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This genus is accepted, and is native to Africa.

[FZ]

Urticaceae, I. Friis. Flora Zambesiaca 9:6. 1991

Morphology General Habit
Small to medium-sized shrubs or small trees, dioecious, deciduous, wood soft, juicy; younger branches herbaceous, with stinging hairs.
Morphology General Cystoliths
Cystoliths dot-like or slightly elongated.
Morphology Leaves
Leaves alternate, usually clustered in terminal rosettes, petiolate; lamina simple or lobed, base rounded or cordate, mostly with a velvety tomentum on the inferior side.
Morphology Leaves Stipules
Stipules free, lateral, mostly persisting.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescences mostly in the axils of fallen leaves, appearing before the new leaves, sometimes in the axils of the new leaves; flowers pedicellate, clustered in branched, bracteate panicles; male inflorescences smaller than the female ones.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Female flowers irregular, 4-merous, outer pair of tepals smaller than inner pair; tepals increasing in size and becoming thinly membranaceous in fruit; staminodes absent; ovary ovoid, with a sessile penicillate stigma. Male flowers regular, 5-merous, stamens equalling tepals in number, ovary rudimentary.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Achene compressed, enclosed in the persistent accrescent, membranaceous perianth.

[FTEA]

Urticaceae, I. Friis University of Copenhagen, Denmark. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 1989

Morphology General Habit
Small to medium-sized shrubs or small trees, completely deciduous in dry season, dioecious
Morphology Stem
Stems herbaceous when young, wood soft and juicy, pith often wide; cystoliths dot-like or slightly elongated
Morphology Leaves
Leaves alternate, usually clustered in terminal rosettes, petiolate, simple or lobed; stipules free, lateral
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Male inflorescences much smaller than ♀ ones Inflorescences bracted panicles, in axils of fallen leaves or sometimes of current or young leaves
sex Male
Male flowers 5-merous, regular, with rudimentary ovary
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Female flowers 4-merous, outer pair of tepals smaller than inner pair, both pairs enlarging and becoming thinly membranous in fruit; staminodes absent; ovary ovoid, oblique, with sessile penicillate stigma Male flowers 5-merous, regular, with rudimentary ovary
sex Female
Female flowers 4-merous, outer pair of tepals smaller than inner pair, both pairs enlarging and becoming thinly membranous in fruit; staminodes absent; ovary ovoid, oblique, with sessile penicillate stigma
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Achene compressed, enclosed in the persistent, accrescent membranous perianth.

Native to:

Aldabra, Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Cape Provinces, Kenya, KwaZulu-Natal, Madagascar, Mozambique, Namibia, Northern Provinces, Rodrigues, Rwanda, Réunion, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zaïre, Zimbabwe

Obetia Gaudich. appears in other Kew resources:

Date Reference Identified As Barcode Type Status
McWhirter, J. [189], Madagascar 32159.000

First published in Voy. Bonite, Bot. 3: t. 82 (1844)

Literature

Flora Zambesiaca

  • Friis in Kew Bull. 38: 221–228 (1983).
  • in Voy. Monde Bonite, Bot., Atlas: tab. 82 (1844).

Flora of Tropical East Africa

  • Friis in K.B. 38: 221–228 (1983)
  • G.F.P. 2: 182 (1967)
  • Engl. in E. & P. Pf. 3(1): 106 (1888)
  • G.P. 3: 382 (1880)
  • Voy. Monde Bonite, Bot., Atlas, t. 82 (1844)

Flora Zambesiaca
Flora Zambesiaca
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

Flora of Tropical East Africa
Flora of Tropical East Africa
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

Herbarium Catalogue Specimens
'The Herbarium Catalogue, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the Internet http://www.kew.org/herbcat [accessed on Day Month Year]'. Please enter the date on which you consulted the system.

Kew Backbone Distributions
The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families 2021. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/
© Copyright 2017 World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone
The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families 2021. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/
© Copyright 2017 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0