Azara Ruiz & Pav.

  • Authority

    Sleumer, Hermann O. 1980. Flacourtiaceae. Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 22: 1-499. (Published by NYBG Press)

  • Family

    Salicaceae

  • Scientific Name

    Azara Ruiz & Pav.

  • Type

    Lectotype species. Azara serrata Ruiz & Pavon (cf Sleumer, Lilloa 26: 28. 1953).

  • Synonyms

    Arechavaletaia

  • Description

    Description - Shrubs or small trees; wood with a bitter taste. Leaves (sub)persistent, becoming blackish when dry, alternate, entire or glandular-dentate or -serrate, penninerved, petiolate, at the base often with 1 or 2 accessory, generally much smaller, stipule-like, sometimes caducous leaf or leaves; stipules very narrow, caducous. Flowers [male and female], or andromonoecious (possibly androdioecious), protogynous, small, sometimes fragrant, collected in axillary peduncled (sometimes spike-like) racemes, or (sometimes umbelliform) corymbs or fascicles; pedicels subtended by several small squamiform bracts. Calyx lobes or sepals 4 or 5 (rarely 6), valvate at base, subimbricate distally, persistent. Petals 0. Stamens exserted, indefinite in number (rarely 4-10, mostly 20 or more), inserted on a receptacle in several hardly distinct rows, the outer row(s) sometimes sterile (no anthers); filaments very slender; anthers small, extrorse, broadly transversely elliptic or subglobose, basifixed, longitudinally dehiscent. Disk consisting of squamular episepalous glands or lobes, of the number of the sepals or more, free, approximate or almost connate, either extra-staminal, or interstaminal, i e between the sterile and fertile stamens, or sometimes wanting. Ovary superior (much reduced in the [male] flowers), unilocular, glabrous, with 3 (rarely 2 or 4) parietal multi-ovulate placentas; ovules anatropous; style simple, filiform; stigma obtuse or sometimes 3-lobulate. Berry subglobose; pericarp thin-fleshy; seeds few to numerous, ovoid-polyhedric; testa minutely impressed-punctate; endosperm copious.

  • Distribution

    The genus contains 8 ssp in temperate Chile and adjacent Argentina, and 2 spp in (sub)tropical NW Argentina, SE Bolivia and SE Brazil.

    Chile South America| Argentina South America| Bolivia South America| Brazil South America|