Verbenaceae
Citharexylum

Citharexylum spinosum L.

First published in Sp. Pl.: 625 (1753)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is Caribbean, Panama to N. South America. It is a shrub or tree and grows primarily in the wet tropical biome. It is used as a medicine and for food.

Descriptions

George R. Proctor (2012). Flora of the Cayman Isands (Second Edition). Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew

Morphology General Habit
A glabrous shrub or small tree to 5 m tall, the branchlets closely striate-grooved; leaves rather long-petiolate, the blades elliptic or oblong-elliptic to ovate, mostly 5–9 cm long or sometimes longer, rounded and often notched at the apex or sometimes abruptly short- acuminate, the upper surface shining and with prominulous venation
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Spikes often curved or lax, mostly 4–10 cm long; flowers sessile, fragrant; calyx 3–4 mm long, with broadly triangular lobes; corolla white, with funnel-shaped tube 4–6 mm long
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Drupes red at first, turning black, subglobose, 8–12 mm in diameter.
Distribution
Cayman Islands. Florida, the West Indies and northern S. America.
Ecology
In rocky thickets and woodlands.
[Cayman]

Vernacular
Almizclillo
[UPFC]

Flora Zambesiaca. Vol 8, Pt 7. Avicenniaceae, R. Fernandes. Nesogenaceae, M.A. Diniz. Verbenaceae, R. Fernandes. Lamiaceae, R. Fernandes. 2005.

Type
Type from Barbados.
Morphology General
A shrub or tree up to 16 m tall, without spines; branches and branchlets 4-angled, glabrous
Morphology Leaves
Leaves opposite, petiolate; lamina 4.5–21 × l.5–8 cm oblong, elliptic to obovate, acute or very shortly acuminate to obtuse or rounded and sometimes emarginate at the apex, more or less cuneate towards the base and there with 1–3 pairs of glands, entire, chartaceous to coriaceous, shiny and glabrous on both faces or shortly pubescent beneath
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Racemes mostly terminal, 3.5–26.5 cm long, usually lax, nutant or pendulous, many-flowered
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Flowers odoriferous, usually functionally dioecious
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Calyx 2.5–4 mm long, cup-shaped, thin, with the apex very shortly 5-dentate or truncate
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Corolla white or greenish-white; corolla tube 2–6 mm long
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Drupe up to 13 × 12 mm, oblong or subglobose, pink or red to orange or purple when immature, then purplish or black at maturity, surrounded at the base by the persistent, indurated calyx.
Note
  Brummitt 9222 (K), from a plant cultivation on Maone Estate, Blantyre Distr., Malawi, is perhaps C. spinosum L. Balsinhas 1836 has leaves shortly and finely pubescent beneath and perhaps belongs to var. subvillosum Moldenke.  However, considering the great variation of the species, this variety is not recognized here.
Distribution
Native of Florida, southern United States, West Indies and northern South America.  Cultivated in some countries. Mozambique District code: MOZ M.
[FZ]

Bernal, R., Gradstein, S.R. & Celis, M. (eds.). 2015. Catálogo de plantas y líquenes de Colombia. Instituto de Ciencias Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá. http://catalogoplantasdecolombia.unal.edu.co

Distribution
Colombia
[CPLC]

Distribution
Native to Colombia.
Conservation
IUCN Red List Assessment (2021): LC.
Ecology
Habitat according IUCN Habitats Classification: forest and woodland.
[UPFC]

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/179300782/179300784

Conservation
LC - least concern
[IUCN]

Uses

Use Food
Used for food.
Use Medicines
Medical uses.
[UPFC]

Sources

  • Catálogo de Plantas y Líquenes de Colombia

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

  • Flora Zambesiaca

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

  • Flora of the Cayman Islands

    • Flora of the Cayman Islands
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Herbarium Catalogue Specimens

    • Digital Image © Board of Trustees, RBG Kew http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

  • IUCN Categories

    • IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Kew Backbone Distributions

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Useful Plants and Fungi of Colombia

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