Barry Conn (NSW) & Kipiro Damas (LAE).
Guide to trees of Papua New Guinea
Copyright held by the authors, National Herbarium of New South Wales, and Papua New Guinea National Herbarium

Nothofagus perryi Steenis

Blumea Vol. 7: 146 (1952)

Other Literature: C.G.G.J. van Steenis, Journal of the Arnold Arboretum 147 (1953) Fig. 3-6.

Family: Nothofagaceae
Dicotyledon

Timber Group: Major exportable hardwood

Field Characters: Large canopy tree (mostly at least 25-40 m high); Bole cylindrical (60-160 cm diam.); straight (bole 20-40 m long); buttresses slightly buttresses present; spines spines absent; aerial roots aerial roots absent; stilt roots stilt roots absent; Bark yellow, grey, or brown, rough, scaly or flaky (shedding in irregular flakes) or fissured; Subrhytidome (under-bark) orange, pale red, or brown; less than 25 mm thick, 5.0-10.0; bark blaze consisting of one layer; faintly to non-aromatic; outer blaze pale yellow or pink, markings absent, fibrous; inner blaze pale yellow or pink, markings absent, fibrous; bark exudate (sap) absent; terminal buds not enclosed by leaves.

Indumentum: Complex hairs absent; stinging hairs absent; mature twig indumentum (hairs) absent.

Leaves: Leaves spaced along branches, spiral (leaves occurring singly at a node and arranged spirally up the branchlet), simple (a leaf composed of a single blade); petiole present (4-6 mm long), not winged, attached to base of leaf blade, not swollen; leaves broadest below middle (ovate-oblong), 4.5-11.0 cm, 2.0-4.5 cm; symmetric, entire or slightly crenate, not dissected or lobed, obtuse, venation pinnate, secondary veins open, prominent (6-8 pairs), intramarginal veins absent; leaves lower surface pale green, upper surface dark green, indumentum (hairs) absent; absent; domatia absent; stipules present, free, laterally placed, not encircling the twig, leafy (attached at lower third), not fringed, large (c. 7 X 3 mm wide), not persistent.

Flowers: Inflorescence axillary, flowers single (female) or flowers on an unbranched axis (male in 3s (flowers surrounded by a cupule), cones absent; flowers unisexual, unisexual with male and female flowers on the same plant, not stalked (female) or stalked (shortly male), flowers slightly asymmetric, 2.0-5.0 mm long, diameter small (up to10 mm diam.) (c. 3 mm diam.); perianth present, with all sepals and/or petals (hence tepals) similar, inner perianth yellow (pale (anthers), greenish red, or green (reddish (cupule); 6 (-9), some or partly joined; stamens 13-15, present, free of each other, free of the perianth; ovary inferior, carpels joined (when more than one), locules 2-6 (-9); styles solitary, 1.

Fruits: Infrutescence arranged on unbranched axis, fruit 5.0-8.0 mm long, red or brown, not spiny, non-fleshy, simple, indehiscent, nut (more or less winged, 5-8 mm long); seeds 1, to about 5 mm long, not winged, broad (as wide as long), seed 1-10 mm diam.

Distribution: Morobe, Western Highlands, Eastern Highlands, Southern Highlands & Central.

Botanical records in PNGplants database Map details

Notes: Notes This species has traditionally been included in the family Fagaceae.