Leachbrush [Greek knestron, name for Daphne] Leachbrush [Greek knestron, name for Daphne]

Darbya A. Gray

Shrubs, deciduous, probably dioecious. Stems glabrous. Leaves: petiole short. Inflorescences axillary, pedunculate umbels (staminate) or flowers solitary (pistillate). Pedicels present. Flowers unisexual; perianth and androecium epigynous; hypanthium in staminate flowers turbinate or campanulate, in pistillate flowers a short tube; petals 3–4(–5); nectary lining hypanthium, wavy or slightly lobed distally; stamens 3–4(–5), in staminate flowers exserted, with post-staminal hairs, in pistillate flowers staminodial, ± included, without post-staminal hairs; ovary inferior, 3-locular proximally, 1-locular distally; ovules 2–3; styles in pistillate flowers conic; stigmas 3–4–lobed. Pseudodrupes spheric, without prominent perianth remnants at apex.

Species 1: se United States.

The sexual condition of Nestronia has been reported to be dioecious (A. E. Radford et al. 1968) or polygamodioecious (J. K. Small 1933; R. Pilger 1935; H. A. Gleason and A. Cronquist 1991). Flowers referred to as pistillate or bisexual possess staminal structures. Flowers from Virginia that have gynoecia were examined and had small anthers that lacked pollen. Therefore, these structures are staminodes and the species is dioecious. Whether truly bisexual flowers exist in Nestronia remains to be determined. The pistillate flowers of Nestronia have been cited as an example of a receptacular inferior ovary by F. H. Smith and E. C. Smith (1942), but R. H. Eyde (1975) questioned this interpretation, favoring the more common appendicular inferior ovary.

Lower Taxon

• Nestronia umbellula Rafinesque