Family Sarcospermataceae

Sarcospermataceae H.J. Lam

Alternatively Sarcospermaceae~ Sapotaceae

Including Peroniaceae Dostál

Habit and leaf form. Trees, or shrubs; laticiferous, or non-laticiferous and without coloured juice. Leaves opposite to whorled (opposite to subopposite, rarely subverticillate); leathery; petiolate (the petiole sometimes with a terminal pair of stipel-like appendages); not gland-dotted; simple. Lamina entire; pinnately veined (often with large pits in the axils of the main nerves); cross-venulate. Leaves stipulate. Stipules intrapetiolar; free of one another; small, caducous. Lamina margins entire.

Stem anatomy. Cortical bundles absent. Medullary bundles absent. Internal phloem absent. Secondary thickening developing from a conventional cambial ring. ‘Included’ phloem absent. Xylem with fibre tracheids. Vessel end-walls simple.

Reproductive type, pollination. Plants hermaphrodite.

Inflorescence, floral, fruit and seed morphology. Flowers aggregated in ‘inflorescences’; in racemes, or in panicles. Inflorescences axillary; axillary panicles or racemes. Flowers bracteate (the bracts minute, deltoid); small; regular; 5 merous; cyclic; pentacyclic. Free hypanthium absent. Hypogynous disk absent.

Perianth with distinct calyx and corolla; 10; 2 whorled; isomerous. Calyx 5; 1 whorled; polysepalous; regular; imbricate. Corolla 5; 1 whorled; gamopetalous (with a short tube); imbricate (the lobes spreading, rounded); regular.

Androecium 10. Androecial members adnate (to the corolla tube); markedly unequal; free of one another; 2 whorled. Androecium including staminodes. Staminodes 5; external to the fertile stamens (the outer whorl); non-petaloid (consisting of antherless filaments). Stamens 5; isomerous with the perianth; alternisepalous; opposite the corolla members; shortly filantherous. Anthers basifixed; non-versatile; dehiscing via longitudinal slits; latrorse to extrorse; bilocular. Pollen grains aperturate; 4 aperturate; colporate.

Gynoecium 1–2 carpelled. Carpels reduced in number relative to the perianth. The pistil 1–2 celled. Gynoecium syncarpous; eu-syncarpous; superior. Ovary 1–2 locular; sessile. Gynoecium stylate. Styles 1 (short and stout); attenuate from the ovary; apical. Stigmas 1; simple; truncate. Placentation when unilocular, basal to parietal; when bilocular, basal to axile. Ovules in the single cavity 1; 1 per locule; funicled; ascending; apotropous; anatropous.

Fruit fleshy; indehiscent; a drupe (ovoid to oblong, slightly bilobed); 1–2 seeded. Seeds non-endospermic. Embryo well differentiated. Cotyledons 2 (thick).

Seedling. Germination phanerocotylar.

Geography, cytology. Paleotropical. Tropical. Southeast Asia and Malaysia.

Taxonomy. Subclass Dicotyledonae; Tenuinucelli (? - being gamopetalous!). Dahlgren’s Superorder Primuliflorae; Ebenales. Cronquist’s Subclass Dilleniidae; Ebenales. APG 3 core angiosperms; core eudicot; Superorder Asteranae; Order Ericales (as a synonym of Sapotaceae).

Species 6. Genera 1; only genus, Sarcosperma.

Inadequate description.