Sideroxylon

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Sideroxylon persimile


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Sideroxylon is a genus of flowering plants in the family Sapotaceae. There are about 70 species, collectively known as bully trees. The generic name is derived from the Greek words σιδηρος (sideros), meaning "iron", and ξύλον (xylon), meaning "wood."[1] The genus is distributed mainly in the neotropics, but also in Africa, Madagascar, and the Mascarene Islands. Some species, such as Gum Bully (S. lanuginosum), S. tenax, and Buckthorn Bully (S. lycioides), are found in subtropical areas of North America. The only South African species, the White Milkwood (S. inerme), is associated with three historical sites, and these individuals were declared national monuments due to their unusual longevity.


Read about Sideroxylon in the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture 

Bumelia (ancient Greek name for an ash-tree). Sapotaceae. Buckthorn ; also Ironwood. Woody plants sometimes cultivated in botanical collections, but without particular ornamental qualities.

Small trees or shrubs with milky or gummy sap and very hard wood: branches usually spiny: Lvs. alternate, entire, short-petioled: fls. mostly perfect in axillary clusters, long-pedicelled; calyx 5-lobed, persistent; corolla campanulate, 5-lobed; lobes longer than tube with a small appendage on each side; stamens 5, adnate to the corolla, and 5 petal-like staminodes; ovary 5- celled, pubescent: fr. a 1-seeded drupe.—About 20 species from the southern states to Brazil.

These are evergreen or deciduous small trees or shrubs, usually spiny, with generally obovate to oblong leaves and inconspicuous white flowers on axillary clusters followed by black subglobose to oblong-ovoid drupes. None of the species is of much horticultural value, but as most of them grow naturally on dry, rocky or sandy soil, they may be used sometimes with advantage for planting in similar situations. The hardiest are B. lanuginosa and B. lycioides, which have proved hardy in sheltered positions at the Arnold Arboretum. Propagation is by seeds.

B. angustlfolia, Nutt. Shrub or small tree, to 25 ft.: Lvs. persist- ent, obovate to oblanceolate, glabrous, 1-1 H in. long.; fr. oblong. Fla. 8.8.5:249.—B. lycioides, Gaertn. Shrub or small tree, to 25 ft.: Lvs. deciduous, elliptic to oblong or oblanceolate, acute, glabrous, 1' i-4 in. long: fr. ovoid. Va. to III.. Fla. and Texas. S.8. 5:248.—B. tenaz, Willd. Shrub or small tree, to 30 ft.: Lvs. obovate to oblanceolate, pubescent beneath, 1-3 in. long: fr. oblong. N, C. to Fla. S.S. 5:246.


The above text is from the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture. It may be out of date, but still contains valuable and interesting information which can be incorporated into the remainder of the article. Click on "Collapse" in the header to hide this text.



Read about Sideroxylon in the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture 

Sideroxylon (Greek, iron and wood, referring to the hardness of the wood). Sapotaceae. Trees and shrubs, with simple lvs. and small fls. in axillary clusters: fls. 5-merous or rarely 6-merous; calyx-lobes roundish or ovate, usually obtuse, nearly equal; corolla more or less bell-shaped; stamens attached to the tube at the base of the lobes and opposite to them; staminodia scale-like or petaloid; ovary usually 5-loculed: berry ovoid or globose.—About 110 species, mainly tropical, a few extra-tropical. S. Afr., Austral., and New Zeal. CH


The above text is from the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture. It may be out of date, but still contains valuable and interesting information which can be incorporated into the remainder of the article. Click on "Collapse" in the header to hide this text.


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References

  1. Gledhill, D. (2008). The Names of Plants (4 ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 352. ISBN 9780521866453. http://books.google.com/books?id=NJ6PyhVuecwC. 

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