Jepson Interchange (more information)
Print edition is available from the University of California Press
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This page is based on the 1993 Jepson Manual.
Please see the Jepson eFlora for up-to-date information about California vascular plants. |
| Jepson Flora Project: Jepson Interchange |
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TREATMENT FROM THE JEPSON MANUAL |
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Jepson Interchange (more information) |
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©Copyright 1993 by the Regents of the University of California
Print edition is available from the University of California Press |
| The second edition of The Jepson Manual (2012) is available from the University of California Press | |
| See also the Jepson eFlora, which parallels the Second Edition |
Shrub, evergreen, dioecious, much-branched, unusual secondary growth
Stem: bark smooth
Leaves opposite, simple, small, leathery; base jointed; stipules 0
Inflorescence: staminate flowers in axillary clusters; pistillate flowers generally solitary
Flower: small, radial; sepals generally 5, overlapping, becoming larger in female, disk 0; corolla 0; stamens 8–12, free, anthers elongate with longitudinal slits; ovary superior, chambers 3, styles 3, stigmas long, feathery
Fruit: capsule, loculicidal
Seed 1
Genera in family: 1 genus: sw US, Mex. Sometimes placed in Buxaceae.
Species in genus: 1 sp
Etymology: (F.W. Simmonds, English botanist, died exploring Trinidad in 1804)
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Stem 1–2 m; young growth ± hairy; branches stiff
Leaf 2–4 cm, oblong-ovate, dull green, ± canescent-puberulent, subsessile
Inflorescence: peduncles 3–10 mm
Flower: sepals in staminate flowers 3–4 mm, greenish, in pistillate flower becoming 10–20 mm
Fruit < 2.5 mm, nut-like, ovoid, tough, leathery, obtusely 3-angled
Seed large, contains liquid wax
Chromosomes: 2n=26. Locally
Ecology: common. Arid areas
Elevation: < 1500 m.
Bioregional distribution: w Peninsular Ranges, San Jacinto Mountains, Sonoran Desert
Distribution outside California: n Mexico
Flowering time: Mar–May
Synonyms: S. californica Nutt
Important as forage plant, seed wax is source of substitute for sperm oil, fruit edibleHorticultural information: DRN: 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 19, 20, 21 &SUN: 14, 18, 22, 23, 24 &DRY: 7, 15, 16, 17; CVS.
| YOU CAN HELP US make sure that our distributional information is correct and current. If you know that a plant occurs in a wild, reproducing state in a Jepson bioregion NOT highlighted on the map, please contact us with that information. Please realize that we cannot incorporate range extensions without access to a voucher specimen, which should (ultimately) be deposited in an herbarium. You can send the pressed, dried collection (with complete locality information indicated) to us (e-mail us for details) or refer us to an accessioned herbarium specimen. Non-occurrence of a plant in an indicated area is difficult to document, but we will especially value your input on those types of possible errors (see automatic conversion of distribution data to maps). |
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