Cornaceae

Cornaceae, the cornaceae, are a family of dicotyledonous plants belonging to the order Cornales. It is included in this family Nyssaceae.

Description

They can be trees, shrubs, or rarely perennial herbs. Simple and showy leaves, generally opposite, without stipules, deciduous. Flowers frequently hermaphroditic, actinomorphic, tetramerous; androecium with 4 alternipetalous stamens; bilocular inferior ovary gynoecium. Cymose inflorescences, usually paniculiform or umbelliform. Fruits drupe or sometimes berry. About 115 species, almost all from the temperate regions of the northern hemisphere.

Taxonomy

The family was described by Bercht. ex J.Presl and published in O Prirozenosti rostlin, aneb rostlinar 2(23): 92, 91. 1825. The type genus is: Cornus L.

Genres

• Afro-Christian
• Alangium
• Camptotheca
• Cornus
• Curtisia Aiton
• Davidia
• Diplopanax Hand.-Mazz.
• Mastixia
• Nyssa

Synonymy

• Curtisiaceae*[1] Archived on 3 January 2007 in Wayback Machine., Davidiaceae*[2], Mastixiaceae[3], Alangiaceae, Davidiaceae[4]