Araliaceae

Abstract

Small shrubs to large trees, less commonly lianas or herbs, glabrous or pubescent; mating system hermaphroditic or andromonoecious, rarely dioecious or diphasic; schizogenous secretory canals throughout the plant; plants terrestrial, hemi-epiphytic, or climbing, evergreen or deciduous; stems monocaulous or sparsely to well branched, usually pachycaulous. Leaves alternate (rarely opposite or whorled), frequently heteroblastic; petioles usually present (leaves rarely sessile) and often sheathing at the base, sometimes alate, exstipulate, or with ligulate stipules; blade simple to ternately, palmately or pinnately lobed or compound (or peltate), occasionally bi- or tri-pinnately compound, with entire, crenate, toothed, or incised margins; venation pinnate or palmate. Inflorescences terminal (rarely also axillary or pseudo-lateral), paniculate, compound-umbellate or simple-umbellate, the ultimate units umbellate, capitulate, racemose, spikate, or flowers rarely solitary; inflorescence axes subtended by foliose to minute bracts (or bracts lacking); flowers subtended by bracteoles (or bracteoles lacking). Flowers perfect, staminate, or pistillate, epigynous (rarely half-epigynous or hypogynous), actinomorphic; sepals and petals typically (3–)5(–12); calyx lobes simple and minute or obscure, but often forming a truncate rim; petals valvate or imbricate, free or rarely united, sometimes calyptrate, the bases broadly inserted; stamens isomerous to several/many times the number of petals (3–250+), in one whorl (and then alternipetalous) to many whorls, anthers dorsifixed, introrse, tetrasporangiate (rarely octosporangiate), dehiscing by longitudinal slits; filaments filiform (to short and stout), inflexed in bud; ovary syncarpous of 2–5(–100+) carpels (or unicarpellate through carpel abortion), each carpel unilocular with apical placentation; stigmas on a distinct style or sessile; stylodia distinct or partially to fully connate, sometimes swollen at the base and confluent with the nectariferous disc of the ovary; ovules anatropous, pendulous, one per locule, unitegmic, crassinucellate or rarely tenuinucellate. Fruits simple or sometimes multiple, fleshy (rarely dry), usually drupaceous (rarely baccate) with a fleshy mesocarp and usually separate pyrenes with variously sclerified endocarps around each locule, or rarely a schizocarp with two mericarps, with or without a free carpophore; one or more secretory canals (“companion canals” or “rib oil ducts”) found in association with each vascular strand. Seeds straight; endosperm copious, oily, uniform or variously ruminate; embryo minute but well differentiated.