Casearia grandiflora Cambess.

  • Authority

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

  • Family

    Salicaceae

  • Scientific Name

    Casearia grandiflora Cambess.

  • Type

    Type. St. Hilaire C 1, nr. 472, Brazil, Minas Gerais, près Caxuerinha, campos, fl (holotype P, fragm F).

  • Synonyms

    Casearia hypoleuca Mart., Casearia grandiflora var. hypoleuca (Mart.) Eichler, Casearia grandiflora var. obtusifolia Eichler, Casearia grandiflora var. pauciflora Eichler, Casearia anavinga Pers.

  • Description

    Species Description - Subshrub, shrub or usually small tree, occasionally up to 15.0 m high; stem up to 12.0 cm diam. Branchlets tawny-tomentellous, finely striate, lenticels sparse or absent. Leaves oblong, sometimes ovate- or lanceolate-oblong, maybe elliptic (such of specimens growing in dry places), apex shortly to longish obtusely or acutely acuminate, rarely obtuse, base generally subinequilateral, attenuate to obtuse on both sides, or rounded on one side only, chartaceous to subcoriaceous, obscurely pellucid-punctate, markedly discolorous in dry specimens, the upper surface glabrous (midrib excepted) and shining, dark green when fresh, brown when dry, the undersurface dull, persistently tawny-tomentellous, crenulate-serrulate, rarely sharply serrate, (4.0-)6.0-10.0(-14.0) cm long, (1.5-)2.0-3.0(-4.5) cm broad, lateral nerves 6-10(-12) pairs, curved-ascending, rather obscure above, prominent beneath, reticulation of veins and veinlets dense, raised beneath though generally obscured by the tawny tomentum initially, becoming more visible with age; petiole tomentellous, (2.0-)3.0-5.0 mm long; stipules linear-lanceolate, 6.0-10.0 mm long, fugacious. Inflorescences axillary, sessile or practically so, fasciculate-glomerate, (3-)6-15(-20)-flowered; bracts suborbicular, connate below, tawny-tomentellous or --serious outside, glabrous inside, 2.0-2.5 mm diam; pedicels articulate close to base, very short, up to 1.0 mm in fruit. Sepals 5, united at base to a short tube, lobes broadly elliptic-oblong, apex rounded, erect at anthesis and remaining so in fruit, white to yellowish or greenish, tawny-tomentellous or -sericeous outside, puberulous inside, 4.0-5.0(-6.0) mm long, 2.0-2.5 mm broad, accrescent to 8.0 by 3.0 mm in fruit, the basal tube becoming costulate by then. Stamens 10; filaments glabrous, alternately 2.0 and 2.5 mm long; anthers didymous, subglobose, 0.5 mm diam, with a dorsal apical barbate gland. Disk-lobes linear-clavate, tomentose-barbate, 1.8-2.0 mm long. Ovary elongately ovoid, glabrous at very base, densely whitish-hairy above and on the gradually attenuate style; stigma capitate. Capsule ovoid-ellipsoid, finely tubercled, apiculate, 5- or 6-angular, subglabrous below, hairy distally, dark red to purplish-blackish, 7.0-8.0 mm long, enclosed by the sepals below, splitting into 3 valves; seeds 3 or 4, oblongoid, ca 2.5 mm long; testa glabrous, minutely reticulate-foveolate; aril small, fimbriate-lacerate.

    Distribution and Ecology - S. Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, in the Guianas, Brazil (southwards to Mato Grosso and São Paulo); in upland forest, gallery forest, forest border with savannah, dry forest transitional to cerrado and cerradão, also in secondary growth, in wet campo on termite mounds; on sandy or clayey soil, rocky hillside, 700-1200(-1800) m alt. Host of Apodanthes caseariae Poiteau (Raffles.).

  • Discussion

    Casearia grandiflora is conceived here in a broad sense. Seen the diversity of habitats mentioned above there exist a number of (probably mainly ecological) varieties or forms: a tree in forest or forest border with chartaceous leaves which bear a tomentum covering the whole undersurface, a treelet or shrub in dry places with more or less open vegetation, in which the leaves are subcoriaceous and their tomentum is restricted to the aereolae, making the reticulation more marked. The type specimen of C. grandiflora from Minas Gerais and other specimens from there belong to this latter xerophytic form. On dry rocky hillsides of the Altiplano do Brasil C. grandiflora is merely a subshrub a few centimeters tall, and the leaves are smaller, more elliptic, the flowers less in number per fascicle. I have abstained to accept the varieties described by Eichler—to which new ones could have been added—as the abundant material now available shows many transitions between them, and makes the distinction of taxonomical varieties or forms meaningless. The same can be observed in other species of Casearia with a similar wide morphological and ecological amplitude, as C. arborea, C. sylvestris, C. commersoniana, and others. Sterile or in bud C. grandiflora is sometimes difficult to distinguish from C. arborea.

  • Distribution

    Panama Central America| Darién Panamá Central America| Colombia South America| Magdalena Colombia South America| Norte de Santander Colombia South America| Cundinamarca Colombia South America| Meta Colombia South America| Vichada Colombia South America| Venezuela South America| Zulia Venezuela South America| Anzoátegui Venezuela South America| Sucre Venezuela South America| Barinas Venezuela South America| Mérida Venezuela South America| Bolívar Venezuela South America| Amazonas Venezuela South America| Guyana South America| Suriname South America| French Guiana South America| Brazil South America| Amazonas Brazil South America| Roraima Brazil South America| Pará Brazil South America| Amapá Brazil South America| Maranhão Brazil South America| Ceará Brazil South America| Pernambuco Brazil South America| Mato Grosso Brazil South America| Goiás Brazil South America| Distrito Federal Brazil South America| Minas Gerais Brazil South America| São Paulo Brazil South America|