Meliaceae, the mahogany family, is a

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...

family of mostly trees and shrubs (and a few

herbaceous Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials. Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous" The fourth edition of ...

plants,

mangroves A mangrove is a shrub or tree that grows mainly in coastal saline or brackish water. Mangroves grow in an equatorial climate, typically along coastlines and tidal rivers. They have particular adaptations to take in extra oxygen and remove sal ...

) in the order Sapindales. They are characterised by alternate, usually pinnate leaves without

stipule In botany, a stipule is an outgrowth typically borne on both sides (sometimes on just one side) of the base of a leafstalk (the petiole (botany), petiole). They are primarily found among dicots and rare among monocots. Stipules are considered part ...

s, and by syncarpous, apparently bisexual (but actually mostly cryptically unisexual) flowers borne in

panicle In botany, a panicle is a much-branched inflorescence. (softcover ). Some authors distinguish it from a compound spike inflorescence, by requiring that the flowers (and fruit) be pedicellate (having a single stem per flower). The branches of a p ...

s, cymes, spikes or clusters. Most species are

evergreen In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has Leaf, foliage that remains green and functional throughout the year. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which lose their foliage completely during the winter or dry season. Consisting of many diffe ...

, but some are

deciduous In the fields of horticulture and botany, the term deciduous () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed Leaf, leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...

, either in the

dry season The dry season is a yearly period of low rainfall, especially in the tropics. The weather in the tropics is dominated by the tropical rain belt, which moves from the northern to the southern tropics and back over the course of the year. The t ...

or in winter. The family includes about 53 genera and about 600 known species, with a pantropical distribution; one genus ('' Toona'') extends north into temperate China and south into southeast Australia, another (''Synoum'') into southeast Australia, and another (''Melia'') nearly as far north. They most commonly grow as understory trees in rainforests, but are also found in mangroves and arid regions. The fossil record of the family extends back into the Late Cretaceous. Fruits of Chisocheton paniculatus

Uses

Various species are used for vegetable oil, soap-making, insecticides, and highly prized wood (mahogany). Some economically important genera and species belong to this family: *'' Azadirachta indica'', neem tree (India) *'' Carapa'': includes the "crabwood trees" ''e.g. Carapa procera'' (South America and Africa) *''

Cedrela odorata ''Cedrela'' is a genus of several species in the mahogany family, Meliaceae. They are evergreen or dry-season deciduous trees with pinnate leaves, native to the tropical and subtropical New World, from southern Mexico south to northern Argentina ...

'' Central and South America; timber also known as Spanish-cedar *'' Entandrophragma'': includes

sapele ''Entandrophragma cylindricum'' is a tree of the genus ''Entandrophragma'' of the family ''Meliaceae''. It is commonly known as sapele or sapelli ( ) or sapele mahogany, as well as aboudikro, assi, and muyovu. Origin of the name The name ''sape ...

(''Entandrophragma cylindricum''), and "utile" or "sipo" ('' E. utile'') of tropical Africa *'' Guarea'', the genus of ''Bossé'' or "pink mahogany", includes: '' G. thompsonii'' and '' G. cedrata'' (Africa) *'' Khaya'' includes: Ivory Coast Mahogany and Senegal Mahogany (tropical Africa) *'' Lansium domesticum'', lanzones, grown for its edible fruit in

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 ...

*''

Melia azedarach ''Melia azedarach'', commonly known as the chinaberry tree, pride of India, bead-tree, Cape lilac, syringa berrytree, Persian lilac, Indian lilac, or white cedar, is a species of deciduous tree in the mahogany family (biology), family, Meliace ...

'', Chinaberry or white cedar (

Indomalaya The Indomalayan realm is one of the eight biogeographic realms. It extends across most of South and Southeast Asia and into the southern parts of East Asia. Also called the Oriental realm by biogeographers, Indomalaya spreads all over the Ind ...

and

Australasia Australasia is a subregion of Oceania, comprising Australia, New Zealand (overlapping with Polynesia), and sometimes including New Guinea and surrounding islands (overlapping with Melanesia). The term is used in a number of different context ...

) *'' Sandoricum koetjape'', santol, grown for its edible fruit in

and

South Asia South Asia is the southern Subregion#Asia, subregion of Asia that is defined in both geographical and Ethnicity, ethnic-Culture, cultural terms. South Asia, with a population of 2.04 billion, contains a quarter (25%) of the world's populatio ...

*''

Swietenia ''Swietenia'' is a genus of trees in the Melia azedarach, chinaberry family, Meliaceae. It occurs natively in the Neotropics, from southern Florida, the Caribbean, Mexico and Central America south to Bolivia. The genus is named for Dutch-Austria ...

'' is the classic "mahogany" genus from the tropical

Americas The Americas, sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America and South America.''Webster's New World College Dictionary'', 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio. When viewed as a sing ...

*'' Toona'': the genus of "toon tree" species (tropical

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

Malesia Malesia is a biogeographical region straddling the Equator and the boundaries of the Indomalayan and Australasian realms. It is a phytogeographical floristic region in the Paleotropical kingdom. It was first recognized as a distinct region ...

, and

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 ...

), especially '' Toona ciliata''

Genera

58 genera are currently accepted.''Meliaceae'' Juss.
''

Plants of the World Online Plants of the World Online (POWO) is an online taxonomic database published by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. History Following the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew launched Plants of the World Online i ...

''. Retrieved 9 February 2024. The family is divided into two subfamilies, Cedreloideae and Melioideae, which are supported by phylogenetic evidence.Holzmeyer, L., Hauenschild, F., Mabberley, D.J. and Muellner-Riehl, A.N. (2021), Confirmed polyphyly, generic recircumscription and typification of Dysoxylum (Meliaceae), with revised disposition of currently accepted species. ''Taxon'', 70: 1248-1272. https://doi.org/10.1002/tax.12591

Subfamily Cedreloideae

This is also known as subfamily Swietenioideae.

Subfamily Melioideae

Notes

References

* (1975): A generic monograph of the Meliaceae. ''Blumea'' 22: 419–540.

External links

Meliaceae
i
L. Watson and M.J. Dallwitz (1992 onwards). The families of flowering plants.

Project Meliaceae
{{Authority control Sapindales families