Part 4, 1924] 



MELIACEAE 



3. GUAREA Allamand; L. Mant. 150, 228. 1771. 



Trees or shrubs. Leaves equally pinnate, rarely odd-pinnate. Leaflets opposite, sub- 

 opposite, or alternate, entire, often with slender, elongate, curved pellucid lines or dots. 

 Inflorescence axillary, or sometimes borne on the branches. Flowers perfect. Calyx saucer- 

 shaped or cup-shaped, 4- or 5-toothed, or of 5 distinct sepals. Petals 4 or 5. Staminal tube 

 cylindric or urn-shaped, entire or shallowly 8-12-lobed. Anthers 8-12, included or barely 

 exserted. Disk obsolete or stipe-like. Ovary 4- or 5-celled, rarely with 7-10 cells; style 

 erect; stigma discoid. Ovules 1, or 2 superposed, in each cell. Fruit a 3-5-celled, 3-5-valved, 

 coriaceous or woody capsule, loculicidally dehiscing from the apex, the valves in two layers. 

 Seeds 1 or 2 in each cell, each enclosed in an aril; testa coriaceous or membranaceous; cotyledons 

 superposed, fleshy; radicle lateral. 



Type species, Guarea trichilioides L. 



Calyx gamosepalous, long persistent beneath the capsule, or early de- 

 ciduous. 

 Ovary 3-5-celled; calyx-lobes and petals usually 4 (flowers unknown 

 in nos. 16, 17, 18, 28, 29 and 33). 

 Ovary glabrous, rarely with few scattered hairs near the apex; 

 leaflets often bearded in the axils of the veins beneath. 

 Leaflets reticulate-veined, the primary veins prominent and 

 terminating at or near the margin; petals glabrous or 

 strigillose. 

 Species of the West Indies; leaflets bearded in the axils of 

 the primary veins beneath. 

 Flowering inflorescence sessile, the branches often equal 



or nearly so in length. (Porto Rico.) 

 Flowering inflorescence paniculate or raceme-like, rarely 

 branching from the base. 

 Inflorescence paniculate, the branches usually spread- 

 ing; flowers long-pedicelled, the pedicels 4-6 mm. 

 long, often equaling or a little shorter than the 

 stipe-like base of the calyx. (Lesser Antilles.) 

 Inflorescence raceme-like, the branches short; flowers 

 sub-sessile or with pedicels up to 2 mm. long, the 

 pedicels, when present, often shorter than the stipe- 

 like base of the calyx. (Jamaica.) 

 Species of Mexico and Central America; leaflets often 

 bearded in the axils of the veins beneath. 

 Leaflets broadly rounded at the apex, mostly of an 



oblong-obovate type; inflorescence sessile. 

 Leaflets acute to acuminate or somewhat obtuse at the 

 apex; inflorescence sessile or peduncled. 

 Leaflets 2.5-7.5 cm. broad. 



Leaflets 2.5-3 cm. broad, not bearded in the axils 



beneath. 

 Leaflets averaging decidedly more than 3 cm. 

 broad. 

 Ovary raised on a gynophore of about its own 

 length; style conspicuously jointed with the 

 ovary, early deciduous; inflorescence raceme- 

 like, short-peduncled; leaflets with or with- 

 out scattered hairs in the axils of the veins 

 beneath. 

 Ovary sessile or borne on a gynophore of less 

 than half its length; style not conspic- 

 uously jointed with the ovary, and ap- 

 parently not early deciduous. 

 Staminal-tube short, 2-3 mm. high; leaflets 

 conspicuously bearded in the axils of 

 the veins beneath. 

 Leaves usually less than 2.5 dm. long; 



leaflets 4-6. 

 Leaves 3 dm. or more long; leaflets of 

 the main branches 10-14. 

 Staminal-tube 4—5.5 mm. high; leaflets not 

 bearded or bearded beneath. 

 Ovary gradually tapering into the style; 

 leaflets bearded in the axils of the 

 veins beneath. 

 Ovary abruptly contracted into the 

 style. 

 Inflorescence branching from the 



base; ovary ovoid. 

 Inflorescence not branching from the 

 base; ovary conspicuously 4-sided. 



1. G. ramifiora. 



G. glabra. 



3. G. Swarlzii. 



4. G. oblusata. 



6. G. ternifolia. 



7. G. excelsa. 



8. G. polyantha. 



