Kerriodoxa

Kerriodoxa elegans

Kerriodoxa elegans is an endemic species of palm in Thailand. It is the only species of the genus Kerriodoxa.

• 5.1 Notes and references

Features

Kerriodoxa elegans is a palm tree with a very short, erect stem, but can also grow without strain. She is single-stemmed, non-reinforced several times and dioecious flowering getrenntgeschlechtig ( dioecious ). The trunk is covered by the withered leaf bases, can also be smooth with age. Then the closely spaced leaf scars are seen.

The number of chromosomes is not known.

The leaves are divided large and fan-shaped. They dry on the plant. The leaf sheath tears over the petiole and the stem comprises not quite, and is not fibrous. The petiole is distinctly developed, grooved on the upper side, rounded at the bottom, the edges are hard and sharp. The stem surface is densely hairy. Those at the upper leaf surface ( adaxial ) located Hastula is striking the abaxial is not formed.

The leaf blade is along the adaxial ribs periodically cut to approximately one quarter to one third of the blade radius. The segments are simply folded ( induplicat ), narrow and herbaceous. The top is bare except for a hair along the ribs. Abaxial it is occupied by a dense white Indument.

Inflorescences and flowers

The inflorescences appear singly in the leaf axils below the leaves ( infrafoliar ). They appear through a situated on the abaxial side of the leaf sheath their support worksheet column. Male and female inflorescences are structured very differently.

Male inflorescences and flowers

The male inflorescences are strong, branched or four times. The inflorescence is strongly contracted, initially off-white, later brown. The peduncle is short. The cover page is Roehrig and hidden in the leaf sheaths. The inflorescence axis is longer than the stem and carries up to 15 bracts. You are down Roehrig, triangular above, adaxial glabrous, abaxially densely hairy. The first-order lateral branches have grown almost to the approach of the next high blade to the shaft. All axes are densely hairy. The bracts of second and higher order lateral axes are slightly wavy, Roehrig with a triangular free tip. The flower-bearing axes ( Rachillae ) are very slender, somewhat zigzag -shaped and wear -tube high leaves with a wavy margin. Each bears two flowers and a small, triangular Brakteole.

The male flowers are very small, symmetrical, and the heyday of creamy- yellow. The cup has a bottom triangular tube which is densely hairy and three narrow, triangular, keeled, rather bald cloth with a wavy margin. The crown is stalked at the base, triangular with three lobes. The edge and the abaxial sides are papillose. The six stamens are in two circles, the outer ones are free, the inner are fused at the base with one another and with the crown. The stamens are of equal length, the anthers are oval and latrors. A stamp rudiment is missing.

The pollen is ellipsoidal and slightly to strongly asymmetric. The germ is opening a distal sulcus. The longest axis measures 22 to 33 microns.

Female inflorescences and flowers

The female inflorescences are upright and are stronger than the male, and less strongly contracted. They are merely branches twice. The bracts on the stem and axis similar to those of male inflorescences, but are larger. Page axes first and second order effect divided because of the dense pubescence on the axles and the bare bracts. The Rachillae are slightly zigzag. The bracts have short, triangular peaks and a bare rim. Each is wearing a short, hairy spur on which a pair of flower stands. The Brakteoen, when present, hidden by the hair.

The female flowers are larger than the male flower and creamy- yellow. The calyx forms a hairy tube with three short, narrow, triangular, bald cloth. The crown is at the base of stalk -like, densely hairy, ending in three triangular lobes that spread to blossom. The edge of the lobe is somewhat translucent, denticulate or papillose. The six staminodes have long stamens and shallow, empty anthers. The gynoecium is composed of three, rarely four carpels. They are free at the top, and grow together but the middle. Scars are bent and short out. The ovule is where laterally and is anatrop.

Fruit and seeds

The fruit is a, rare zweisamig. Is 5 cm is relatively large, spherical, concave thereby pressed to the base. The development came not to carpels and scar remains are preserved at the base of the ripe fruit. The base of the crown is increased after fertilization. The exocarp is orange - yellow, and covered with pustules. The mesocarp is thick, soft and spongy, the endocarp is thin. The seed sits basal, the endosperm is furrowed shallow. The embryo sits subbasal.

Dissemination and locations

The species is known from only two sites in southern Thailand. It grows in groups in the understory of rather dry evergreen forest on hill slopes between about 100 and 300 m above sea level.

System

The genus Kerriodoxa is placed in the subfamily Coryphoideae, Tribe Chuniophoeniceae within the family Arecaceae. The relationships within the tribe are not clearly understood.

In the World Checklist of Selected Plant Families of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, just the way Kerriodoxa elegans is recognized.

The name honors the collector of Kerriodoxa Thai plant, Arthur Francis George Kerr ( 1877-1942 ). The ending- doxa comes from the Greek and means fame. Genus and species were first described in 1983 by John Dransfield.

Use

From their home any use of the palm tree is known. As an ornamental plant, it is now quite widespread in suitable climates.

Documents

• John Dransfield, Natalie W. Uhl, Conny B. Asmussen, William J. Baker, Madeline M. Harley, Carl E. Lewis: Genera palmarum. The Evolution and Classification of Palms. Second edition, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew 2008, ISBN 978-1-84246-182-2, pp. 290-292.