''Exocarpos'' is a genus of

flowering Flowers, also known as blooms and blossoms, are the reproductive structures of flowering plants ( angiosperms). Typically, they are structured in four circular levels, called whorls, around the end of a stalk. These whorls include: calyx, m ...

shrub A shrub or bush is a small to medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees by their multiple ...

s and small

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 in the sandalwood family,

Santalaceae The Santalaceae, sandalwoods, are a widely distributed family of flowering plants (including small trees, shrubs, perennial plants, perennial herbs, and epiphyte, epiphytic climbersHewson & George t al.'Santalaceae'' taxonomy, 1984, pp. 191-1 ...

. They are found throughout

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Mainland Au ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

and the

Pacific Islands The Pacific islands are a group of islands in the Pacific Ocean. They are further categorized into three major island groups: Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Depending on the context, the term ''Pacific Islands'' may refer to one of several ...

. They are semi-

parasitic Parasitism is a close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives (at least some of the time) on or inside another organism, the host, causing it some harm, and is adapted structurally to this way of life. The ent ...

, requiring the roots of a host tree, a trait they share with many other members of the Santalaceae. In Australia, some species are also known as ballarts or cherries. The genus ''Exocarpos'' was first described by Jacques Labillardière on 7 May 1792:

I discovered an evergreen tree, which has its nut situated, like that of the acajou, upon a fleshy receptacle much larger than itself. I therefore named this new genus ''exocarpos. . . .'' The principal characters of this plant have led me to rank it among the terebinthinaceous tribe, next to the anacardium. I have given it the name of ''exocarpos cupressiformis''.

Convention dictates that the taxon is often expressed as Exocarpos Labill. 1798. The name exocarpos derives from the Greek exo (outside) and caryon (nut). Within Australia, an identification key is available for

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

species, and for

Victorian Victorian or Victorians may refer to: 19th century * Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign ** Victorian architecture ** Victorian house ** Victorian decorative arts ** Victorian fashion ** Victorian literatur ...

species.

''Exocarpos'' species

* '' Exocarpos aphyllus'' R.Br. - Leafless ballart, jointed cherry * '' Exocarpos bidwillii'' Hook.f. New Zealand * '' Exocarpos cupressiformis'' Labill. - Cherry ballart, cypress cherry * ''

Exocarpos dasystachys ''Exocarpos'' is a genus of Flowering plant, flowering shrubs and small trees in the sandalwood family, Santalaceae. They are found throughout Southeast Asia, Australia and the Pacific Islands. They are semi-Parasitic plant, parasitic, requiring ...

Schltdl. Diederich Franz Leonhard von Schlechtendal (27 November 1794, Xanten – 12 October 1866, Halle an der Saale, Halle) was a German botanist. Life and work Von Schlechtendal was born in Xanten, Xanten am Rhein and when his father Diederich Fried ...

* '' Exocarpos floribunda'' Domin * '' Exocarpos gaudichaudii'' A.DC. - ''Hulumoa'' (

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

) * '' Exocarpos glandulacea'' Miq. * '' Exocarpos homalocladus'' C.Moore &

F.Muell. Baron Sir Ferdinand Jacob Heinrich von Mueller, (; 30 June 1825 – 10 October 1896) was a German-Australian physician, geographer, and most notably, a botanist. He was appointed government botanist for the then colony of Victoria (state), Vic ...

- Grass tree * '' Exocarpos humifusus'' R.Br. * '' Exocarpos latifolius'' R.Br. - Broad-leaved cherry * '' Exocarpos leptomerioides'' Miq. * '' Exocarpos longifolius'' (L.) Endl. * '' Exocarpos luteolus''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...

- ''Heau'' (Island of

Kauai Kauai (), anglicized as Kauai ( or ), is one of the main Hawaiian Islands. It has an area of 562.3 square miles (1,456.4 km2), making it the fourth-largest of the islands and the 21st-largest island in the United States. Kauai lies 73 m ...

in Hawaii) * '' Exocarpos menziesii'' Stauffer - ''Heau'' (Hawaii) * '' Exocarpos nanus'' Hook.f. - Alpine ballart * '' Exocarpos odoratus'' (Miq.) A.DC. - Scented ballart * '' Exocarpos pendula'' F.Muell. * '' Exocarpos sparteus'' R.Br. - Broom ballart, slender cherry * '' Exocarpos strictus'' R.Br. - Pale-fruit ballart, dwarf cherry * '' Exocarpos syrticola'' (F.Muell. ex Miq.) Stauffer - Coast ballart

References

External links

What's Its Name?

FloraBase - The West Australian Flora: ''Exocarpos''

PlantNet - New South Wales Flora Online: ''Exocarpos''
Santalaceae genera {{Santalales-stub Etymology