Menodora
| Menodora | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| M. spinescens | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| (unranked): | Asterids |
| Order: | Lamiales |
| Family: | Oleaceae |
| Tribe: | Jasmineae |
| Genus: |
Menodora Humb. and Bonpl. |
| Species | |
|
See text |
|
| Synonyms | |
|
Bolivaria Cham. & Schltdl. |
|
See text
Bolivaria Cham. & Schltdl.
Calyptrospermum A.Dietr.
Menodoropsis (A.Gray) Small
Menodora is a genus of perennial plants and shrubs in the olive family Oleaceae. Its 23 species (as per Green 2003) are found in the temperate Americas and in southern Africa. These are uniform species of deserts and arid grasslands or savannas.
The usually bisexual flowers have a united calyx with 5-10 lobes (rarely more), while the corolla is similarly united but with 4-6 lobes. The corolla is a pretty, bright yellow (except for M. spinescens, whose corollas are white), and is often scented. The fruit is a didymous, bilobed capsule with each globose locule or lobe containing 2-4 seeds. In the majority of species, each locule also features circumscissile dehiscence. Vegetatively, the plants are generally unremarkable, with a "green-stick" look that is common to many desert plants. In the dry seasons, plants may lose their generally small or reduced leaves altogether. Leaf shape within the genus is highly variable, ranging from short and linear to almost feathery and pinnatisect. Leaves are most commonly found arranged in opposite pairs, but in some individuals may be predominantly alternate.
Willis Jepson mistakenly suggested that the origin of the genus name was rather obscure, perhaps deriving from the Greek for "half-moon spear" for the appearance of the dehisced fruit on its pedicel. In reality, the name was specifically derived from the Greek μενος (menos), meaning "force," and Δορον (doron), meaning "gift," referring to the sustenance the plants provided to the horses of Humboldt and Bonpland (1809) when they first encountered the genus in the present state of Hidalgo in Mexico.
Some botanists have suggested based on molecular evidence that Menodora belongs within a broader circumscription of Jasminum. The two genera are closely related, but morphologically Menodora is quite distinct; it is not that Menodora may need to be placed within Jasminum, but that the alternate-leaved yellow-flowered jasmines (Chrysojasminum Banfi) may need to be removed from the circumscription of the larger genus.
...
Wikipedia