Brachychiton acerifolium

• Overview
• Common Names
• Description
• Taxonomy
• Similar Species
• More Info
• Further Reading
• Notes

Overview

Large tree from Australia with maple-like leaves and large clusters of tubular scarlet flowers that usually appear during the leafless season . The bark yields useful fibers and gum.

Common Names

Description

Family Sterculiaceae

Trees or shrubs , rarely herbs or liana; young growth usually stellately hairy ; bark mucilaginous and rich in fibers. Leaves alternate; stipules usually present caducous ; leaf blade simple , rarely palmately compound , entire, serrate, or parted . Inflorescence axillary or rarely terminal , paniculate , corymbose , racemose, or cymose , rarely solitary. Flowers unisexual , bisexual or polygamous. Sepals (3-) 5, ± connate , rarely free , valvate . Petals 5 or lacking, free or adnate to base of androecium, convolutely imbricate. Androgynophore usually present; filaments usually connate into a single tube ; staminodes 5, tonguelike or filiform , opposite to sepals, sometimes lacking; anthers 2-celled, longitudinally dehiscent . Pistil consisting of 2-5(or 10-12) ± connate carpels, or a single carpel; ovary superior, 2-5(or 10-12) -loculed; ovules 2 or more per locule; style 1 or as many as carpels. Fruit usually a capsule or follicle, dehiscent or indehiscent, very rarely a berry or nut. Seeds with abundant endosperm or endosperm lacking; embryo straight or curved .

About 68 genera and ca. 1100 species: tropics and subtropics of both hemispheres, a few in temperate regions ; 19 genera (two introduced ) and 90 species (39 endemic, three introduced) in China.

The Chinese genera fit into four distinct clades which can be treated as subfamilies of an enlarged Malvaceae or as distinct families. These are Sterculioideae/Sterculiaceae s.s. (genera 1-4), Helicteroideae/Helicteraceae (genera 5 and 6), Byttnerioideae/Byttneriaceae (genera 7-13), and Dombeyoideae/Pentapetaceae (genera 14-19) .[1]

Taxonomy

Notes

Publishing author : F.Muell. Publication : Fragm. (Mueller) i. 1

Similar Species

Members of the genus Brachychiton

ZipcodeZoo has pages for 86 species, subspecies, varieties, forms, and cultivars in this genus:

B. acerifolium (Flame Tree) · B. acerifolius (Flame Kurrajong (Aust)) · B. acerifolius var. gregorii · B. acuminatus · B. albidus · B. allochrous · B. australis (Large-Leaved Kurrajong (Aust)) · B. australis var. incanus · B. australis var. typicum · B. bidwilli · B. bidwillii (Little Kurrajong (Aust)) · B. carneus · B. carruthersii · B. chillagoensis · B. collinus · B. compactus · B. delabechei · B. discolor (Brush Kurrajong (Aust)) · B. diversifolia · B. diversifolium · B. diversifolium orientalis · B. diversifolius · B. diversifolius orientalis · B. diversifolius subsp. diversifolius · B. diversifolius subsp. orientalis · B. diversifolius var. caudatus · B. diversifolius var. muelleri · B. exellens · B. fitzgeraldianus · B. garrawayae · B. grandiflorus · B. gregorii (Desert Kurrajong) · B. 'Griffith Pink' · B. hirtellus · B. incanum · B. incanus · B. incarnatus · B. 'Jerilderie Red' · B. luridum · B. luridus · B. 'Majestic Beauty' (Flame Tree) · B. megaphyllus · B. muellerianus · B. multicaulis · B. obtusilobus · B. paradoxum · B. paradoxus (Red-Flowered Kurrajong) · B. paradoxus var. bidwillii · B. paradoxus var. discolor · B. paradoxus var. luridus · B. paradoxus var. paradoxus · B. paradoxus var. pubescens · B. platanoides · B. populnea · B. populnea-acerifolium · B. populneum (Whiteflower Kurrajong) · B. populneus (White-Flower Kurrajong (Aust)) · B. populneus populneus (Whiteflower Kurrajong) · B. populneus subsp. populneus · B. populneus subsp. trilobus · B. populneus trilobus · B. populneus var. occidentalis · B. pubescens · B. ramiflorum · B. ramiflorus · B. roseus · B. rupestris (Queensland Bottle Tree) · B. spectabilis · B. trichosiphon · B. tridentatus · B. tuberculatus (Meayacka (Aust)) · B. velutinosum · B. velutinosus (Brush Kurrajong) · B. vinicolor · B. viridiflorus · B. viscidulus · B. vitifolius · B. xanthophyllus · B. × excellens · B. x excellens 'Noel's Surprise' · B. × hirtellus · B. × hybridus · B. × roseus · B. × turgidulus · B. roseus · B. vinicolor

More Info

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Further Reading

• Hsue Hsiang-hao. 1984. Sterculiaceae. In: Feng Kuo-mei, ed., Fl. Reipubl. Popularis Sin. 49(2): 112-189.

Notes

Contributors

• Brands, S.J. (comp.) 1989-2006. Systema Naturae 2000. The Taxonomicon. Universal Taxonomic Services, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Accessed October 30, 2006.
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Accessed March 17, 2008. http://www.gbif.org Mediated distribution data from 2 providers.
• The International Plant Names Index. Accessed Jan 19, 2007.

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal March 17, 2008:

• GBIF-Spain: Dirección General de Investigación, Desarrollo Tecnológico e Innovación de la Junta de Extremadura(DGIDTI): HSS

Identifiers

• Biodiversity Heritage Library NamebankID: 10804108
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility Taxonkey: 15868059
• Globally Unique Identifier: urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:822254-1
• International Plant Names Index (IPNI) ID: 822254-1
• Zipcode Zoo Species Identifier: 606506

Footnotes

1. Ya Tang, Michael G. Gilbert & Laurence J. Dorr "Sterculiaceae". in Flora of China Vol. 12 Page 240, 264,299, 302. Published by Science Press (Beijing) and Missouri Botanical Garden Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]

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