Fontanesia

Taxobox
name = "Fontanesia philliraeoides"


image_width = 240px
regnum = Plantae
divisio = Magnoliophyta
classis = Magnoliopsida
ordo = Lamiales
familia = Oleaceae
genus = "Fontanesia"
genus_authority = Labill.
species = "F. philliraeoides"
binomial = "Fontanesia philliraeoides"
binomial_authority = Labill.

"Fontanesia" is a genus of flowering plants in the family Oleaceae, usually treated as comprising a single species "Fontanesia philliraeoides", though some authors split this into two species (see below). It is native to southern Europe (Sicily), southwestern Asia (Lebanon, Syria, Turkey) and eastern Asia (China), with two well-separated populations.Flora of China: [http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=2&taxon_id=112917 "Fontanesia" genus page] , [http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=2&taxon_id=210000542 "Fontanesia philliraeoides" species page] ] Germplasm Resources Information Network: [http://www.ars-grin.gov/cgi-bin/npgs/html/taxon.pl?214 "Fontanesia philliraeoides"] ] Flora Europaea: [http://rbg-web2.rbge.org.uk/cgi-bin/nph-readbtree.pl/feout?FAMILY_XREF=&GENUS_XREF=Fontanesia&SPECIES_XREF=&TAXON_NAME_XREF=&RANK= "Fontanesia"] ]

It is a deciduous shrub growing to 8 m tall. The leaves are opposite, lanceolate to narrow ovate, 3–12 cm long and 8–26 mm broad, with an acute apex and a usually entire margin, sometimes finely serrated. The flowers are white, with a deeply four-lobed corolla; they are produced in panicles 2–6 cm long. The fruit is a flat samara, surrounded by a wing.

There are two subspecies,Huxley, A., ed. (1992). "New RHS Dictionary of Gardening". Macmillan ISBN 0-333-47494-5.] often treated in the past as separate species.Bean, W. J. (1978). "Trees and Shrubs Hardy in the British Isles" 8th ed., vol. 2. John Murray ISBN 0-7195-2256-0.] Despite the distance separating the two, the differences between them are minimal; the leaves of subsp. "philliraeoides" are sometimes cited as having finely serrated margins, but this character is not reliable.
*"Fontanesia philliraeoides" subsp. "philliraeoides". Southern Europe, southwest Asia. Leaves up to 8 cm long, dull green above.
*"Fontanesia philliraeoides" subsp. "fortunei" (Carr.) Yalt. (syn. "F. fortunei" Carr.; "F. phillyreoides" var. "sinensis" Debeaux). China (Anhui, Hebei, Henan, Hubei, Jiangsu, Shaanxi, Shandong, Zhejiang). Leaves up to 12 cm long, glossy green above.

The species name is often erroneously cited as "phillyreoides".

References