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Synonyms: Kingdoniaceae A. S. Foster ex Airy Shaw
Common name: Circaeaster Family.
Number of genera 2. Number of species 2 (Circaeaster agrestes Maxim., Kingdonia uniflora Balf. f. & W. W. Sm.).
Angiosperm. Magnoliopsida.
Disseminule an intact or entire fruit.
Fruits
Pistil(s) simple; 1 to 6–10; (1–)2–9-pistillate. Fruit pericarpium; multiple; achenetum (Circaeaster); without persistent central column; not within accessory organ(s); (1–)2–9-carpellate (5–8 for Kingdonia); without sterile carpels; apex not beaked, or beaked; apex long beaked (Kingdonia); indehiscent. Epicarp durable; glabrous (without hairs); with armature (Circaeaster), or without armature (Kingdonia); with unicinate prickles; smooth, or not smooth; without wing(s); without apical respiratory hole. Endocarp present; not separating from exocarp; thin; not splitting into 1-seeded pyrenes; smooth; without wing; without operculum; without secretory cavities; without mechanism for seedling escape; without grooves; without longitudinal ridges. Funiculus short; short without seed bearing hooks (retinacula); not persisting in fruit after seed shed.
Seeds
Aril absent. Seed larger than minute; 1 to less than 5 mm long; 4 mm long (over 4 but less than 5); not bowl shaped; not nutlike; without winglike beak; without caudate appendage(s); at maturity with food reserves; with endosperm; without canavanine. Sarcotesta absent. Testa present; without fleshy or leathery layer over hard layer; without crease or line separating cotyledons from hypocotyl-radicle; without notch along margin where cotyledons from hypocotyl-radicle tip approach each other; without glands; without bristles; glabrous; without wings; without collar; without operculum; colored; monochrome; not becoming mucilaginous when wetted. Endosperm development cellular; copious; smooth; 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); 0.3 times the length of food reserve; at one end of seed not extending into a depression or cup; axile and centric; linear; straight, or bent; parallel to seed length; with cotyledons abruptly connected to hypocotyl-radicle; without coleorhiza; without simmondsin; without stomata; not green; with 2 or more cotyledons. Cotyledons 2; tiny; 0.2 times length of embryo; as wide as hypocotyl-radicle; 1 times wider than hypocotyl-radicle; not concealing hypocotyl-radicle; not foliaceous; thin; flat; smooth; with apices entire; with margins separate; basally entire; equal in size; not punctate dotted. Hypocotyl-radicle moderately developed; straight; not thickened.
Distribution
Old World. Southeastern Asia.
Notes
(BARC) has 2 samples of Circaeaster agrestis, but minimal material. Both genera may be placed in other families. Cronquist & Mabberley place both genera in this family, Goldberg has only Circaeaster in this family, and I assume that Spjut placed both genera here.
Weed information
No USA noxious weeds.
Listed seeds
No ASOA or ISTA listed seeds.
Accepted genera
Circaeaster Maxim. -- Kingdonia Balf. f. & W. W. Sm.
References specific to this family
Cronquist page 127. Diels, L. 1932. Circaeaster eine hochgradig reduzierte Rananculacee. Beih. Bot. Centralbl. 49:55–60; Foster, A.S. 1961. The floral morphology and relationships of Kingdonia uniflora. J. Arnold Arbor. 42:397–415.
General references
Cronquist, A. 1981. An integrated system of classification of flowering plants, 1,262 p. Columbia University Press, New York, 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, Spjut, R.W. 1994. A systematic treatment of fruit types. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 70:1–182.
Illustrations
Essentially no fruit and seed illustrations (See Hooker's Icones (1895). Cronquist has no illustration.
• Seed. 1 of 2. Circaeaster agrestis Maximowicz: seeds. • Embryo. 2 of 2. Circaeaster agrestis Maximowicz: 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’.
