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 ...
s in the family
Pentaphylacaceae
The Pentaphylacaceae are a small family of plants within the order Ericales. In the APG III system of 2009, it includes the former family Ternstroemiaceae.
Genera
In 2014, the Angiosperm Phylogeny Website included 14 genera in the family: Plant ...
. It is distributed in
tropical
The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the Equator. They are defined in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the Northern Hemisphere at N and the Tropic of Capricorn in
the Southern Hemisphere at S. The tropics are also referred to ...
and
subtropical
The subtropical zones or subtropics are geographical zone, geographical and Köppen climate classification, climate zones to the Northern Hemisphere, north and Southern Hemisphere, south of the tropics. Geographically part of the Geographical z ...
regions in Africa, Asia, and the Americas.''Ternstroemia''. Flora of China.
These are
evergreen
In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has foliage that remains green and functional through more than one growing season. This also pertains to plants that retain their foliage only in warm climates, and contrasts with deciduous plants, which ...
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 and
tree
In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are ...
s. The leaves are alternately arranged, sometimes in clusters. Species are
androdioecious
Androdioecy is a reproductive system characterized by the coexistence of males and hermaphrodites. Androdioecy is rare in comparison with the other major reproductive systems: dioecy, gynodioecy and hermaphroditism. In animals, androdioecy has bee ...
, with some individuals bearing bisexual flowers and others with flowers that are functionally male. Flowers are solitary or borne in clusters. The flower has two
bract
In botany, a bract is a modified or specialized leaf, especially one associated with a reproductive structure such as a flower, inflorescence axis or cone scale. Bracts are usually different from foliage leaves. They may be smaller, larger, or of ...
eoles, five
sepal
A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coined b ...
s, five
petal
Petals are modified Leaf, leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often advertising coloration, brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''c ...
s, and many
stamen
The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10
Morphology and terminology
A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filame ...
s. The
berry
A berry is a small, pulpy, and often edible fruit. Typically, berries are juicy, rounded, brightly colored, sweet, sour or tart, and do not have a stone or pit, although many pips or seeds may be present. Common examples are strawberries, raspb ...
-like fruit contains seeds that have red flesh over a thick
endosperm
The endosperm is a tissue produced inside the seeds of most of the flowering plants following double fertilization. It is triploid (meaning three chromosome sets per nucleus) in most species, which may be auxin-driven. It surrounds the embryo and ...
. They are likely dispersed by birds.
''T. gymnanthera'' is an Asian species cultivated as an
ornamental plant
Ornamental plants or garden plants are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars that i ...
. ''T. pringlei'' is one of the most widely used medicinal plants in
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
.
The genus was named in honour of
Christopher Tärnström
Christopher Tärnström or Christoffer Tärnström (20 May 1711 – 4 December 1746) was a Swedish naturalist and Lutheran pastor who was the first of the students or apostles of Carl Linnaeus who travelled to Southeast Asia where he died off Vie ...
. There are about 90 species in the genus.
Species include:
* '' Ternstroemia bullata'' Proctor
* ''
Ternstroemia calycina
''Ternstroemia calycina'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Pentaphylacaceae. It is endemic to Jamaica, where it is known only from Cockpit Country
Cockpit Country is an area in Trelawny and Saint Elizabeth, Saint James, Saint ...
Ternstroemia cleistogama
''Ternstroemia cleistogama'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Pentaphylacaceae. It is endemic to Ecuador, where it occurs above 2500 meters in elevation in the Andes
The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the ...
Ternstroemia gymnanthera
''Ternstroemia gymnanthera'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Pentaphylacaceae which grows on elevations of in Japan, China and on elevation of in Himalayas
The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, se ...