''Tasmannia'' is a genus of about 36 species of flowering plants in the family
Winteraceae
Winteraceae is a primitive family of tropical trees and shrubs including 93 species in five genera. It is of particular interest because it is such a primitive angiosperm family, distantly related to Magnoliaceae, though it has a much more south ...
, and is native to Australia and New Guinea, with one species ('' Tasmannia piperita'') also found in parts of
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 ...
. Plants in the genus ''Tasmannia'' are shrubs or small trees, usually
dioecious
Dioecy ( ; ; adj. dioecious, ) is a characteristic of certain species that have distinct unisexual individuals, each producing either male or female gametes, either directly (in animals) or indirectly (in seed plants). Dioecious reproduction is ...
with
simple
Simple or SIMPLE may refer to:
*Simplicity, the state or quality of being simple
Arts and entertainment
* ''Simple'' (album), by Andy Yorke, 2008, and its title track
* "Simple" (Florida Georgia Line song), 2018
* "Simple", a song by John ...
leaves, mostly white, sometimes yellow flowers, and one to many clusters of
berries
A berry is a small, pulpy, and often edible fruit. Typically, berries are juicy, rounded, brightly colored, sweet, sour or tart, and do not have a stone fruit, stone or pit (fruit), pit although many wikt:pip#Etymology 2, pips or seeds may be p ...
.
Description
Plants in the genus ''Tasmannia'' are shrubs or small trees that are usually dioecious, with simple, aromatic leaves arranged alternately along the branchlets, and have fine oil dots. There are no
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. The flowers are usually white, sometimes yellow and arranged singly in the axils of bud scales, appearing like an
umbel
UMBEL (Upper Mapping and Binding Exchange Layer) is a logically organized knowledge graph of 34,000 concepts and entity types that can be used in information science for relating information from disparate sources to one another. It was retired ...
, later becoming like a
whorl
A whorl ( or ) is an individual circle, oval, volution or equivalent in a whorled pattern, which consists of a spiral or multiple concentric objects (including circles, ovals and arcs).
In nature
File:Photograph and axial plane floral diagra ...
. The
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
Etymology
The term ''sepalum'' ...
s are joined together, completely enclosing the flower bud, later splitting into lobes. The fruit is a berry arranged singly or in clusters of up to 6.
Taxonomy
The genus ''Tasmannia'' was first formally described by published by
Augustin Pyramus de Candolle
Augustin Pyramus (or Pyrame) de Candolle (, , ; 4 February 17789 September 1841) was a Swiss people, Swiss botany, botanist. René Louiche Desfontaines launched de Candolle's botanical career by recommending him at a herbarium. Within a couple ...
in his ''Regni Vegetabilis Systema Naturale'', from an unpublished description by
Robert Brown (botanist, born 1773)
Robert Brown (21 December 1773 – 10 June 1858) was a Scottish botanist and paleobotanist who made important contributions to botany largely through his pioneering use of the microscope. His contributions include one of the earliest detail ...
.
The genus name, ''Tasmannia'' honours the Dutch explorer
Abel Tasman
Abel Janszoon Tasman (; 160310 October 1659) was a Dutch sea explorer, seafarer and exploration, explorer, best known for his voyages of 1642 and 1644 in the service of the Dutch East India Company (VOC). He was the first European to reach New ...
.
The taxonomic status of, and evolutionary relationship between ''Tasmannia'' and ''
Drimys
''Drimys'' is a genus of seven species of woody evergreen flowering plants, in the family Winteraceae. The species are native to the Neotropics, ranging from southern Mexico to the southern tip of South America.Andrew Doust and Andrew Dinnan confirmed that the two genera do not form a
monophyletic
In biological cladistics for the classification of organisms, monophyly is the condition of a taxonomic grouping being a clade – that is, a grouping of organisms which meets these criteria:
# the grouping contains its own most recent co ...
group, although they share distinctive similarities in their flowers.
Species list
The following is a list of ''Tasmannia'' species accepted by
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 ...
as at April 2024:
Distribution and habitat
In Australia, the genus ''Tasmannia'' ranges from
Tasmania
Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...
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 ...
to southeastern
Queensland
Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...
, and in the mountains of northeastern Queensland, where it grows in moist mountain forests and in wet areas in the drier forest and along watercourses to an elevation of 1500 m (5000 ft).
* Sampson, F.B., Williams, J.B. and Woodland, Poh S., The Morphology and Taxonomic Position of ''Tasmannia glaucifolia'' (Winteraceae), 1988. A New Australian Species. ''Australian Journal of Botany'' 36 (4): 395–414.
* Smith, Keith and Irene. 1999. ''Grow your own bushfoods.'' New Holland Publishers, Sydney, Australia.
* Robins, Juleigh. 1996. ''Wild Lime: Cooking from the bushfood garden.'' Allen & Unwin Pty Ltd, Sydney, Australia.
* Bryant, Geoff. 2005. ''The Random House Encyclopedia of Australian Native Plants.'' Random House, Sydney, Australia.
* Australian Broadcasting Corporation. ''Flora's native plants.'' ABC Books, Sydney, Australia.
* Low, Tim. 1991. ''Wild food plants of Australia.'' Angus & Robertson Publishers, Sydney, Australia.