Picrodendraceae  Small, nom. cons.

pronounced: pick-row-den-DRAY-see-eye

the quinine family

Picrodendron Cinchona calisayais from the Greek πικρος (pikros), bitter and δενδρον (dendron) a tree. The family was formerly included in Euphorbiaceae. They are subtropical to tropical trees or rarely shrubs, found in New Guinea, Australia, New Caledonia, Madagascar, continental Africa and tropical America. They are all dioecious, with small flowers that lack any distinction between sepals and petals. The ovaries have 2 ovules per carpel, but the fruits almost always have one seed per carpel by abortion. The fruits are schizocarps or drupes.

Petalostigma pubescens - Quinine Tree

Illustration from Köhler's Medizinal-Pflanzen, via Wikimedia Commons

Page last updated 28th March 2018