Family Cunoniaceae
Synonyms: Baueraceae APNI* Davidiaceae APNI* Eucryphiaceae APNI* Davidsoniaceae APNI*
Description: Trees or shrubs, rarely climbers.
Leaves opposite, rarely whorled or alternate, margins toothed [occasionally entire], simple or compound, often 3-foliolate, sometimes 1-foliolate, pinnate or palmate; stipules usually interpetiolar, occasionally absent, often conspicuous, falling early and leaving distinctive scars between petiole bases.
Inflorescence usually cymose, sometimes flowers in racemes, panicles or clustered in heads, rarely solitary. Flowers actinomorphic, generally bisexual; floral parts hypogynous, perigynous or epigynous. Sepals 4–10, sometimes basally fused and enlarging during fruit formation. Petals absent or 4–10, usually small. Stamens 4–20. Ovary usually superior or rarely half-inferior, 1–5-locular.
Fruit a capsule, a nut or drupaceous.
Distribution and occurrence: World: 29 genera, c. 265 species, Southern Hemisphere, tropical & temperate regions. Australia: 17 genera, about 35 species, Qld, N.S.W., Vic., Tas., S.A. & 1 species SW W.A.
External links:
Angiosperm Phylogeny Website (Family: Cunoniaceae, Order: Oxalidales)
Wikipedia Now considered to include genera previously assigned to separate families Baueraceae, Davidsoniaceae, Eucryphiaceae, e.g. in Flora of NSW (1990). Coachwood, Ceratopetalum apetalum, produces timber that is used extensively in carpentry, cabinet making and flooring. Ceratopetalum gummiferum (Christmas Bush) is cultivated as an ornamental for its reddish calyces in the fruiting stage. Early settlers used Callicoma (Black Wattle) as the framework for their huts onto which clay was plastered; this method of construction was referred to as `wattle and daub'.
Text by G. J. Harden (1990); edited KL Wilson (July 2009) Taxon concept:
| Key to the genera | |
1 | Leaves simple or 1-foliolate, opposite or in apparent whorls of 3 | 2 |
| Leaves compound with 3 or more leaflets or in apparent whorls of 6 | 5 |
2 | Leaves usually in whorls of 3 (rarely more), more or less sessile, petiole less than 2 mm long | Acrophyllum |
| Leaves regularly opposite, petiole more than 10 mm long Back to 1 | 3 |
3 | Flowers in dense globose heads; leaves white- or rusty- tomentose below | Callicoma |
| Flowers in open, much-branched cymes; leaves green, glabrous on both surfaces Back to 2 | 4 |
4 | Calyx lobes enlarging after flowering; fruit dry; leaves 1-foliolate, lamina articulate on petiole | Ceratopetalum |
| Calyx lobes not enlarging; fruit succulent; leaves simple, lamina not articulate on petiole Back to 3 | Schizomeria |
| Leaves alternate; fruit fleshy Back to 1 | Davidsonia |
5 | Leaves opposite, sometimes apparently whorled; fruit dry | 6 |
| Stipules absent (actually 2 sessile 3-foliolate leaves) Back to 5 | Bauera |
6 | Interpetiolar stipules present | 7 |
| Margins of pinnae entire; stipules resinous Back to 6 | Eucryphia |
7 | Margins of pinnae toothed; stipules not resinous | 8 |
8 | Leaflets at least hairy on the veins on the lower surface or hairy domatia present; leaves with 3, 5 or 7 leaflets | 9 |
| Leaflets glabrous on both surfaces, domatia absent; leaves with 3 leaflets Back to 7 | 10 |
9 | Domatia absent; leaves with 3 or 5 leaflets, palmately arranged; inflorescence axillary | Vesselowskya |
| Hairy domatia present; leaves with 3, 5 or 7 leaflets, pinnately arranged; inflorescence terminal Back to 8 | Ackama |
10 | Petiolules more than 5 mm long; stipules 10–20 mm long, strongly curved, 4 at each node | Karrabina |
| Leaflets more or less sessile; stipules less than 5 mm long, triangular to linear, 2 at each node Back to 8 | 11 |
11 | Calyx lobes not enlarging and turning red after flowering; capsule densely woolly-hairy; tree in rainforest north of the Nightcap Ra | Pseudoweinmannia |
| Calyx lobes enlarging and turning reddish after flowering; capsule glabrous; shrub or small tree, not in rainforest, south of Evans Head Back to 10 | Ceratopetalum |
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