Chionanthus ramiflorus Roxb. var. peninsularis Ravikumar & Lakshmanan - OLEACEAE

Synonym : Linociera macrophylla Wall.; Linociera ramiflora Roxb.

Vernacular names : Kannada: Kunde

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Botanical descriptions Ecology Distribution Literatures

Botanical descriptions :

Habit : Trees up to 15 m tall.
Trunk & Bark : Bark greyish brown, corky lenticellate.
Branches and branchlets : Young branchlets quadrangular, terete when mature, glabrous, lenticellate.
Leaves : Leaves simple, opposite, decussate; petiole 2-3 cm long, planoconvex in cross section, glabrous; lamina 8-15 x 4.5-5 cm, elliptic, apex acute, base attenuate, margin entire or slightly wavy, coriaceous, glabrous and paler beneath; midrib slightly canaliculate above; secondary_nerves 8-12 pairs, slender; tertiary_nerves broadly reticulate or obscure.
Inflorescence / Flower : Inflorescence axillary, cymose panicles, 8 cm long, glabrous; flowers pale yellow; pedicel 0.2 cm long.
Fruit and Seed : Drupe, ellipsoid, oblique, up to 3.5 cm long, glabrous, purple when ripe; seed one.

Ecology :

Canopy trees in high elevation evergreen forests between 1300 and 2000 m.

Distribution :

Endemic to the Western_Ghats - Varshanad hills, Anaimalai and Palani hills in South Sahyadri, and Bababudangiri in North Sahyadri.

Literatures :

Ravikumar & Lakshmanan, Bull. Bot. Surv. India 31: 163. 1989; Sasidharan, Biodiversity documentation for Kerala- Flowering Plants, part 6: 276. 2004.

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