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

Pullea glabra Schltr. var. glabra

Botanische Jahrbucher für Systematik, Pflanzengeschichte und Pflanzengeographie Vol. 52: 166 (1914)

Other Literature: P. van Royen, The Alpine Flora of New Guinea 2 542-2 545 (1983) Fig. 740.

Family: Cunoniaceae
Dicotyledon

Timber Group: Non-timber species

Field Characters: Large canopy tree (up to 30 m high) or Small sub-canopy tree (10-14 m high); Bole markedly fluted (up to c. 40 cm diam.); crooked or straight (bole up to 14 m long); buttresses buttresses absent; spines spines absent; aerial roots aerial roots absent; stilt roots stilt roots absent; Bark white or pale grey, rough or smooth, fissured or pitted; Subrhytidome (under-bark) dark red; less than 25 mm thick, 10.0-13.0; bark blaze consisting of one layer; faintly to non-aromatic; outer blaze red or brown, markings absent, slightly fibrous or granular with splinters (corky); inner blaze red or brown, markings absent, slightly fibrous or granular with splinters (corky); 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, opposite (in pairs, opposite one another on the branchlet), simple (a leaf composed of a single blade); petiole present, winged, attached to base of leaf blade, not swollen; leaves broadest at or near middle, 5.0-6.5 cm, 2.5-4.0 cm; symmetric, slightly crenate, not dissected or lobed, rounded or obtuse, venation pinnate, secondary veins open, prominent, intramarginal veins absent; leaves lower surface green or brown, upper surface green (glossy (sometimes dull), indumentum (hairs) absent; absent; domatia absent; stipules present, joined, joined across twigs, not encircling the twig, leafy, not fringed, large (up to c. 8 mm long), not persistent.

Flowers: Inflorescence axillary, flowers on a branched axis, cones absent; flowers bisexual, stalked, flowers with many planes of symmetry, 2.0 (c.) mm long, diameter small (up to10 mm diam.) (2-3 mm diam.); perianth present, with distinct sepals and petals whorls, inner perianth slightly green or cream-coloured; 4, free; stamens 4, present, free of each other, free of the perianth; ovary superior, carpels joined (when more than one), locules 2; styles free, 2.

Fruits: Infrutescence arranged on branched axis, fruit 6.0-12.0 mm long, green or brown, not spiny, non-fleshy, simple, dehiscent, capsule; seeds 100, barely visible (to 1 mm long) (0.7-1 mm long), narrow (longer than wide), seed less than 1 mm diam.

Distribution: West Sepik, Morobe, Western Highlands, Eastern Highlands, Southern Highlands, Central, Northern & Papuan Islands.

Botanical records in PNGplants database Map details

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Notes: Notes Although one collection form the Milne Bary region (L.S. Smith NGF1354) and one from the Papuan Islands (J.R. Croft LAE68943) are regarded as Pullea glabra var. glabra, they appear to be sufficiently different to represent another species of Pullea.