to members of Chamaedorea , only distinguished by their flower and fruit form. [2] The Greek genus name is a combination of "united" and "flower". [3]
Synechanthus fibrosus is solitary while S. warscewiczianus is clustering. The trunks of both are slender, rarely more than 2.5 cm wide, growing to 4.5 m tall; usually dark green, they are ringed by white leaf scars. S. warscewiczianus will usually have a dominant main stem with smaller clustering units surrounding it. The pinnate leaf is over a meter long, borne on a 30 cm petiole; the rachis is angled above and rounded below, the leaflets are slightly offset, occasionally twisting, the apical set being widest. [2]
The inflorescence emerges in the leaf crown but sags pendent in fruit, once or twice branched and solitary. The peduncle is long and the prophyll short and tubular, disintegrating into a fibrous mass at the base. There are four to five peduncular bracts, longer than the prophyll, with the distalmost exceeding the peduncle. The rachis is elongated bearing slender rachillae with slender, spinelike tips. The flowers are arranged on the rachillae such that the pistillate members are proximal, with 5 - 13 staminate flowers at the distal end.
The staminate flowers mature from green to yellow, triangular in bud, with three sepals fused into a lobed cupule and three valvate petals. They carry three or six stamens on short, recurved filaments with basifixed, latrose anthers with elliptic, monosulcate pollen and scabrate, tectate exine. The pistillode, when present, is small, ovoid and three lobed. The pistillate flowers are also yellow with three cupped sepals and three longer, imbricate petals. When staminodes are present there are three, joined in a ring; the gynoecum is ovoid, triocular and triovulate. The three stigmas are recurved with elongated, laterally attached ovules. The large fruit is round or slightly egg shaped, maturing to bright red or orange in color, with a fleshy mesocarp and a membranous endocarp. The single seed has homogeneous endosperm and a centrally placed embryo. [2]
Synthechanthus palms are found in Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia and Ecuador. They are rain forest inhabitants, usually confined to the understory, from sea level to 1200 m.
Both are cultivated as ornamentals, requiring rain forest-like conditions to thrive, shade or filtered light, humus-rich, friable soil and copious amounts of quickly-draining water; neither is hardy to cold, requiring protection from freezing temperatures.
Acanthophoenix is a genus of flowering plants in the palm family from the Mascarene Islands in the Indian Ocean, where they are commonly called palmiste rouge. A genus long in flux, three species are currently recognized, though unsustainable levels of harvesting for their edible palm hearts have brought them all to near extinction in habitat. They are closely related to the Tectiphiala and Deckenia genera, differing in the shape of the staminate flower. The name combines the Greek words for "thorn" and "date palm".
Barcella is a monotypic genus of flowering plant in the palm family found in the States of Amazonas and Roraima in northwestern Brazil. The only known species is Barcella odora which is used by the Brazilian peoples in construction and for various thatched goods.
Actinorhytis is a monotypic genus of flowering plant in the palm family found in Oceania and southeast Asia. The lone species, Actinorhytis calapparia is a rain forest inhabitant and has very large fruit. The genus name is from two Greek words meaning 'ray' and 'fold' which describe the endosperm of the seed.
Dictyosperma is a monotypic genus of flowering plant in the palm family found in the Mascarene Islands in the Indian Ocean. The sole species, Dictyosperma album, is widely cultivated in the tropics but has been farmed to near extinction in its native habitat. It is commonly called princess palm or hurricane palm, the latter owing to its ability to withstand strong winds by easily shedding leaves. It is closely related to, and resembles, palms in the genus Archontophoenix. The genus is named from two Greek words meaning "net" and "seed" and the epithet is Latin for "white", the common color of the crownshaft at the top of the trunk.
Cyphokentia macrostachya is a species of palm endemic to New Caledonia.
Lepidorrhachis is a monotypic genus of flowering plant in the palm family restricted to Lord Howe Island. The genus name for the single, monoecious species, Lepidorrhachis mooreana, comes from two Greek word meaning "scale" and "rachis", and the epithet honors Charles Moore, first director of the Sydney Botanical Gardens. The common name is Little Mountain Palm.
Myrialepis is a monotypic genus of flowering plant in the palm family, the single species,Myrialepis paradoxa, native to Southeast Asia. The genus name is a combination of the Greek words meaning "innumerable" and "scale", a description of the fruit, and the epithet is Latin for "paradox".
Ceratolobus is a dioecious genus of flowering plant in the palm family found in Southeast Asia, commonly called rotan. They are only differentiated from close relatives like Korthalsia, Calamus, and Daemonorops by leaf sheath appendages or inflorescence variations. The Greek genus name combines "horn" and "capsule".
Plectocomiopsis is a dioecious genus of flowering plant in the palm family found in Indochina, Malaysia, Borneo and Sumatra. Hapaxanthic and armed with spines, they are a climbing rattan, closely related to the Myrialepis palms. The name is Greek for "similar to Plectocomia", another close relative.
Pogonotium is a dioecious genus of flowering plant in the palm family found in Malaysia and Borneo. Its close relatives are climbing rattans and while partially armed with climbing apparatus, its habit is sprawling and leaning but not effective climbing. The reduced inflorescence nestled between the auricles is unusual and distinguishes it from similar relatives like Calamus, Daemonorops and Ceratolobus. The name is Greek meaning "bearded".
Allagoptera caudescens is a species of flowering plant in the palm family endemic to Brazil, where it is known as buri palm. The name combines the Greek words for "many" and "anther" with the name of another palm genus Cocos, and the epithet is Latin for "bearlike", referring to the hairy tomentum. It was formerly classified as Polyandrococos caudescens, the only species in the genus Polyandrococos.
Ptychococcus is a monoecious genus of flowering plant in the palm family from New Guinea and the Solomon Islands. They are closely related to Ptychosperma, only differentiated by the seed shape and endocarp type. The name is a combination of the Greek for "fold" and the Latin for "berry".
Retispatha is a rare, monotypic genus of flowering plant in the palm family endemic to Borneo, where the sole species, Retispatha dumetosa, is known as wi tebu bruang or "the bear's sugar cane". The name combines Latin and Greek words meaning "network" and "spathe", and the species epithet means "bushy". While classified with other rattans, they retain only superficial climbing organs; they sprawl and lean but are not true climbers.
Sclerosperma is a monoecious genus of flowering plant in the palm family found in Africa where three species are known. Having no obvious relatives, it does resemble the Madagascar native Marojejya though a detailed study of Madagascar's palms is required to determine if any true relationship exists. The lack of relatives, and its interesting qualities, indicate, at one time, the existence of a diverse African palm flora. The name is from two Greek words meaning "hard" and "seed".
Sommieria is a monotypic genus of flowering plant in the palm family endemic to New Guinea where they grow in rain forest understory. The sole species is Sommieria leucophylla. They resemble the Asterogyne palms but are most closely related to those members of Heterospathe with short stems and sparsely branched inlforescences. The name honors Stephen Sommier, European botanist.
Cyphophoenix alba is a species of palm in the family Arecaceae endemic to New Caledonia. It was previously placed in the genus Veillonia.
Solfia is a rare, monotypic genus of flowering plant in the palm family endemic to Samoa, where the only known species is Solfia samoensis.
The Ceroxyloideae are a subfamily of flowering plants in the palm family found mainly in the Americas with an outlying genus in each of Australia, Madagascar, and the Comoros. Recently revised, the former subfamily Phytelephantoideae was reduced to the tribal level and included, while the Hyophorbeae tribe was reassigned to Arecoideae; it now contains eight genera.
Pinanga cattienensis is a species of small palm in the family Arecaceae. It is endemic to Vietnam, having been found in Cat Tien National Park in Đồng Nai Province, growing in seasonally-flooded tropical forest at low elevations.
Geonoma undata is a species of medium-sized palm tree native to North and South America. It grows in the understory of tropical forests at high altitudes. This species has highly variable traits depending on its geographic location and several subspecies exist as a result.