Barry Conn (NSW) & Kipiro Damas (LAE).
Copyright held by the authors, Royal Botanic Gardens and Domain Trust, and Papua New Guinea National Herbarium

Chisocheton schumannii C.DC.

Nova Guinea Vol. 8: 425 (1910)

Other Literature: P.F. Stevens, Handbooks of the Flora of Papua New Guinea Vol. 1: 164-166 (1978) Fig. 79.

Tradename: Kiso

Field Characters: Large trees (18-20 m high). Bole cylindrical (40-45 cm diam.); straight to slightly crooked; buttresses absent; spines absent; aerial roots absent; stilt roots absent. Bark grey, rough, pustular; lenticels elongated vertically; subrhytidome green; bark thickness <25 mm thick, 3.0 mm thick; blaze consisting of one layer; strongly aromatic; unpleasant; outer blaze red or brown, markings absent, fibrous; inner blaze brown or red, markings absent, fibrous; exudate present, colourless, spotty, changing colour on exposure to air, to orange or brown, sticky. Terminal buds not enclosed by leaves; complex hairs absent; stinging hairs absent; mature twig without hairs.

Leaves: Spaced along branches <internodes readily visible>. Leaves spiral, compound; petiole present, not winged, attached to base of leaf blade <not peltate>, not swollen; leaves pinnate; petiolule swollen <at tip, or base, or both> rachis present, not winged, not swollen; leaves with a terminal leaflet, each leaflet broadest at or near middle, 15.5-35.0 cm long, (5.0-) 9.0-13.0 cm wide, leaflets opposite, symmetric, terminal developing leaflet buds curled back on itself; venation pinnate <secondary veins arising from the midrib along its length>, secondary veins open <spaced far apart to easily see tertiary veins>, prominent, intramarginal veins absent; lower surface pale green or green, upper surface green, hairs absent; oil dots absent; domatia absent; stipules absent.

Flowers: Inflorescence axillary <from between a leaf and branch>. Flowers on a branched axis; flowers bisexual, stalked stout, up to 3 mm long, with many planes of symmetry <actinomorphic>, 8.0-13.0 mm long, small (< or =10 mm diam.) 2-2.3 mm diam.; perianth present, with distinct sepals and petals calyx closely appressed to corolla, white or pale pink; inner perianth (4-) 5 (-6), some or partly joined (joined at base); stamens 10-12, filaments present, joined <connate> to form a staminal tube, free of perianth; ovary superior <seated above petals and sepals; hypogenous>, carpels joined (when more than one) <syncarpous>, locules 4-5; styles solitary <including joined together>, 1 (4-5.5 mm long).

Fruits: Fruits arranged on branched axis. Fruit 3-4 mm long, 2.0-3.2 mm diam., fruit orange or brown, not spiny, non-fleshy, simple, dehiscent, capsule. Seeds 4, to about 5 mm long (2-2.5 mm long), not winged, longer than wide, 1-10 mm diam. (1-1.2 mm diam.).

Distribution: West Sepik, East Sepik & Madang.

Botanical records in PNGplants database Map details