''Monodora tenuifolia'' is a species of

plant Plants are predominantly Photosynthesis, photosynthetic eukaryotes of the Kingdom (biology), kingdom Plantae. Historically, the plant kingdom encompassed all living things that were not animals, and included algae and fungi; however, all curr ...

in the family

Annonaceae The Annonaceae are a family of flowering plants consisting of trees, shrubs, or rarely lianas commonly known as the custard apple family or soursop family. With 108 accepted genera and about 2400 known species, it is the largest family in the M ...

. It is native to equatorial Africa.

George Bentham George Bentham (22 September 1800 – 10 September 1884) was an English botanist, described by the weed botanist Duane Isely as "the premier systematic botanist of the nineteenth century". Born into a distinguished family, he initially studi ...

, the English botanist who first formally described the species, named it after its slender ( in Latin) leaves ( in Latin).

Description

It is a tree reaching 30 meters in height with dark grey to green bark. Its trunk and branches can have white

lenticel A lenticel is a porous tissue consisting of cells with large intercellular spaces in the periderm of the secondarily thickened organs and the bark of woody stems and roots of dicotyledonous flowering plants. It functions as a pore, providing a ...

s. Its hairless, papery to leathery, elliptical to oval leaves are 6-21 by 2-7.5 centimeters. The tips of the leaves taper to a point, and the tapered portion is 5-10 millimeters long. The leaf bases wedge-shaped. The leaves are green on their upper surface and paler green on their lower surface. The leaves have 9-15 pairs of secondary veins emanating from their midribs. Its hairless petioles are 2-7 by 1-2 millimeters and have a groove on their upper surface. It has solitary flowers, positioned opposite from leaves, that hang down. Each flower is born on a light green, hairless

pedicel Pedicle or pedicel may refer to: Human anatomy *Pedicle of vertebral arch, the segment between the transverse process and the vertebral body, and is often used as a radiographic marker and entry point in vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty procedures ...

that is 25-75 by 1-1.5 millimeters. The pedicels have a oval bract that is 55-60 by 10-30 millimeters. The base of the bract partially wraps the pedicel and its tip is rounded. The bracts are light green with red highlights at the tips and have wavy edges. The upper and lower faces of the bract are hairless, but the edges have short hairs. It has 3 oval, hairless,

sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coined ...

s are 10-35 by 4-16 millimeters. The sepals are green with red highlights. The sepals have flat bases, rounded to gradually narrowing tips and wavy edges. Its flowers have 6 petals in two rows of three. The outer petals are yellow-green with red-brown streaks. The hairless, oval outer petals are 30-90 by 25-30 millimeters. The outer petals have flat bases, rounded to pointed tips and very wavy margins. The hairless inner petals are 10-35 by 6-10 millimeters. The inner petals are white to green and streaked with reddish brown highlights. The inner petals have wedge-shaped bases and rounded to pointed tips. The inner petals have two distinctive hairy appendages that are 3-5 millimeters in length, positioned halfway up either margin. The inner petals have a basal

claw A claw is a curved, pointed appendage found at the end of a toe or finger in most amniotes (mammals, reptiles, birds). Some invertebrates such as beetles and spiders have somewhat similar fine, hooked structures at the end of the leg or tars ...

below the blade. Its flowers have 10-13 rows of yellowish white

stamen The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filam ...

that are 0.8-1 millimeters long. The stamen filaments extend above the anthers to form a shield. Its

carpels Gynoecium (; ) is most commonly used as a collective term for the parts of a flower that produce ovules and ultimately develop into the fruit and seeds. The gynoecium is the innermost whorl of a flower; it consists of (one or more) ''pistils'' ...

are fused forming an ovary wall that is 2-3 by 1.5 millimeters. Its green, hairless stigma are 2 millimeters in diameter. The fruit are born on a hairless, woody

pedicels In botany, a pedicel is a stem that attaches a single flower to the inflorescence. Such inflorescences are described as ''pedicellate''. Description Pedicel refers to a structure connecting a single flower to its inflorescence. In the absenc ...

that are 3-7 by 3-4 millimeters. The hairless, round fruit are 4-7 by 4.5-7 centimeters. The fruit are green with light spots, smooth and covered in a distinctive grey-blue wax. The fruit have white pulp, and elliptical, smooth, light brown seeds that are 12-17 by 10-13 millimeters.

Reproductive biology

The pollen is shed as permanent tetrads. Field observations suggest that it is pollinated by flies.

Habitat and distribution

It has been observed growing in sandy soil in evergreen rain forests, gallery forests, deciduous forests, and savanna-like habitats at elevations from 0-800 meters.

Uses

Its seeds have been reported to be used as a supplemental food source, but it has questionable dietary value and is particularly low in lysine. It is used as a traditional medicine, a fiber and wood source, and as an ornamental.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q15363810 Flora of Angola Flora of Benin Flora of Cameroon Flora of the Central African Republic Flora of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Flora of Gabon Flora of Ghana Flora of Guinea Flora of Guinea-Bissau Flora of Ivory Coast Flora of Liberia Flora of Nigeria Flora of the Republic of the Congo Flora of Senegal Flora of Sierra Leone Flora of Togo Plants described in 1861 tenuifolia Taxa named by George Bentham