Decaisnina Tiegh.

Scientific Description

Family Loranthaceae.

Habit and leaf form. Shrubs; evergreen. Plants rootless (in the normal sense); partially parasitic. On aerial parts of the host. Leaves cauline (ass.). Stem internodes solid (ass.). Stem growth conspicuously sympodial. Mesophytic, or xerophytic. Leaves opposite; leathery, or membranous; petiolate, or sessile; edgewise to the stem, or with ‘normal’ orientation; simple. Leaf blades entire; pinnately veined. Leaves without stipules. Leaf blade margins entire. Leaves without a persistent basal meristem. Leaf anatomy. Hairs absent. Extra-floral nectaries absent (ass.). Stem anatomy. Secondary thickening developing from a conventional cambial ring.

Reproductive type, pollination. Fertile flowers hermaphrodite. Unisexual flowers absent. Plants hermaphrodite. Entomophilous, or ornithophilous.

Inflorescence and flower features. Flowers aggregated in ‘inflorescences’; in racemes. The terminal inflorescence unit cymose. Inflorescences dichasial. Flowers pedicellate, or sessile (sessile or nearly so); bracteate; ebracteolate (ass.); regular to somewhat irregular. The floral asymmetry involving the perianth. Flowers cyclic; tetracyclic. Floral receptacle markedly hollowed. Free hypanthium present; adnate to the ovary. Perianth with distinct calyx and corolla; 3–9; 2 -whorled, or 1 -whorled. Calyx present (though reduced); 1 -whorled; gamosepalous; entire, or lobed; when not entire, blunt-lobed, or toothed (or dissected); open in bud; regular; persistent. Corolla present; 6; 1 -whorled; polypetalous, or gamopetalous; valvate; elongate; unequal but not bilabiate, or bilabiate, or regular; yellow, or red. Androecial members definite in number. Androecium 6. Androecial members adnate (to the corolla); all equal (ass.); free of one another (ass.); 1 -whorled. Androecium exclusively of fertile stamens. Stamens 6; all more or less similar in shape (ass.); isomerous with the perianth; alternisepalous (epipetalous). Anthers basifixed; non-versatile; dehiscing via longitudinal slits; introrse; four locular; bisporangiate, or tetrasporangiate. Gynoecium 3 carpelled, or 4 carpelled. The pistil 1 celled. Gynoecium syncarpous; synstylovarious, or eu-syncarpous; inferior. Ovary unilocular; 1 locular. Gynoecium stylate. Styles 1. Stigmas 1. Ovules not differentiated; in the single cavity 4–12; several; sessile; ascending; non-arillate; not clearly differentiated from the placenta.

Fruit and seed features. Fruit fleshy (usually), or non-fleshy (rarely); indehiscent; a berry, or a drupe; 1 seeded. Seeds copiously endospermic. Endosperm oily. Seeds covered with viscous material; without a testa. Embryo well differentiated. Cotyledons 2, or 1.

Etymology. After Joseph Decaisne (1807–82), French botanist, president of the French Academy of Sciences and director of the Paris botanical gardens.