Silver tree plants

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Silver tree plants
King Protea (Protea cynaroides)

King Protea ( Protea cynaroides )

Systematics
Department : Vascular plants (tracheophyta)
Subdivision : Seed plants (Spermatophytina)
Class : Bedecktsamer (Magnoliopsida)
Eudicotyledons
Order : Silver tree-like (Proteales)
Family : Silver tree plants
Scientific name
Proteaceae
Yuss.
Subfamilies
  • Bellendenoideae
  • Grevilleoideae
  • Persoonioideae
  • Proteoideae
  • Symphionematoideae

The silver tree or Proteus family (Proteaceae) are a family of plants in the order of the silver tree-like (Proteales). The approximately 77 genera with approximately 1600 species occur in the southern hemisphere .

description

Illustration of the common wooden pear ( Xylomelum pyriforme )

Appearance and leaves

Proteaceae are mostly evergreen woody plants: trees or shrubs or half-shrubs , rarely herbaceous plants . Especially in the morphology of the leaves one can recognize in some species that it is a family with relatively original characteristics, the leaves often have forked veins ( dichotomous ). The leaves have a variety of shapes: from undivided to finely slit there are all possibilities. Sometimes they are needle-like and pointed and some leaf shapes are more reminiscent of ferns than of seed plants. Stipules are missing.

Inflorescences, flowers and fruits

The small individual flowers are usually grouped together in extensive and conspicuous inflorescences . The flowers are hermaphroditic or functionally male or female. They are seldom monoecious ( monoecious ) or dioecious ( dioecious ) of separate sexes. The relatively simple flowers are radially symmetrical to zygomorphic and usually four-fold. The bloom is structured very differently - divided into sepals and petals or just a circle of bloom. There is only one circle with mostly four (rarely three) stamens , which are widely fused with the bloom. Each flower contains only one upper carpel ; it contains one to numerous ovules . Between the bracts and ovary there is a four-scales or ring-shaped gland for the production of nectar (the so-called discus). In many species there is a secondary pollen presentation . Here the pollen is deposited on the “pollen presenter” (protostigma), which is located on the stylus , and then presented to the pollinators before the anthesis . This means that many species are protandric .

There are follicles , stone fruits or achenes formed.

Proteoid roots of Leucospermum cordifolium
Fossil infructescence of Banksia kingii

ecology

root

Many representatives of the silver tree family have developed a strategy to extract the few nutrients and minerals from the soil with high efficiency. Especially the species that grow in nutrient-poor soils form very numerous so-called “ proteoid roots ” after rainfall . These are short-lived, short roots in dense clusters. They grow mainly just below the surface and are particularly capable of absorbing the nutrients and minerals washed into the soil by the rain.

Pyrophytes

Very common in Proteaceae are species that only release their seeds after a fire, these species are strongly adapted to forest fires, the phenomenon is called fire trees or pyrophytes . Examples are the Sil areas ( Grevillea ) and the Banksien ( Banksia ). The advantage for the plants is that after a fire the location is almost free of vegetation and the soil has been well fertilized by the ash.

The seeds survive the fire either:

  • in thick seed coats, for example with Banksien ( Banksia ),
  • encased in the inflorescences, for example in sugar bushes ( Protea ),
  • are buried by rodents, for example in silver trees ( leucadendron ),
  • or carried into their burrows by ants, for example in Leucospermum .

Some species from areas without regular bush fires release their seeds shortly after maturity without any external influence.

pollination

The pollination is often done by birds , but also insects , marsupials and rodents .

distribution

The ancestors of the Proteaceae family emerged before the great continent of Gondwana broke up about 150 million years ago. The current Proteaceae area is disjoint and corresponds mainly to the parts of Gondwana. The distribution area of ​​this family extends to South America , middle to southern Africa , southern China to Australia , Japan , southern India . Many of the genera and species from the Proteae tribe belong to the South African Cape flora .

Banksia serrata
Brabejum stellatifolium
Buckinghamia celsissima
Dryandra sessilis
Foliage leaves, inflorescences and fruits of Gevuina avellana .
Grevillea petrophiloides
Hakea corymbosa
Isopogon cuneatus
Knightia excelsa
Leucadendron loriense
Leucospermum cordifolium
Lomatia ferruginea
Macadamia integrifolia
Persoonia pinifolia
Petrophile pedunculata
Protea caffra
Inflorescences and leaves of the common pinwheel tree ( Stenocarpus sinuatus ).
Telopea speciosissima

Systematics

The type genus is Protea , which is named after Proteus , the Greek god of the sea. Proteus is known for its art of continuous change of shape. The individual taxa of the Proteaceae are also very different in their shape, habit and especially leaves .

The Proteaceae family is divided into five subfamilies , which in turn are subdivided into tribe and often also subtribe. The family includes around 77 genera with around 1600 species . Here the subfamilies with their tribe, subtribe and genera according to Peter H. Weston & Nigel P. Barker 2006:

Subfamily Proteoideae Eaton : In this subfamily there are 26 genera with 640 species, with a distribution in Africa south of the Sahara (especially in the Cape flora) and Australia :
The following are not classified in a tribe:
Tribus Conospermae Endl. : It occurs only in Australia including Tasmania.
  • Subtribus Stirlingiinae LASJohnson & BGBriggs : It contains only one genus:
  • Subtribe Conosperminae LASJohnson & BGBriggs : It contains two genera with around 100 species:
    • Conospermum Sm .: The approximately 53 species are found in southern Australia including Tasmania.
    • Synaphea R.Br. : The approximately 50 to 56 species occur only in Western Australia.
Tribus Petrophileae PHWeston & NPBarker : It contains two genera and about 56 species:
  • Aulax Berg. : The only three species occur only in the South African provinces of the Eastern Cape and Western Cape.
  • Petrophile R.Br. ex Knight : The 42 to 53 species occur only in Australia, of which about 37 only in Western Australia.
Tribe Proteae Dum. : It contains two genera only in Africa including Madagascar:
  • Faurea Harvey : The approximately 15 species are widespread south of the Sahara in Africa and Madagascar.
  • Sugar bushes ( Protea L. ): The approximately 115 species are widespread in Africa south of the Sahara .
Tribus Leucadendreae PHWeston & NPBarker : It contains three sub- tribes in Australia and the Capensis.
  • Subtribe Isopogoninae PH Weston & NPBarker : It contains only one genus:
    • Isopogon R.Br. ex Knight : The approximately 35 species are native to southern and western Australia, for example:
  • Subtribus Adenanthinae LASJohnson & BGBriggs : It contains only one genus:
    • Adenanthos Labill. : The 33 or so species are common in southern Australia.
  • Subtribus Leucadendrinae PHWeston & NPBarker : The ten or so genera occur only in the Capensis :
    • Diastella Salisb. : The seven species are only found in the Western Cape and some of them are considered rare to critically endangered.
    • Silver trees ( Leucadendron R.Br. ): The 80 to 85 species are common in the Capensis.
    • Pincushion silver trees, or silver seeds or simply called pincushions by florists, ( Leucospermum R.Br. ): The approximately 48 species are common in the Capensis.
    • Mimetes Salisb. : The approximately 13 species occur either only in the Western Cape or only in the Eastern Cape. Including:
    • Serruria Salisb. : The approximately 51 to 55 species occur in the southwestern Capensis.
    • Sorocephalus R.Br. : The eleven or so species occur in the southwestern Capensis.
    • Spatalla Salisb. : The approximately 20 species occur in the southwestern Capensis.
    • Vexatorella Rourke : The four or so species occur only in the North Cape and Western Cape.
Subfamily Grevilleoideae Engl .: In this subfamily there are 45 genera with 855 species:
The following are not classified in a tribe:
  • Carnarvonia F. Muell. : It contains only one type:
  • Sphalmium (CTWhite) BGBriggs, B.Hyland & LASJohnson : It contains only one species:
Tribus Banksieae Rchb. : It contains two subtribes and four genera:
  • Subtribus Musgraveinae LASJohnson & BGBriggs : It contains only two genera with four species in northeastern Australia:
    • Austromuellera C.T.White : The only two species occur in northeastern Australia.
    • Musgravea F. Muell. : The only two species occur in northeastern Australia.
  • Subtribus Banksiinae LASJohnson & BGBriggs : It contains only two genera with up to 180 species:
    • Banksia ( Banksia L. f. ): The 76 to 80 species are widespread in Australia including Tasmania, one of which extends as far as southern New Guinea.
    • Dryandra Thunb. : The 93 to 95 species are native to southwestern Australia.
Tribus Macadamieae C. Venkata Rao : It contains only three genera with around 35 species:
  • Subtribus Macadamiinae LASJohnson & BGBriggs :
    • Brabejum L .: It contains only one species:
    • Macadamia ( Macadamia F.Muell. ): It contains about nine species mainly in New South Wales and Queensland and one in Indonesia.
    • Panopsis Salisb. : It contains about 25 species in the Neotropic .
  • Subtribus Malagasiinae PHWeston & NPBarker : It contains only two monotypic genera:
    • Malagasia L.ASJohnson & BGBriggs : It contains only one species:
    • Catalepidia P.H.Weston : It contains only one species:
  • Subtribus Virotiinae PHWeston & NPBarker : It contains only two genera with about 16 species:
    • Athertonia L.ASJohnson & BGBriggs : It contains only one species:
    • Heliciopsis Sleumer : The 15 or so species occur in Burma and from southeastern China to the Indonesian archipelago, west of the Wallace Line.
  • Subtribus Gevuininae LASJohnson & BGBriggs (Syn .: Subtribus Cardwelliinae LASJohnson & BGBriggs , Subtribus Hicksbeachiinae LASJohnson & BGBriggs ):
    • Bleasdalea F. Muell. : The only two species occur in northeastern Australia and New Guinea.
    • Cardwellia F. Muell. : It contains only one type:
    • Euplassa Salisb. : The 20 or so species are widespread in tropical South America.
    • Gevuina Molina : it contains only one species:
    • Hicksbeachia F. Muell. : The only two species occur in eastern Australia.
    • Kermadecia Brongn. & Gris : The four species are native to New Caledonia.
    • Sleumerodendron Virot : it contains only one species:
    • Turillia A.C.Sm. : The only three species occur in Vanuatu, Fiji.
Tribe Roupaleae Meisn. (Syn .: Tribus Knightieae LASJohnson & BGBriggs , Tribus Helicieae LASJohnson & BGBriggs ):
  • Not classified in a subtribe:
    • Eucarpha (R.Br.) Spach : The only two species native to New Caledonia.
    • Knightia R.Br. : It contains only one type:
    • Megahertzia A.S. George & B.Hyland : It contains only one species:
    • Triunia L.ASJohnson & BGBriggs : The four species occur in eastern Australia.
  • Subtribus Roupalinae LASJohnson & BGBriggs : It contains only three genera:
    • Neorites L.S.Sm. : It contains only one type:
    • Orites R.Br. : The eight or so species occur in Australia including Tasmania and Chile.
    • Roupala Aubl. : The 33 or so species are widespread in the Neotropic.
      • Roupala montana Aubl. : From central to northern South America to Central America to southern Mexico
  • Subtribus Lambertiinae (C.Venkata Rao) LASJohnson & BGBriggs : It contains only two genera in Australia:
    • Lambertia Sm .: The ten or so species occur in southwestern and southeastern Australia.
    • Xylomelum Sm .: The six or so species occur in south-western and eastern Australia.
  • Subtribus Heliciinae LASJohnson & BGBriggs : It contains only two genera:
    • Helicia Lour. : The approximately 100 species occur in southern India, Sri Lanka, from China and Japan to southeastern Australia, with the center of biodiversity in New Guinea.
    • Hollandaea F. Muell. : The only two species are native to northeastern Australia.
  • Subtribus Floydiinae LASJohnson & BGBriggs : It contains only two genera with three species in Australia:
Tribus Embothrieae Rchb. :
  • Subtribus Lomatiinae LASJohnson & BGBriggs :
    • Lomatia R.Br. : There are about twelve disjoint area species: nine in Australia (including Tasmania) and three in Chile, Argentina, Peru and Ecuador, for example:
  • Subtribus Embothriinae Endl. : It contains about five genera:
    • Alloxylon P.H.Weston & Crisp : The five or so species are distributed in eastern Australia, southern New Guinea and the Aru Islands.
    • Embothrium J.R. Forst. & G.Forst. : It contains only one type:
    • Oreocallis R.Br. : It contains only one or two species in Peru and Ecuador.
    • Telopea R.Br. : The five or so species occur in southeastern Australia including Tasmania.
  • Subtribe Hakeinae Endl. (Syn .: Tribus Grevilleeae Endl. ): The flowers are zygomorphic. It contains five genera:
    • Buckinghamia F. Muell. : The only two species occur in northeastern Australia.
    • Finschia Warb. : Of the three species in New Guinea, one occurs to Palau and Vanuatu.
    • Grevillea or Silver ( Grevillea R.Br. ex Knight ): The approximately 260 to 362 species are widespread in Australia including Tasmania, New Caledonia, New Guinea and Sulawesi.
    • Hakea Schrad. & JCWendl. : The 110 to 150 species are widespread in Australia including Tasmania.
    • Opisthiolepis L.S.Sm. : It contains only one type:
Subfamily Bellendenoideae PHWeston : This subfamily is monotypical , so contains only one genus and one species:
Tribus Bellendenae PHWeston :
Subfamily Persoonideae LASJohnson & BGBriggs : In this subfamily there are five genera with 110 species; their home is mainly Australia , but also New Caledonia and New Zealand :
Tribus Persoonieae Rchb. :
  • Garnieria Brongn. & Gris : It only occurs in New Caledonia.
  • Persoonia Sm .: The approximately 100 species occur in Australia.
  • Placospermum C.T.White & WDFrancis : It occurs in northeastern Australia.
Subfamily Symphionematoideae PHWeston & NPBarker : It contains only two genera with three species in southeastern Australia and Tasmania:
  • Agastachys R.Br. : It contains only one type:
  • Symphionema R.Br. : The only two species occur in southeastern Australia.

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