Bombacopsis Quinatum
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''Pachira'' is a genus of tropical
tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, e.g., including only woody plants with secondary growth, only ...
s distributed in Central and South America. They are classified in the subfamily
Bombacoideae Bombacoideae is a subfamily of the mallow family, Malvaceae. It contains herbaceous and woody plants. Their leaves are alternate, commonly palmately lobed, with small and caducous stipules. The flowers are hermaphroditic and actinomorphic; the c ...
of the family
Malvaceae Malvaceae (), or the mallows, is a family of flowering plants estimated to contain 244 genera with 4225 known species. Well-known members of economic importance include Theobroma cacao, cacao, Cola (plant), cola, cotton, okra, Hibiscus sabdariffa, ...
. Previously the genus was assigned to
Bombacaceae Bombacaceae were long recognised as a family of flowering plants or Angiospermae. The family name was based on the type genus '' Bombax''. As is true for many botanical names, circumscription and status of the taxon has varied with taxonomic poi ...
. Prior to that the genus was found in the (now obsolete)
Sterculiaceae Sterculiaceae was a family of flowering plant based on the genus '' Sterculia''. Genera formerly included in Sterculiaceae are now placed in the family Malvaceae, in the subfamilies: Byttnerioideae, Dombeyoideae, Helicteroideae and Sterculioide ...
. Some 77 species have been identified. They form small or large trees with
digitate The following terms are used to describe leaf morphology in the description and taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (that is, the leaf blade or 'lamina' is undivided) or compound (that is, the leaf blade is divided into two or more leaflets) ...
leaves, and the fruit an oval woody one-celled capsule opening by a number of divisions and containing many seeds. The genus name is derived from a language spoken in
Guyana Guyana, officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern coast of South America, part of the historic British West Indies. entry "Guyana" Georgetown, Guyana, Georgetown is the capital of Guyana and is also the co ...
.Helmut Genaust (1983): Etymologisches Wörterbuch der botanischen Pflanzennamen, 2. Auflage. Birkhäuser Verlag –


History

Although first named ''Pachira'' by Jean Baptiste Aublet in 1775,
Carl Linnaeus the Younger Carl Linnaeus the Younger, Carolus Linnaeus the Younger, Carl von Linné den yngre ( Swedish; abbreviated Carl von Linné d. y.), or ''Linnaeus filius'' (Latin for ''Linnaeus the son''; abbreviated L.fil. (outdated) or L.f. (modern) as a botani ...
unaware of this separately is said to have called the genus ''Carolinea'' after Princess (or Marchioness) "Sophia Caroline of Baden" in 1782. The principle of precedence gives the authority to Pachira. The
Margrave of Baden The Margraviate of Baden () was a historical territory of the Holy Roman Empire. Spread along the right banks of the Upper Rhine in south-western Germany, it was named a margraviate in 1112 and existed until 1535, when it was split into the two ...
, Karl Wilhelm (1709 – 1738) founded the
Karlsruhe Palace Karlsruhe Palace () was built in 1715 for Margrave Charles III William, Margrave of Baden-Durlach, Charles III William of Baden-Durlach after a dispute with the citizens of his previous capital, Durlach. The city of Karlsruhe has since grown arou ...
(''Karlsruher Schloß'') in 1715. He had a considerable interest in Botany, particularly the exotic, and had large numbers of trees imported for the Palace Gardens (''Schloßgarten''). He was succeeded by his Grandson, Karl Friedrich (1738 - 1811) who married Princess Karoline Luise von Hessen-Darmstadt (1723 - 1783) in 1751. Karoline Luise was a noted botanist. She corresponded with Carl von Linné (
Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné,#Blunt, Blunt (2004), p. 171. was a Swedish biologist and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the modern system of naming o ...
), cultivated numerous plants in the palace gardens, had engravings of them made for a book and had them all classified according to Linnaeus' system. Linnaeus' son, Carl Linnaeus the younger, recognised her contributions by naming one of the trees, ''
Pachira aquatica ''Pachira aquatica'' is a species of tropical wetland tree in the mallow family Malvaceae, native to Central and South America where it grows in swamps. It is known by its common names Malabar chestnut, French peanut, Guiana chestnut, provisio ...
'' (German: ''Glückskastanie'') ''Carolinea princeps'' after her.


Commercial use

Timber, cordage and seeds for stuffing pillows and cushions. Brande and Cox (eds.) A dictionary of science, literature, & art. Longmans, London 1866 Pachira II: 761
/ref>


Selected species

* ''
Pachira aquatica ''Pachira aquatica'' is a species of tropical wetland tree in the mallow family Malvaceae, native to Central and South America where it grows in swamps. It is known by its common names Malabar chestnut, French peanut, Guiana chestnut, provisio ...
'' Aubl. (syn. ''P. macrocarpa'') * ''
Pachira emarginata ''Pachira'' is a genus of tropical trees distributed in Central and South America. They are classified in the subfamily Bombacoideae of the family Malvaceae. Previously the genus was assigned to Bombacaceae. Prior to that the genus was found in ...
'' A. Rich. * ''
Pachira glabra ''Pachira glabra'' (synonym (taxonomy), syn. ''Bombacopsis glabra'') is a tropical wetland tree in the mallow family, Malvaceae, native to eastern Brazil, where it grows along waterways. It is generally known by the nonscientific names Guinea pea ...
'' Pasq. * ''
Pachira insignis ''Pachira insignis'' is a tree belonging to the Baobab Subfamily (Bombacoideae) of the Mallow Family (Malvaceae) and native to the tropics of South America and nearby islands (e.g. Trinidad). Its English common names include "wild chestnut" and ...
'' (Sw.) Savigny * ''
Pachira orinocensis ''Pachira'' is a genus of tropical trees distributed in Central and South America. They are classified in the subfamily Bombacoideae of the family Malvaceae. Previously the genus was assigned to Bombacaceae. Prior to that the genus was found in ...
'' (A.Robyns) W.S.Alverson * ''
Pachira quinata ''Pachira quinata'', commonly known as pochote, is a species of flowering tree in the mallow family, Malvaceae. It inhabits dry forests in Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras Panama, Venezuela, and Colombia. Pochotes bear large, stubby thorns on th ...
'' (Jacq.) W.S.Alverson *''
Pachira sessilis ''Pachira sessilis'' is a neotropical tree in the subfamily Bombacoideae of the family Malvaceae and is native to Central America. Its common name is ''yuco de monte''. The leaves are palmately divided with 5 to 7 leaflets, but differ from other ...
'' Benth.


Formerly placed here

* ''
Pseudobombax grandiflorum ''Pseudobombax'' is a genus of flowering plants in the subfamily Bombacoideae of the family Malvaceae. The genus ranges across tropical South America, Central America, Mexico, Cuba, Hispaniola, and the Windward Islands."''Pseudobombax'' Dugand". ...
'' (Cav.) A.Robyns (as ''P. cyathophora'' Casar.)


References


Further reading

* *
New Species and Combinations of ''Catostemma'' and ''Pachira'' (Bombacaceae) from the Venezuelan Guayana. William S. Alverson. Novon Vol. 4, No. 1 (Spring, 1994), pp. 3-8

Don G. A general system of gardening and botany: containing a complete enumeration and description of all plants hitherto known with their generic and specific characters, places of growth, time of flowering, mode of culture and their uses in medicine and domestic economy : preceded by introductions to the linnaean and natural systems and a glossary of the terms used; founded upon Miller's Gardener's dictionary and arranged according to the natural system; in four volumes. London 1831. Carolinea I: 510
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2632055 Bombacoideae Malvaceae genera