Polyceratocarpus Engl. & Diels, Notizbl. Konigl . Bot. Gart. Berlin 3: 56, 1900

Couvreur, Thomas L. P., Dagallier, Leo-Paul M. J., Crozier, Francoise, Ghogue, Jean-Paul, Hoekstra, Paul H., Kamdem, Narcisse G., Johnson, David M., Murray, Nancy A. & Sonke, Bonaventure, 2022, Flora of Cameroon - Annonaceae Vol 45, PhytoKeys 207, pp. 1-532 : 309

Polyceratocarpus Engl. & Diels, Notizbl. Konigl. Bot. Gart. Berlin 3: 56, 1900

= Alphonseopsis Baker f., Cat. Pl. Oban: 2, 1913.

Type species.

Polyceratocarpus scheffleri Engler et Diels.

Description.

Trees, 5-12 m tall, d.b.h. up to 10 cm; stilt roots or buttresses absent. Indumentum of simple hairs. Leaves: petiole 2-8 mm long, 1-3 mm in diameter, blade 9-34 cm long, 3-10 cm wide, oblong to obovate to elliptic, apex acuminate to acute, base cuneate to rounded, discolorous, whitish below; midrib sunken or flat or raised; secondary veins 9 to 17 pairs; tertiary venation intermediate to percurrent. Species unisexual and bisexual, androdioecious, inflorescences ramiflorous on young foliate or old leafless branches, axillary. Flowers with 9 perianth parts in 3 whorls, 1 to 4 per inflorescence; male and bisexual flowers similar; pedicel 5-10 mm long; in fruit 5-15 mm long; bract 1, basal, 2-3 mm long; sepals 3, valvate, basally or entirely fused, 1-4 mm long, triangular to ovate, apex acute, base truncate; petals free, petals subequal or outer petals longer than inner; outer petals 3, valvate, 10-25 mm long, 5-9 mm wide, oblong to elliptic to ovate, apex acute, base truncate; inner petals 3, valvate, 5-14 mm long, 3-7 mm wide, oblong or elliptic to obovate, apex acute, base truncate; stamens 90 to 200 (or numerous), in 7 to 20 rows, 1-6 mm long, linear or clavate; connective discoid, glabrous; staminodes absent; carpels free, 2 to 9, ovary 2-4 mm long, stigma cylindrical, glabrous or pubescent. Monocarps sessile, 2 to 7, 20-110 mm long, 10-30 mm in diameter, oblong to obovoid, apex rounded, glabrous, smooth or ribbed; seeds biseriate, 5-20 mm long, 3-10 mm in diameter, ellipsoid; aril absent.

Taxonomy.

no recent revision, but see Le Thomas (1969b) for the Gabonese species.

A genus of ca. eight species; in Cameroon three species are reported, none endemic.