Snow trees

Snow trees
	Virginian snowflake bush ( Chionanthus virginicus )
Systematics
	Nuclear eudicotyledons
	Asterids
	Euasterids I
Order :	Mint family (Lamiales)
Family :	Olive family (Oleaceae)
Genre :	Snow trees
Scientific name
	Chionanthus
	L.

Snow Trees ( Chionanthus ), snowflakes trees or snowflakes shrubs called, are a genus in the family of Olive Family (Oleaceae). Its flowers of the first described species, which are grouped together in large inflorescences and look like snowflakes when viewed from a distance, gave the genus its common German names snow tree, snowflake tree, and more rarely snowdrop tree. The genus includes over 80 species worldwide.

Most species are only found in the subtropical or tropical regions around the globe. Only the two species Chionanthus retusus in East Asia and Chionanthus virginicus in North America grow in the temperate climatic zones.

description

Illustration from American medicinal plants , plate 136 of the Chinese snowflake bush ( Chionanthus retusus )

Virginian snowflake bush ( Chionanthus virginicus ): Section of the inflorescence with many flowers

Chionanthus mala-elengi

Chionanthus pubescens

Chionanthus ramiflorus

Vegetative characteristics

Chionanthus are shrubs and trees with heights of 3 to 25 meters. Most subtropical and tropical species are evergreen . The opposite arranged leaves are divided into a petiole and a leaf blade. The simple leaf blades have a smooth or serrated leaf margin.

Generative characteristics

A few to many flowers are usually lateral, rarely terminal, differently shaped inflorescences together.

The functionally unisexual or often hermaphrodite flowers are radially symmetrical and four-fold with a double flower envelope . The four small sepals are more or less bell-shaped fused. The four fused petals are white or yellow; the corolla tube is only short. There are only two (rarely four) stamens in each flower; the stamens are short.

Fleshy stone fruits are formed.

Systematics and distribution

The genus Chionanthus was established by Carl von Linné . Synonyms for Chionanthus L. are: Bonamica Vell. , Campanolea Gilg & G.Schellenb. , Ceranthus Schreb. , Cylindria Lour. , Dekindtia Gilg , Freyeria Scop. , Linociera Sw. ex Schreb. , Majepea Post & Kuntze , Mayepea Aubl. , Minutia Vell. , Pogenda Raf. , Sarlina Guillaumin , Tessarandra Miers , Thouinia L. f.

The genus Chionanthus includes about 80 to about 138 species worldwide. Here is a selection with information on the home areas:

Chionanthus abriaquiensis Fern.Alonso & Cogollo : It wasfirst describedfrom Colombia in 2016.
Chionanthus acuminatissimus (Merr.) Kiew ex de Juana (Syn .: Linociera acuminatissima Merr.): This new combination took place in 2016. It occurs in the Philippines .
Chionanthus acunae (Borhidi & O.Muñiz) Borhidi : It occurs in Cuba .
Chionanthus adamsii Stearn : This endemic occurs only in Jamaica .
Chionanthus albidiflorus Thwaites (Syn .: Chionanthus malabaricus var. Albidiflorus (Thwaites) Panigrahi , Chionanthus leprocarpus Thwaites , Chionanthus rostratus Thwaites nom. Illeg., Chionanthus axillaris var. Rostrata (CBClarke) KKNNair & KPJanardh. , Chionanthus zeylanicus var. Rostratus (CBClarke) Panigrahi , Chionanthus courtallensis Bedd. , Chionanthus leprocarpus var. Courtallensis (Bedd.) KKNNair & KPJanardh. ): It occurs in Sri Lanka and southern India .
Chionanthus axillaris R.Br. : Australia ( Queensland ).
Chionanthus axilliflorus (Griseb.) Stearn : Caribbean .
Chionanthus brachythyrsus (Merrill) PSGreen : South China , ( Hainan ), Vietnam .
Chionanthus compactus Sw. : Caribbean, Colombia and Venezuela.
Chionanthus domingensis Lam. : Caribbean and southeastern Mexico to Panama.
Chionanthus foveolatus (E.Mey.) Stearn : southern Africa .
Chionanthus guangxiensis B.M. Miao : southeastern China ( Guangxi ).
Chionanthus hainanensis (Merrill & Chun) BMMiao : southern China ( Hainan ).
Chionanthus henryanus P.S.Green : southwestern China, Myanmar.
Chionanthus holdridgii (Camp & Monachino) Stearn : Puerto Rico
Chionanthus kinabaluensis Kiev : It wasfirst describedfrom Sabah in 2002.
Chionanthus ligustrinus (Sw.) Pers. : Caribbean.
Chionanthus longiflorus (HLLi) BMMiao : southwestern China (Yunnan).
Chionanthus mala-elengi (Dennst.) PSGreen (incl. Chionanthus caudatus (Collett & Hemsley) Bahadur & Gaur ): With three subspecies. The distribution area extends from the subcontinent India to Malaysia.
Chionanthus panamensis (Standl.) Stearn : The home is Mexico to Panama.
Chionanthus picrophloia F. Muell. : Australia (Queensland).
Chionanthus pubescens Kunth : Ecuador , Peru .
Chionanthus pygmaeus Small : Southeastern United States ( Florida ).
Chionanthus quadristamineus F. Muell. : Australia ( Norfolk Island ).
Chionanthus ramiflorus Roxburgh (Syn .: Chionanthus intermedius (Wight) F.Muell. ): Australia (Queensland), southern China, India, Nepal , Vietnam.
Chinese snowflake bush ( Chionanthus retusus Lindley & Paxton ): China, Japan , Korea .
Chionanthus sleumeri (CTWhite) Stearn : Australia (Queensland).
Virginian Snowflake Bush or Virginian Snow Tree or Poison Ash ( Chionanthus virginicus L. ): Eastern USA .

swell

Mei-chen Chang, Lien-ching Chiu, Zhi Wei, Peter S. Green: Oleaceae. : Chionanthus , p. 293 - online with the same text as the printed work , In: Wu Zheng-yi, Peter H. Raven (Ed.): Flora of China , Volume 15 - Myrsinaceae through Loganiaceae , Science Press and Missouri Botanical Garden Press, Beijing and St. Louis, 1996, ISBN 0-915279-37-1 .
Description at Flora of Australia Online . (English)

Individual evidence

↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m Rafaël Govaerts (Ed.): Chionanthus. In: World Checklist of Selected Plant Families (WCSP) - The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew . Retrieved December 12, 2017.

Web links

Commons : Snow Trees ( Chionanthus ) - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Chionanthus in the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN), USDA , ARS , National Genetic Resources Program. National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland.
Entries about Chionanthus in Plants For A Future
Economic Encyclopedia (1773-1858) by JG Krünitz.
Chionanthus . In: Meyers Konversations-Lexikon . 4th edition. Volume 4, Verlag des Bibliographisches Institut, Leipzig / Vienna 1885–1892, p. 36.
William Thomas Stearn : Union of Chionanthus and Linociera (Oleaceae) . In: Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden . tape 63 , no. 2 , 1976, p. 355-357 , doi : 10.2307 / 2395314 , JSTOR : 2395314 .

Map with all linked sites: OSM | WikiMap

[WCSP-1] ↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m Rafaël Govaerts (Ed.): Chionanthus. In: World Checklist of Selected Plant Families (WCSP) - The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew . Retrieved December 12, 2017.