Columelliaceae

Illustration of Desfontainia spinosa.

The Columelliaceae are a plant family in the order of Bruniales. The species of this family are found in the Andes Mountains in Costa Rica and western South America. The family includes only (one or ) two genera only (four to ) six types.

• 4.1 External links

Description

They grow as evergreen trees or shrubs. The against-constant leaves are simple. The leaf margins of Columellia species are smooth or serrated, and the leaf blade is clearly asymmetrical. The leaf margins of Desfontainia spinosa are thorny and so its leaves resemble those of the holly (Ilex ). Stipules absent.

The flowers are borne singly or in few -terminated, zymösen inflorescences. The hermaphrodite, zygomorphic flowers are more or less ( four to eight ) usually fünfzählig. The (four to eight) usually five sepals only overlap or are fused. The (four to eight) usually five petals are fused Roehrig with only a short corolla tube and significantly longer Kronlappen. The color of the petals is yellow in Columellia - types and scarlet at Desfontainia spinosa. There is only one stamen circle exists; the inner is missing. In Columellia species only two mutually free, clearly unequal, fertile stamens are present, they are adherent to the base of the petals. In Desfontainia spinosa five each other free, fertile stamens are present. In Columellia types of two carpels are fused to an inferior ovary. In Desfontainia spinosa three to five carpels are fused into a superior ovaries. There are many ovules exist.

In Columellia types of capsule fruits are formed. In Desfontainia spinosa a fleshy, white to yellow berry is formed on which a cup is still clearly visible.

System

The position of the Columelliaceae family has long been controversial. So it was put to the Rosales ( Cronquist 1981) or to the Hydrangeales ( Takhtajan 1997). Desfontainia spinosa has been classified by some authors in their own family Desfontainiaceae or in the family of the Loganiaceae. Supported by molecular genetic studies, both of which were united in the third version of the Nomenclature of the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group.

The Columelliaceae family includes two genera with only a few ways:

• Ruíz & Pavón Columellia: Types With four to five. The wood is used for furniture, for example.
• Ruíz & Pavón Desfontainia, with only one type: Desfontainia spinosa Ruiz et Pav

Swell

• Columelliaceae on the APWebsite - Angiosperm Phylogeny Website.
• Columelliaceae at DELTA by L. Watson & MJ Dallwitz