Grewia tiliaefolia flowers & leaves in Hyderabad W2 IMG 9422

''Grewia'' is a large

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

in the mallow

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Malvaceae Malvaceae, or the mallows, is a family of flowering plants estimated to contain 244 genera with 4225 known species. Well-known members of economic importance include okra, cotton, cacao and durian. There are also some genera containing familiar ...

, in the expanded sense as proposed by the

Angiosperm Phylogeny Group The Angiosperm Phylogeny Group (APG) is an informal international group of systematic botanists who collaborate to establish a consensus on the taxonomy of flowering plants (angiosperms) that reflects new knowledge about plant relationships disc ...

. Formerly, Grewia was placed in either the family

Tiliaceae Tiliaceae () is a family of flowering plants. It is not a part of the APG, APG II and APG III classifications, being sunk in Malvaceae mostly as the subfamilies Tilioideae, Brownlowioideae and Grewioideae, but has an extensive historical record o ...

or the

Sparrmanniaceae Sparrmanniaceae is a segregate, probably obsolete, plant family, containing plants which have more commonly been classified in Malvaceae or Tiliaceae. In the most recent proposed circumscription, that of Cheek ex Heywood et al., it corresponds t ...

. However, these were both not

monophyletic In cladistics for a group of organisms, monophyly is the condition of being a clade—that is, a group of taxa composed only of a common ancestor (or more precisely an ancestral population) and all of its lineal descendants. Monophyletic gro ...

with respect to other

Malvales The Malvales are an order of flowering plants. As circumscribed by APG II-system, the order includes about 6000 species within 9 families. The order is placed in the eurosids II, which are part of the eudicots. The plants are mostly shrubs and ...

- as already indicated by the uncertainties surrounding placement of ''Grewia'' and similar genera - and have thus been merged into the

. Together with the bulk of the former

, ''Grewia'' is in the

subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end subfamily botanical names with "-oideae", and zoologi ...

Grewioideae Grewioideae is a subfamily of the family Malvaceae and was first described by Hochreutiner. The group is named after its type genus, '' Grewia'', which is named for the English scientist Nehemiah Grew (1641-1712). It contains a number of gener ...

and therein the

tribe The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide usage of the term in English language, English is in the discipline of anthropology. This definition is contested, in p ...

Grewieae, of which it is the

type genus In biological taxonomy, the type genus is the genus which defines a biological family and the root of the family name. Zoological nomenclature According to the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, "The name-bearing type of a nominal f ...

. The genus was named by

Carl Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (; 23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after his ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné Blunt (2004), p. 171. (), was a Swedish botanist, zoologist, taxonomist, and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the ...

, in honor of the botanist

Nehemiah Grew Nehemiah Grew (26 September 164125 March 1712) was an English plant anatomist and physiologist, known as the "Father of Plant Anatomy". Biography Grew was the only son of Obadiah Grew (1607–1688), Nonconformist divine and vicar of St Mic ...

(1641-1712) from England. Grew was one of the leading plant

anatomist Anatomy () is the branch of biology concerned with the study of the structure of organisms and their parts. Anatomy is a branch of natural science that deals with the structural organization of living things. It is an old science, having its ...

s and

microscope A microscope () is a laboratory instrument used to examine objects that are too small to be seen by the naked eye. Microscopy is the science of investigating small objects and structures using a microscope. Microscopic means being invisibl ...

researchers of his time, and his study of

pollen Pollen is a powdery substance produced by seed plants. It consists of pollen grains (highly reduced microgametophytes), which produce male gametes (sperm cells). Pollen grains have a hard coat made of sporopollenin that protects the gametophyt ...

laid the groundwork for modern-day

palynology Palynology is the "study of dust" (from grc-gre, παλύνω, palynō, "strew, sprinkle" and '' -logy'') or of "particles that are strewn". A classic palynologist analyses particulate samples collected from the air, from water, or from deposit ...

Ecology and uses

Several

Lepidoptera Lepidoptera ( ) is an order (biology), order of insects that includes butterfly, butterflies and moths (both are called lepidopterans). About 180,000 species of the Lepidoptera are described, in 126 Family (biology), families and 46 Taxonomic r ...

caterpillar Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths). As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder Sym ...

s are found to feed on ''Grewia'' species. These include the

common nawab ''Polyura athamas'', the common nawab, is a species of fast-flying canopy butterfly found in tropical Asia. It belongs to the Charaxinae (rajahs and nawabs) in the brush-footed butterfly family (Nymphalidae). It occurs in the Himalayas from Kas ...

(''Polyura athamas'') and the swift moth ''

Endoclita malabaricus ''Endoclita malabaricus'' is a species of moth of the family Hepialidae. It is known from India. Food plants for this species include ''Acacia'', ''Ailanthus'', ''Albizia'', ''Bridelia'', '' Cajanus'', ''Callicarpa'', ''Camellia'', '' Cassia'', ' ...

''. The Bucculatricidae

leaf miner A leaf miner is any one of numerous species of insects in which the larval stage lives in, and eats, the leaf tissue of plants. The vast majority of leaf-mining insects are moths ( Lepidoptera), sawflies ( Symphyta, the mother clade of wasp ...

'' Bucculatrix epibathra'' is apparently only found on '' G. tiliaefolia''. The

parasitic wasp Parasitoid wasps are a large group of hymenopteran superfamilies, with all but the wood wasps (Orussoidea) being in the wasp-waisted Apocrita. As parasitoids, they lay their eggs on or in the bodies of other arthropods, sooner or later causi ...

Aprostocetus psyllidis ''Aprostocetus'' is a genus of hymenopteran insects of the family Eulophidae. The genus was erected by John O. Westwood in 1833. This very large group (about 800 described species) of parasitoid wasps has a global distribution. Species Widesp ...

'' of the

Eulophidae The Eulophidae are a large family of hymenopteran insects, with over 4,300 described species in some 300 genera. The family includes the genus '' Elasmus'', which used to be treated as a separate family, "Elasmidae", and is now treated as a s ...

occurs on and around

phalsa ''Grewia asiatica'', commonly known as phalsa or falsa,Flora of Indi''Grewia asiatica''/ref> is a species of flowering plant in the mallow family Malvaceae. It was first found in Varanasi, India, and was taken by Buddhist scholars to other Asian ...

(''G. asiatica''). Its larvae are

parasitoid In evolutionary ecology, a parasitoid is an organism that lives in close association with its host (biology), host at the host's expense, eventually resulting in the death of the host. Parasitoidism is one of six major evolutionarily stable str ...

s of other insects - possibly pests of the plant, but this is not known for sure. Several species, namely phalsa, are known for their edible fruit, which are of local commercial importance. The

astringent An astringent (sometimes called adstringent) is a chemical that shrinks or constricts body tissues. The word derives from the Latin ''adstringere'', which means "to bind fast". Calamine lotion, witch hazel, and yerba mansa, a Californian plant ...

and refreshing ''Grewia''

drupe In botany, a drupe (or stone fruit) is an indehiscent fruit in which an outer fleshy part (exocarp, or skin, and mesocarp, or flesh) surrounds a single shell (the ''pit'', ''stone'', or '' pyrena'') of hardened endocarp with a seed (''kernel'') ...

s are particularly popular in summertime.

Folk medicine Traditional medicine (also known as indigenous medicine or folk medicine) comprises medical aspects of traditional knowledge that developed over generations within the folk beliefs of various societies, including indigenous peoples, before the ...

makes use of some species, which are reputed to cure upset stomachs and some skin and intestinal infections, and seem to have mild

antibiotic An antibiotic is a type of antimicrobial substance active against bacteria. It is the most important type of antibacterial agent for fighting bacterial infections, and antibiotic medications are widely used in the treatment and prevention of ...

properties. '' G. mollis'' is reputed to contain

β-carboline β-Carboline (9''H''-Pyridine, pyrido ,4-''b''ndole) represents the basic chemical structure for more than one hundred alkaloids and synthetic compounds. The effects of these substances depend on their respective substituent. Natural β-carbo ...

alkaloid Alkaloids are a class of basic, naturally occurring organic compounds that contain at least one nitrogen atom. This group also includes some related compounds with neutral and even weakly acidic properties. Some synthetic compounds of similar ...

s, though whether such compounds occur in other species too and whether they are produced in quantities to render the plants

psychoactive A psychoactive drug, psychopharmaceutical, psychoactive agent or psychotropic drug is a chemical substance, that changes functions of the nervous system, and results in alterations in perception, mood, consciousness, cognition or behavior. Th ...

has not been thoroughly studied. In

Myanmar Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...

, the bark of the ''Grewia'' tree is mixed with the soapy '' kinpun'' (''Senegalia rugata'') fruit and sometimes

lime Lime commonly refers to: * Lime (fruit), a green citrus fruit * Lime (material), inorganic materials containing calcium, usually calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide * Lime (color), a color between yellow and green Lime may also refer to: Botany ...

to make the traditional shampoo ''

tayaw kinpun ''Tayaw kinpun'' ( my, တရော် ကင်ပွန်း, ; also transliterated ''tayaw kinmun'' or ''tayaw kinbun'') is a traditional shampoo used in Myanmar. Its main ingredients are the bark of the '' tayaw'' (''Grewia'') tree and the ...

'', which remains widely used by the Burmese people and commonly sold in the country's open-air markets, typically in plastic bags. Explorer

Ludwig Leichhardt Friedrich Wilhelm Ludwig Leichhardt (), known as Ludwig Leichhardt, (23 October 1813 – c. 1848) was a German explorer and naturalist, most famous for his exploration of northern and central Australia.Ken Eastwood,'Cold case: Leichhardt's dis ...

described preparing a refreshing drink from the seeds of native Australian species ''G. polygama''.

Selected species

* '' Grewia abutifolia'' (= ''G. sclerophylla'' Roxb. ex G. Don, ''Sterculia tiliacea'' Leveille) * ''

Grewia asiatica ''Grewia asiatica'', commonly known as phalsa or falsa,Flora of Indi''Grewia asiatica''/ref> is a species of flowering plant in the mallow family Malvaceae. It was first found in Varanasi, India, and was taken by Buddhist scholars to other Asian ...

'' – phalsa, falsa * '' Grewia avellana'' Hiern. (= ''G. calycina'' N.E.Br., ''G. hydrophila'' K.Schum., ''G. perennans'' K.Schum.) * '' Grewia bicolor'' Juss. (= ''G. disticha'' Dinter & Burret, ''G. grisea'', ''G. kwebensis'' N.E.Br., ''G. miniata'' Mast. ex Hiern., ''G. mossambicensis'') * ''

Grewia biloba ''Grewia'' is a large flowering plant genus in the mallow family Malvaceae, in the expanded sense as proposed by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group. Formerly, Grewia was placed in either the family Tiliaceae or the Sparrmanniaceae. However, these ...

'' G.Don – Bilobed Grewia (= ''G. biloba'' var. ''glabrescens'' (Benth.) Rehder, ''G. glabrescens'' Benth., ''G. parviflora'' var. ''glabrescens'' (Benth.) Rehder & E.H.Wilson) ** ''Grewia biloba'' var. ''microphylla'' (Maxim) Hand.-Mazz. (= ''G. parviflora'' var. ''microphylla'' Maxim.) ** ''Grewia biloba'' var. ''parviflora'' (Bunge) Hand.-Mazz. (= ''G. chanetii'' H.Lév., ''G. parviflora'' Bunge, ''G. parviflora'' var. ''velutina'' Pampanini) * '' Grewia bilocularis'' Balf.f. * '' Grewia caffra''

Meisn. Carl Daniel Friedrich Meissner (1 November 1800 – 2 May 1874) was a Swiss botanist. Biography Born in Bern, Switzerland on 1 November 1800, he was christened Meisner but later changed the spelling of his name to Meissner. For most of his 40 ...

(= ''G. fruticetorum'' J.R.Drummond ex Baker f.) * ''

Grewia calymmatosepala ''Grewia'' is a large flowering plant genus in the mallow family Malvaceae, in the expanded sense as proposed by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group. Formerly, Grewia was placed in either the family Tiliaceae or the Sparrmanniaceae. However, these ...

'' K.Schum. * ''

Grewia celtidifolia ''Grewia'' is a large flowering plant genus in the mallow family Malvaceae, in the expanded sense as proposed by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group. Formerly, Grewia was placed in either the family Tiliaceae or the Sparrmanniaceae. However, these ...

'' Juss. (= ''G. asiatica'' var. ''celtidifolia'' (Jussieu) L.F.Gagnepain, ''G. simaoensis'' Y.Y.Qian, ''G. yunnanensis'' H.T.Chang) * '' Grewia ciclea'' ''andilambarika'' ( Malagasy) * '' Grewia crenata'' (J.R.Forst.) Schinz & Guillaumin (= ''G. malococca, G. persicaefolia, G. prunifolia, Mallococca crenata'') – ''au‘ere'' (

Cook Islands ) , image_map = Cook Islands on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg , capital = Avarua , coordinates = , largest_city = Avarua , official_languages = , lan ...

), ''fau ui'' (

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands (Manono Island, Manono an ...

), ''fo ui'' (

Tonga Tonga (, ; ), officially the Kingdom of Tonga ( to, Puleʻanga Fakatuʻi ʻo Tonga), is a Polynesian country and archipelago. The country has 171 islands – of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in ...

) * ''Grewia damine'' Gaertn. (= ''G. tiliifolia'' Vahl) * '' Grewia eriocarpa'' Juss. (= ''G. boehmeriifolia'' Kanehira & Sasaki, ''G. elastica'' Royle, ''G. lantsangensis'' Hu) * '' Grewia flava'' DC. (= ''G. cana'' Sond., ''G. hermannioides'' Harv.) * '' Grewia flavescens'' Juss. (= ''G. flavescens'' var. ''longipedunculata'' Burret) * '' Grewia glabra'' Blume – sometimes included in ''G. multiflora'' * ''

Grewia glandulosa ''Grewia glandulosa'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Malvaceae ''sensu lato'' or Tiliaceae or Sparrmanniaceae. It is found only in Seychelles. It is threatened by habitat loss Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and ...

'' Vahl (= ''G. salicifolia'' Schinz) * '' Grewia goetzeana'' K.Schum. * '' Grewia hexamita'' Burret (= ''G. messinica'' Burtt Davy & Greenway, ''G. schweickerdtii'' Burret) * ''

Grewia hirsuta ''Grewia hirsuta'' is an Asian species of flowering plant in the mallow family, Malvaceae Malvaceae, or the mallows, is a family of flowering plants estimated to contain 244 genera with 4225 known species. Well-known members of economic importa ...

'' Vahl. * '' Grewia hornbyi'' Wild * '' Grewia inaequilatera'' Garcke * ''

Grewia insularis ''Grewia insularis '' is a species of flowering plant in the Malvaceae, or mallow family, that is endemic to Christmas Island, an Australian territory in the north-eastern Indian Ocean. Its specific epithet is the Latin for insular, referring ...

'' Ridl. (

Christmas Island Christmas Island, officially the Territory of Christmas Island, is an Australian external territory comprising the island of the same name. It is located in the Indian Ocean, around south of Java and Sumatra and around north-west of the ...

) * '' Grewia lasiocarpa'' E.Mey. ex Harv. * '' Grewia latifolia'' F.Muell. ex Benth. * '' Grewia limae'' Wild * '' Grewia microthyrsa'' K.Schum. ex Burret * '' Grewia mollis'' Juss. * ''

Grewia monticola ''Grewia'' is a large flowering plant genus in the mallow family (biology), family Malvaceae, in the expanded sense as proposed by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group. Formerly, Grewia was placed in either the family Tiliaceae or the Sparrmanniacea ...

'' Sond. (= ''G. cordata'' N.E.Br., ''G. discolor'', N.E.Br.) * '' Grewia multiflora'' Juss. (= ''G. didyma'' Roxb. ex G.Don, ''G. disperma'' Rottler, ''G. guazumifolia'' Juss., ''G. jinghongensis'' Y.Y.Qian, ''G. oblongifolia'' Blume, ''G. serrulata'' DC.) * ''

Grewia occidentalis ''Grewia occidentalis'', the crossberry, is a small, hardy, attractive tree indigenous to Southern Africa. Description A small, scrambling, deciduous tree reaching a height of about 3 m, its purple, star-shaped flowers appear in summer, ...

'' L. – Crossberry * '' Grewia olukondae'' Schinz. (= ''G. flavescens'' var. ''olukondae'' (Schinz) Wild) * '' Grewia optiva'' J.R.Drumm. ex Burret (= ''G. oppositifolia'' Buch.-Ham. ex D.Don) * '' Grewia orientalis'' Carl Linnaeus * '' Grewia oxyphylla'' Burret * '' Grewia pachycalyx'' K.Schum. * ''

Grewia picta ''Grewia picta'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Malvaceae. It is found only in Seychelles. It is threatened by habitat loss. References picta The Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) is an inter-governmental organization that aims ...

'' (= ''G. aldabrensis'' Baker * ''

Grewia retinervis ''Grewia retinervis'' (Afrikaans: ''basterskurweblaarrosyntjie'', roughly translated " Baster curved-leaf grape") is a plant native to Namibia and South Africa. It is found in the North West and Limpopo Limpopo is the northernmost province ...

'' Burret (= ''G. deserticola'' Ulbr.) * '' Grewia retusifolia'' Kurz * '' Grewia robusta'' Burch * '' Grewia rothii'' DC * '' Grewia savannicola'' ("Dogs balls")R.L.Barrett * '' Grewia schinzii'' K.Schum. (= ''G. velutinissima'' Dunkley) * ''

Grewia similis ''Grewia similis'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Malvaceae, native to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, eastern Tropical Africa, and Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop' ...

'' K.Schum. * ''

Grewia stolzii ''Grewia'' is a large flowering plant genus in the mallow family Malvaceae, in the expanded sense as proposed by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group. Formerly, Grewia was placed in either the family Tiliaceae or the Sparrmanniaceae. However, these ...

'' Ulbr. * '' Grewia sulcata'' Mast. * '' Grewis tembensis'' Fresen. * ''

Grewia tenax ''Grewia tenax'', called the phalsa cherry, white crossberry, raisin bush, gangara, gangu, or kanger, is a species of flowering plant in the family Malvaceae. It is native to Africa, from the Sahara to Tanzania and parts of southern Africa, the A ...

'' (Forssk.) (= ''Chadara tenax'' Forssk., ''G. populifolia'' Vahl) * '' Grewia tiliifolia'' Vahl (= ''G. rotunda'' C.Y.Wu, ''G. tiliaefolia'' (''

lapsus In philology, a lapsus (Latin for "lapse, slip, error") is an involuntary mistake made while writing or speaking. Investigations In 1895 an investigation into verbal slips was undertaken by a philologist and a psychologist, Rudolf Meringer and K ...

''), ''Tilia rotunda'' C.Y.Wu & H.T.Chang) * '' Grewia transzambesica'' Wild * '' Grewia turbinata'' Balf.f. * ''

Grewia villosa ''Grewia villosa'' is a shrub, often scrambling and hardly exceeding 4 m in height. Leaves are fairly large, serrated and heart-shaped. It grows naturally, mainly in dry habitats. It is common in most of the semi-arid parts of Eastern Africa but ...

'' Willd.

Formerly placed here

Some species once placed in ''Grewia'' (or genera synonymous with it) have since been moved elsewhere, particularly to ''

Microcos ''Microcos'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Malvaceae ''sensu lato'' or Tiliaceae or Sparrmanniaceae. Species '' Plants of the World Online'' lists: * '' Microcos africana'' (Hook.f.) Burret * '' Microcos antidesmifolia'' (King) B ...

'': * ''

Alangium salviifolium ''Alangium salviifolium'', commonly known as sage-leaved alangium, is a flowering plant in the Cornaceae family. It is also commonly known as Ankolam in Malayalam, Ankola in Kannada, Akola or Ankol in Hindi and Alanji in Tamil. In India, Its mos ...

'' (as ''G. salviifolia'' L.f.) * '' Dombeya boehmiana'' (as ''Vincentia boehmiana'' (F.Hoffm.) Burret)Hinsley (2008b) * '' Kleinhovia hospita'' (as ''G. meyeniana'') * ''

Microcos chungii ''Microcos'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Malvaceae ''sensu lato'' or Tiliaceae or Sparrmanniaceae. Species ''Plants of the World Online'' lists: * '' Microcos africana'' (Hook.f.) Burret * '' Microcos antidesmifolia'' (King) Bu ...

'' (as ''G. chungii'' Merr. * ''

Microcos nervosa ''Microcos'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Malvaceae ''sensu lato'' or Tiliaceae or Sparrmanniaceae. Species '' Plants of the World Online'' lists: * '' Microcos africana'' (Hook.f.) Burret * '' Microcos antidesmifolia'' (King) B ...

'' – possibly belongs in ''M. paniculata'' (as ''G. nervosa'' (Lour.) Panigrahi) * ''

Microcos paniculata ''Microcos paniculata'' is a flowering shrub native to China and south-east Asia including India. It's also included in Indian Ayurveda. It is sometimes added to Chinese herbal tea, having a mildly sour taste. In traditional Chinese medicine t ...

'' (as ''G. microcos'' L. and possibly ''G. nervosa'' (Lour.) Panigrahi) * '' Microcos triflora'' (as ''G. stylocarpa'' Warb. and ''G. stylocarpa'' var. ''longipetiolata'' Merr.) * '' Trichospermum mexicanum'' (as ''G. mexicana'' DC.)

Footnotes

References

* (2001)
Angiosperm Families Containing Beta-Carbolines
Version of 2001-OCT-04. Retrieved 2008-JUN-25. * (2007): ''Flowering Plant Families of the World''. Firefly Books, Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada. * (2008a)
Partial Synonymy of ''Grewia''
Retrieved 2008-JUN-25. * (2008b)
Partial Synonymy of ''Dombeya''
Retrieved 2008-JUN-25. * (2007a): Germplasm Resources Information Network
''Grewia''
Retrieved 2008-JUN-25. * (2007b)
USDA Plants Profile: ''Grewia''
Retrieved 2008-JUN-25. {{Taxonbar, from=Q80212 Malvaceae genera Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus