- Mellissia
-
Saint Helena boxwood 
Conservation status Scientific classification Kingdom: Plantae (unranked): Angiosperms (unranked): Eudicots (unranked): Asterids Order: Solanales Family: Solanaceae Genus: Mellissia
Hook.f.Species: M. begoniifolia Binomial name Mellissia begoniifolia
(Roxb.) Hook. f.Mellissia is a genus in the family Solanaceae with a single species, Mellissia begoniifolia (Saint Helena Boxwood), that is endemic to the island of Saint Helena. It was named by Joseph Dalton Hooker in honour of John Charles Melliss, a 19th century engineer and amateur naturalist who worked on Saint Helena.
Mellissia begoniifolia is notable for the subcampanulate calyx which encloses the white corolla, and is strongly accrescent in fruit, somewhat like the "Chinese lantern" genus, Physalis. However, it is in fact closely related to the genus Withania.
The plant was long thought to be extinct but a small population was discovered in 1998 by Stedson Stroud. As of 2011, it was considered "effectively extinct in the wild" by experts at Kew Botanical Garden because there were no longer any flowering plants left in the wild. Only one adult plant was left by 2010, and it was under extreme stress due to drought and pests. That plant died, but some seedlings sprouted from 2011 rains. The survival of the seedlings is questionable.[1]
Contents
Notes
- ^ "Mellissia begoniifolia (St Helena boxwood)". Kew Plants & Fungi. Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew. http://www.kew.org/plants-fungi/Mellissia-begoniifolia.htm. Retrieved 27 July 2011.
See also
External links
References
- Cronk, Q.C.B. (1995) The endemic Flora of St Helena. Anthony Nelson Ltd, Oswestry.
This Solanales article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.
