Trimenia

Location & distribution maps

Phylogeny & links to associated information

Wikipedia links:       Angiosperms > Basal Angiosperms >  Austrobaileyales > Trimeniaceae > Trimenia

Other links:     

Plant  information

Common name:                ...

Conservation status:  ...

Etymology:   

Flowers:                  

• Inflorescence terminal or axillary, cymose, racemose or paniculate

• Flowers unisexual or bisexual, actinomorphic

• Perianth of 2–38 spirally arranged tepals, the outermost sometimes appearing decussate, grading from ovate to orbicular below to longer, narrower and spathulate above

• Stamens 6–25, spirally arranged; connective prolonged at apex; anthers dehiscing by 2 longitudinal slits

• Carpels solitary (rarely 2), superior, rudimentary or absent in male flowers; ovule solitary, pendulous, anatropous; stigma sessile, tufted-papillose

Fruit:                         

• Fruit fleshy, small, spherical. Seed stony, smooth or ridged; embryo small, apical; endosperm abundant

Leaves:         

• Leaves opposite, simple, petiolate, exstipulate, with numerous small oil dots

Stem & branches: 

Roots:         

Habit:        

• Small polygamous, monoecious or dioecious trees, shrubs or lianes, the younger parts often with small, simple hairs

Habitat:   

Distribution:                  

•  From Malaysia to the southwest Pacific; 1 species in Australia

Species:                     

• World:            5

• Australia:      1

Additional notes:     

• Taxonomic Notes

  • The Trimeniaceae, or its constituent genera, have been placed in the Monimiaceae by workers including Bentham (1870) and Perkins & Gilg (1901)

  • However, a detailed study by Money et al. (1950) firmly established the group as distinct from the Monimiaceae, in both morphological and anatomical characters

  • In the past Trimenia (with 3 species) and Piptocalyx (with 2 species) have both been accepted in the Trimeniaceae

  • Detailed studies by Endress & Sampson (1983) indicated that only habit (climbing in Piptocalyx and shrubby in Trimenia) and the number of tepals (less than 11 in Piptocalyx and more in Trimenia) were consistent in distinguishing between the two genera

  • They concluded that these differences were not large, but decided to maintain the two genera so as to avoid nomenclatural changes

  • Subsequently, Philipson (1986) transferred the two species of Piptocalyx to Trimenia

  • Philipson has been followed in this treatment

Sources of information:

• https://profiles.ala.org.au/opus/foa/profile/Trimeniaceae (Feb 2024)