Small trees to shrubs, or climbers. Buttresses absent. Spines absent. Stilt roots absent. Bark gray, brown; not peeling in strips. Exudate absent. Terminal buds not enclosed by leaves.
Complex hairs absent. Stinging hairs absent. Mature twig indumentum absent.
Leaves spiral; not scale-like; simple; all of the same type; not modified into spines; coriaceous; gland-dotted, or not gland-dotted; symmetric at the base; not dissected; smooth margined, or wavy margined, or with small to large teeth on margin. Epidermis not waxy. Venation pinnate. Secondary veins open; not prominent, but visible. Smallest veins not prominent, but visible; net like. Intramarginal vein absent. Stalk of blade less than a quarter the length of the blade; not winged; attached to base of leaf blade; not swollen. Stipules absent. Domatia absent. Basal glands absent. Hairs on mature leaf present, or absent; dense, or sparse.
Inflorescences present; terminal, or axillary; on a branched axis; specialized inflorescence units absent; numerous and persistent inflorescence bracts absent. Flowers at least some flowers unisexual; with male and female flowers on the same plant; stalked; about 0.5 cm long or across; round; with male or female parts not raised on a column. Hypanthium absent. Disk absent. Perianth present; with distinct calyx and corolla whorls. Sepals (4-)5; partially joined; persistent in fruit; not growing any further after flowering. Epicalyx absent. Petals present; (4-)5; all joined; not fleshy; deciduous; not stalked; entire. Stamens (4-)5; filaments present; free of each other; joined to the perianth; all equal in size; isomerous; alternating with the sepals (when isomerous). Anthers 2 loculed; not awned; dehiscing by long slits. Ovary partly inferior. Carpels joined; 4-5. Locules 1. Styles solitary. Stigmas 1 lobed; not distinctive. Fruit berry-like; fleshy, or non-fleshy; not multiple; not splitting; not enclosed in, or sitting on, fleshy perianth parts; wingless. Seeds 100 per fruit (many); barely visible, or less than 5 mm; wingless; uniform in cross-section; aril absent; endospermic.
Flowers with two bracts at the base; ovary appears half inferior. Taxon images: maesa.gif
Cite this publication as: Jarvie, J.K. and
Ermayanti (1996 onwards). `Tree Genera of Borneo – Descriptions and
Illustrations’ URL
http://django.harvard.edu/users/jjarvie/Borneo.htm/.
Dallwitz (1980) and Dallwitz,
Paine and Zurcher (1993) should also be cited.
