CUNONIA FAMILY (CUNONIACEAE) 



56. Oreganillo 



A small tree or shrub of dwarf forests at high 

 elevations on mountain peaks, recognized by: 

 (1) opposite pinnate leaves 3-6 inches long with 

 broadly winged axis and usually 9-17 stalkless 

 elliptic toothed leaflets, paired except for the ter- 

 minal one; (2) paired rounded stipules about i/4 

 inch long and broad, forming a rounded narrow 

 bud but shedding early, leaving ringed scars at 

 nodes; (3) numerous minute white flowers tinged 

 with pink, in narrow erect latei-al clusters 2-31/^ 

 inches long; and (4) many narrow 2-lobed brown 

 seed capsules ^jq inch long. 



An evergi-een tree or shrub to 20 feet in height 

 and 6 inches in trunk diameter. The dark brown 

 bark is smoothish, inner bark light brown and bit- 

 ter, and repoi'tedly exudes a resin. The brown 

 twigs are densely bristly with yellow haii'S when 

 young, becoming blackish. 



The leaves have a short hairy petiole. Leaflets 

 are i/4-l inch long and V4-% hich broad, short- 

 pointed at base, rounded at apex, with margins 

 slightly turned under, stiff, above dark green with 

 midrib and lateral veins sunken, and beneath light 

 green with hairy midrib. 



The flowers are ?!,; inch long and broad across 

 the stamens and are borne on short slender stalks 

 along a hairy axis (raceme). There are 4 or 5 

 minute pointed sepals, 4 or 5 white petals about Via 

 inch long but falling early, 8 or 10 white stamens 

 more than Vs inch long, and pistil less than Yg inch 



Weinmannia pinnata L. 



long with 2-celled ovary and 2 white styles. Seed 

 capsules have sepals remaining at base and 2 

 pointed styles at apex and contain minute hairy 

 seeds. Flowering mainly from August to October. 



The sapwood is whitish, and heartwood reddish 

 brown. The hard, heavy wood is not used in 

 Puerto Rico. Elsewhere the bark has been em- 

 ployed in tanning. 



In dwarf forests on mountain peaks in the upper 

 Lucjuillo and upper Cordillera regions of Puerto 

 Rico mostly above 3,000 feet elevation. 



PiRLic FORESTS. — Luquillo. Toro Xegro. 



Range. — Widely distributed in mountain for- 

 ests at high elevations from southern Mexico to 

 Peru, Brazil, and Venezuela. Also Greater An- 

 tilles and Lesser Antilles from St. Kitts to St. 

 Vincent. 



Other common names. — tamarindo de loma 

 (Dominican Republic) : sabicii maranon, sabicii 

 de pinares (Cuba) ; loro, lorito (Costa Rica) ; 

 encinillo, arenillo (Colombia) ; saisai, curtidor 

 (Venezuela) ; bastard brazilleto, wild brazilletto 

 (Jamaica) ; bois tan rouge (Guadeloupe) ; bois 

 sitHeur (Martinique). 



A variable, widely ranging species with varieties 

 differing in hairiness, number of leaflets, and other 

 characters. This is the only West Indian repre- 

 sentative of its family and of a genus common in 

 mountain forests at high elevations in the Andes 

 of South America. 



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