''Cephalanthus'' is a
genus of
flowering plants in the
family Rubiaceae. There are about six species that are commonly known as buttonbush.
[The Plant List, ''Cephalanthus''](_blank)
/ref>[Flora of China, ''Cephalanthus'']
/ref>
Description
They are shrub
A shrub (often also called a bush) is a small-to-medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees ...
s or small trees growing to tall. The leaves
A leaf (plural, : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant plant stem, stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", wh ...
are simple, arranged in opposite pairs or whorls of three. The flowers form a dense globular inflorescence.
Distribution and habitat
''Cephalanthus occidentalis'' is native to the eastern United States and Canada. The others occur in tropical regions of the Americas
The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World.
Along with th ...
, Africa and Asia.[Huxley AJ et al. (eds.) ''The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening.'' The Macmillan Press Limited, London; The Stockton Press, New York. 1992. ]
Systematics
''Cephalanthus'' was named by Linnaeus in ''Species Plantarum
' (Latin for "The Species of Plants") is a book by Carl Linnaeus, originally published in 1753, which lists every species of plant known at the time, classified into genera. It is the first work to consistently apply binomial names and was the ...
'' in 1753.[Linnaeus, C]
''Cephalanthus''
''Species Plantarum''. 1753. 1: 95 The generic name is derived
Derive may refer to:
* Derive (computer algebra system), a commercial system made by Texas Instruments
* ''Dérive'' (magazine), an Austrian science magazine on urbanism
*Dérive, a psychogeographical concept
See also
*
*Derivation (disambiguatio ...
from the Ancient Greek words κέφαλη (''kephale''), meaning "head", and ἄνθος (''anthos''), meaning "flower".
Taxonomy
''Cephalanthus'' is the most basal
Basal or basilar is a term meaning ''base'', ''bottom'', or ''minimum''.
Science
* Basal (anatomy), an anatomical term of location for features associated with the base of an organism or structure
* Basal (medicine), a minimal level that is nec ...
genus in the tribe Naucleeae.[Manns, U. and B. Bremer. 2010]
Towards a better understanding of intertribal relationships and stable tribal delimitations within Cinchonoideae s.s. (Rubiaceae).
''Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution'' 56(1), 21-39. Some authors have segregated it into its own monotypic tribe.
Species
*''Cephalanthus angustifolius
''Cephalanthus'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. There are about six species that are commonly known as buttonbush.
Description
They are shrubs or small trees growing to tall. The leaves are simple, arranged in oppo ...
'' Lour. - Laos
Laos (, ''Lāo'' )), officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic ( Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ, French: République démocratique populaire lao), is a socialist ...
, Cambodia, Vietnam
*''Cephalanthus glabratus
''Cephalanthus glabratus'' is a species of flowering plant in the coffee family, Rubiaceae, that is native to South America. A common local name is sarandí colorado.
It was described by (Spreng.) K.Schum. and published in ''Flora Brasiliensis 6 ...
'' ( Spreng.) K.Schum. - ''sarandí'' - Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay
*'' Cephalanthus natalensis'' Oliv. - Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, Lesotho
Lesotho ( ), officially the Kingdom of Lesotho, is a country landlocked country, landlocked as an Enclave and exclave, enclave in South Africa. It is situated in the Maloti Mountains and contains the Thabana Ntlenyana, highest mountains in Sou ...
, Swaziland
Eswatini ( ; ss, eSwatini ), officially the Kingdom of Eswatini and formerly named Swaziland ( ; officially renamed in 2018), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. It is bordered by Mozambique to its northeast and South Africa to its no ...
, South Africa
*'' Cephalanthus occidentalis'' L. - button-willow, common buttonbush, honey-bells - Cuba, eastern Canada, eastern, central and southern United States, California, Arizona, New Mexico
*'' Cephalanthus salicifolius'' Humb.
Friedrich Wilhelm Heinrich Alexander von Humboldt (14 September 17696 May 1859) was a German polymath, geographer, naturalist, explorer, and proponent of Romantic philosophy and science. He was the younger brother of the Prussian minister, p ...
& Bonpl. - Mexican buttonbush, willowleaf buttonbush - Mexico, Honduras
Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. The republic of Honduras is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Oce ...
, extreme southern tip of Texas
*'' Cephalanthus tetrandra'' ( Roxb.) Ridsdale & Bakh.f. - tropical Asia from India to China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
and Thailand
Fossil record
16 fossil mericarp
A schizocarp is a dry fruit that, when mature, splits up into mericarps.
There are different definitions:
* Any dry fruit composed of multiple carpels that separate.
: Under this definition the mericarps can contain one or more seeds (the m ...
s of †''Chephalanthus pusillus'' have been described from middle Miocene
The Middle Miocene is a sub-epoch of the Miocene Epoch made up of two stages: the Langhian and Serravallian stages. The Middle Miocene is preceded by the Early Miocene.
The sub-epoch lasted from 15.97 ± 0.05 Ma to 11.608 ± 0.005 Ma (million y ...
strata
In geology and related fields, a stratum ( : strata) is a layer of rock or sediment characterized by certain lithologic properties or attributes that distinguish it from adjacent layers from which it is separated by visible surfaces known as ei ...
of the Fasterholt area near Silkeborg in Central Jutland, Denmark.[Angiosperm Fruits and Seeds from the Middle Miocene of Jutland (Denmark) by Else Marie Friis, The Royal Danish Academy of Sciences and Letters 24:3, 1985]
References
External links
Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families, ''Cephalanthus''USDA PLANTS, ''Cephalanthus''Flora of Taiwan, ''Cephalanthus''
{{Taxonbar, from=Q3245386
Rubiaceae genera
Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus