Myrceugenia ovata (Hook. & Arn.) O.Berg

• Authority

  Landrum, Leslie R. 1981. A monograph of the genus Myrceugenia (Myrtaceae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 29: 1-137. (Published by NYBG Press)

• Family

  Myrtaceae

• Scientific Name

  Myrceugenia ovata (Hook. & Arn.) O.Berg

• Synonyms

  Eugenia ovata Hook. & Arn.

• Description

  Species Description - Shrub or small tree up to ca. 8 m high; hairs whitish to reddish-brown, a mixture of simple and dibrachiate; twigs glabrous to densely pubescent when young, glabrescent with age, the young bark smooth, grey or light brown; leaves glabrous to sparsely pubescent beneath, entirely glabrous to puberulent along the midvein above, narrowly to broadly elliptic, ovate or obovate, 0.5-7.5 cm long, 0.2-3 cm wide, 1.2-3.5(-4) times as long as wide; apex acuminate, acute, obtuse or less often rounded; base acuminate, acute, cuneate or truncate; petiole channeled, densely to sparsely pubescent, 1-5 mm long, 0.5-1 mm thick; midvein impressed for entire length or only proximally above, moderately prominent below; lateral veins indistinguishable or up to ca. 10 pairs faintly visible; marginal veins equalling laterals in prominence; blades grey-green, reddish-brown, or yellow-green above, lighter below, coriaceous to submembranous, the upper surface dull or lustrous; peduncles uniflorous, flattened, 0.2-2.5 cm long, 0.2-0.5 mm wide, densely pubescent to glabrous, solitary or in pairs in the axils of leaves or bracts; bracteoles ovate to lanceolate, 0.5-1.8 mm long, 0.3-1 mm wide, 1.2-3.8 times as long as wide, sparsely pubescent to glabrous within and without, subcoriaceous to membranous, clasping the hypanthium; Calyx-lobes triangular to ovate, 0.8-2.5(-3) mm long and wide, 0.7-1.4 times as long as wide, sparsely pubescent to glabrous within and without, subcoriaceous to membranous, concave; hypanthium densely pubescent, obconic, 0.8-2(-2.5) mm long, the sides straight or slightly convex; disk ca. 1-2.5 mm across, sparsely pubescent; style 4-8 mm long, sparsely pubescent to glabrous; stamens 40-125, 3-8 mm long; anthers 0.2-0.4 mm long when dry; petals glabrous, suborbicular, 1.5-4 mm in diam.; ovary 2-4-locular; ovules 2-11 per locule; fruit globose, ca. 4-7 mm in diam., orange to purple-black, few seeded, the seeds oblong, ca. 3-5 mm long.

• Discussion

  Myrceugenia ovata as circumscribed here is an inclusive species with both eastern and western populations. In general, specimens from eastern and western South America are distinguishable from each other but perhaps 10% of the time one cannot be sure on morphological grounds, from which side of South America a specimen has come. Therefore both populations have been united under one name.

  In western South America there are two fairly well marked varieties, one restricted to the Chilean coastal cordillera and coast (Myrceugenia ovata var. ovata) and the other found mainly in the Andes (M. ovata var. nannophylla). Both are found on the island of Chiloe where they possibly act as separate species, but towards the north in Linares and Ñuble, intermediate plants are found that Kausel interpreted as a third species, M. valientei. These northern populations are also those which are most similar to one of the Brazilian varieties, M. ovata var. gracilis. Perhaps as M. ovata migrated southward in western South America after the Pleistocene glaciation it developed into coastal and Andean races which are now meeting in Chiloe. Further investigation of the breeding relationships of those two Chilean varieties would be interesting.
  In eastern South America Myrceugenia ovata has developed two varieties, one of which, M. ovata var. acutata may be of hybrid origin. This possibility is considered in more detail in the discussion of M. glaucescens.