248 CHINESE ECONOMIC TREES 



STERCULIACEAE 



Trees, shrubs or herbs, sometimes climbers. Leaves alternate, simple, 

 lobed or digitate, stipulate. Flowers perfect or unisexual, regular, usually 

 in cymes; sepals 3-5, more or less connate; petals 5, or reduced, or 

 absent ; stamens very diverse, usually 5, with or without staminodes, or 

 numerous with filaments united into a tube; anthers 2 celled, in heads, 

 or in a ring, or scattered. Ovary free, 4-5 (rarely 10-12) celled; style as 

 many as the cells, distinct or connate; ovules 2 to indefinite (rarely l) in 

 "each cell. Fruit dry or fleshy, dehiscent or indehiscent. 



About 48 genera and 750 species, mostly in the tropics. Cocoa and 

 chocolate are derived from Theobroma cacao, native of S. America, now 

 cultivated in tropical Asia and Africa. 



KEY TO GENERA 



I. Petals present, flat, deciduous; fruit a 5-valved capsule. . . .Reevesia. 

 II. Petals wanting; fruit follicular, dehiscent Sterculia. 



STERCULIA 



Trees or shrubs. Leaves simple, palmately lobed or digitately com- 

 pound. Inflorescence clustered, usually axillary. Flowers unisexual or 

 polygamous, with the pistillate frequently terminating the flower spike; 

 calyx tubular, 4-5 parted, frequently colored; petals none; stamens united 

 into a tube, bearing a ring of 10-15 sessile, 2 celled anthers at the apex; 

 pistil sessile or stipitate, composed of 4-5 carpels; carpels 2-many ovuled; 

 style connate at the base; stigma free, radiating. Fruit follicular, com- 

 posed of distinct, woody or membranous carpels, sometimes foliaceous. 

 Seeds 1-many, naked, sometimes arillate or winged. 



About 100 species native in the tropics of both hemispheres, especially 

 abundant in Asia. 



Sterculia lanceaefolia Roxburgh. 



Tree to 15 m. tall with ashy gray bark. Leaves oval to lanceolate, 

 entire, abruptly acuminate, rounded at the base, glabrous, 10-20 cm. 

 long, 2.5-8 cm. broad; petiole 1.2-2.5 cm. long, thickened at both ends. 

 Racemes 5 cm. long, few flowered; calyx 5 parted, scarlet. Follicles 1-5, 

 beaked, pink. Seeds 4-8, shiny black, ovoid. 



India and Southwest China. 



