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Synonyms: Cochlospermaceae Planch., nom. cons.
Common name: Lipstick-tree Family.
Number of genera 3. Number of species 16.
Angiosperm. Magnoliopsida.
Disseminule a dehisced fruit, or a seed.
Fruits
Pistil(s) compound; 1; 1-pistillate; with carpels united. Fruit pericarpium; simple; capsule; ceratium capsule (Cochlospermum), or loculicidal capsule (Bixia orellana), or septifragal capsule (not Spjut); capsule not inflated; capsule without operculum; without persistent central column; not within accessory organ(s); 1–2-carpellate, or 3–5-carpellate; with carpels united; with carpels remaining united at maturity; without sterile carpels; not sulcate; apex not beaked; dehiscent. Dehiscent unit seed(s). Dehiscent regularly; at apex; and shedding seeds; without replum. Epicarp durable; with armature, or without armature; with bristles, or spines; without armature glochidiate; smooth, or not smooth; without wing(s); without apical respiratory hole. Endocarp present; not separating from exocarp; thin; not splitting into 1-seeded pyrenes; without wing; without operculum; without secretory cavities; without mechanism for seedling escape; without longitudinal ridges. Funiculus short; short without seed bearing hooks (retinacula); not persisting in fruit after seed shed.
Seeds
Aril absent, or present (late developing in Bixia); a true aril; red; well developed; fleshy; encompassing. Seed larger than minute; 5 to less than 10 mm long; 5–7 mm long; curved, or straight, or reniform, or circular, or angular (sub-), or pyriform, or cochleate; not bowl shaped; not nutlike; without winglike beak; without caudate appendage(s); at maturity with food reserves; with endosperm; without canavanine. Sarcotesta present, or absent; fleshy (Bixia). Testa present; with fleshy or leathery layer over hard layer, or without fleshy or leathery layer over hard layer; surface smooth, or unsmooth; surface with discreet raised features; surface tuberculate; with crease or line separating cotyledons from hypocotyl-radicle, or without crease or line separating cotyledons from hypocotyl-radicle; with notch along margin where cotyledons from hypocotyl-radicle tip approaching each other, or without notch along margin where cotyledons from hypocotyl-radicle tip approach each other; without glands; without bristles; pubescent (white hairs), or glabrous (Bixa); with hairs over surface; with long hairs; densely hairy; with curly hairs; without agglutinated hairs; without mucilaginous hairs; without glandular pubescence; without wings; without collar; without operculum; colored; monochrome; gray, or red, or brown (all shades) (dark); not becoming mucilaginous when wetted; surrounding food reserve. Raphe conspicuous (testa slightly grooved along raphe). Endosperm development nuclear; copious; fleshy; smooth; without starch, or with starch (Bixia); with oils and proteins; without fatty acid containing cyclopropene; without apical lobes; without chlorophyll; without isodiametric faceted surface; without odor.
Embryo differentiated from food reserve; well developed; 1 per seed; partially filling testa (with food reserve); 0.7–0.9 times the length of food reserve; at one end of seed not extending into a depression or cup; axile and centric; foliate, or linear; with spatulate cotyledons; bent, or arcuate, or J-shaped, or U-shaped; with cotyledons gradually connected to hypocotyl-radicle; without coleorhiza; without simmondsin; without stomata; not green; with 2 or more cotyledons. Cotyledons 2; well developed; not divaricate; 0.7 times length of embryo; as wide as hypocotyl-radicle, or somewhat to significantly wider than hypocotyl-radicle; 1–2.8 times wider than hypocotyl-radicle; not concealing hypocotyl-radicle; thin; crumpled; smooth; with apices entire; with margins connate; basally entire; equal in size; not punctate dotted. Hypocotyl-radicle moderately developed; curved (Cochlospermum), or straight (Bixa); not thickened.
Distribution
Pantropical and pansubtropical (because of cultivation). New World, Old World. North America, Middle America, South America, Africa, southeastern Asia, Australia (to northern Australia).
Weed information
No USA noxious weeds.
Listed seeds
ASOA listed seeds, ISTA listed seeds.
ASOA listed seeds: -- Bixa orellana L. -- Last updated September 2008.
ISTA listed seeds: -- Bixa orellana L. -- Cochlospermum gossypium (L.) DC. = Cochlospermum religiosum (L.) Alston -- Cochlospermum religiosum (L.) Alston -- Symbols: aagricultural and vegetable seeds (Table 2A Part 1); ttree and shrub species (Table 2A Part 2); fflower, spice, herb, and medicinal seeds (Table 2A Part 3); wweed seeds. -- Last updated September 2008.
Accepted genera
Amoreuxia DC. -- Bixa L. -- Cochlospermum Kunth, nom. cons.
References specific to this family
Cronquist page 391.
General references
Corner, E.J.H. 1976. The seeds of Dicots, esp. vol. 2. Cambridge University Press, New York, Cronquist, A. 1981. An integrated system of classification of flowering plants, 1,262 p. Columbia University Press, New York, Engler, A. and K. Prantl. 1924 and onward. Die Natürlichen Pflanzenfamilimien. W. Engelman, Leipzig, Goldberg, A. 1986 (dicots) and 1989 (monocots). Classification, evolution, and phylogeny of the familes of Dicotyledons. Smithsonian Contr. Bot. 58 for dicots (314 pp.) and 71 for monocots (74 pp.). [Goldberg's illustrations are reproduced from older publications and these should be consulted], Gunn, C.R., J.H. Wiersema, C.A. Ritchie, and J.H. Kirkbride, Jr. 1992 and amendments. Families and genera of Spermatophytes recognized by the Agricultural Research Service. Techn. Bull. U.S.D.A. 1796:1–500, Mabberley, D.J. 1987. The plant-book, 706 p. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, Martin, A.C. 1946. The comparative internal morphology of seeds. Amer. Midl. Naturalist 36:513–660, Spjut, R.W. 1994. A systematic treatment of fruit types. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 70:1–182.
Illustrations
Acceptable fruit and seed illustrations. Disseminule illustration(s): fruit, or seed, or embryo. Fruit illustration(s): Engler & Prantl, Roosmalen, LeMaout & Decaisne. Seed illustration(s): Karen, Engler & Prantl, Roosmalen. Embryo illustration(s): Karen, Martin, LeMaout & Decaisne, Roosmalen. Karen's plate number and taxon (taxa): 109: Amoreuxia palmatifida DC. (A-B), Bixa orellana L. (C-D), Cochlospermum vitifolium (Willd.) Spreng. (E-F).
• Fruit. 1 of 6. Bixa orellana L.: fruit. • Seed. 2 of 6. Bixa orellana L.: seeds. • Seed. 3 of 6. Cochlospermum orinocense (Kunth) Steud.: seed. • Embryo. 4 of 6. Amoreuxia malvifolia A. Gray: embryo. • Embryo. 5 of 6. Bixa orellana L.: embryo. • Embryo. 6 of 6. Cochlospermum vitifolium (Willd.) Spreng.: embryo.
We advise against extracting comparative information from the descriptions. This is much more easily achieved using the DELTA data files or the interactive key, which allows access to the character list, illustrations, full and partial descriptions, diagnostic descriptions, differences and similarities between taxa, lists of taxa exhibiting or lacking specified attributes, and distributions of character states within any set of taxa. See also Guidelines for using data taken from Web publications.
Cite this publication as: ‘J.H. Kirkbride, Jr., C.R. Gunn, and M.J. Dallwitz. 2000 onwards. Family guide for fruits and seeds: descriptions, illustrations, identification, and information retrieval. Version: 12th April 2021. delta-intkey.com’.
