Aceratium

Aceratium
Aceratium ferrugineum flowering; cultivated plant at Roma Street Parkland, Brisbane, 11 Dec 2011, by Tatiana Gerus
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Rosids
Order:	Oxalidales
Family:	Elaeocarpaceae
Genus:	Aceratium DC.[1][2]
Type species
Aceratium oppositifolium DC.
Species
See text.

Aceratium is a genus of about 20 species of trees and shrubs of eastern Malesia and Australasia, constituting part of the plant family Elaeocarpaceae.^{[1][2][3][4][5]} In Australia they are commonly known as carabeens.^[4][5] They grow naturally in rainforests, as large shrubs to understorey trees and large trees.^[1][2][4][5]

They grow naturally in New Guinea, the centre of diversity, in New Britain, New Ireland, Vanuatu, Sulawesi, Moluccas,^[1] and in Australia, where botanists have formally described five species, only found (endemic) in the Wet Tropics rainforests of north eastern Queensland.^[2][4][5]

Some species have uses for their fruits as food and,^[1] although not yet well known, some have popularity in cultivation, for example in Brisbane.

Selected species

• Aceratium archboldianum A.C.Sm. – New Guinea
• Aceratium braithwaitei (F.Muell.) Schltr. – New Guinea
• Aceratium brassii A.C.Sm. – New Guinea
• Aceratium concinnum (S.Moore) C.T.White – Qld, Australia
• Aceratium doggrellii C.T.White – Qld, Australia
• Aceratium ferrugineum C.T.White – Qld, Australia
• Aceratium ledermannii Schltr. – New Guinea, New Britain
• Aceratium megalospermum (F.Muell.) Balgooy – Qld, Australia
• Aceratium muellerianum Schltr. – New Guinea
• Aceratium oppositifolium DC. – Sulawesi, Moluccas, New Guinea region: Kai Islands through to the Santa Cruz group, New Britain, New Ireland, Solomon Islands
• Aceratium pachypetalum Schltr. – W New Guinea
• Aceratium parvifolium Schltr. – New Guinea
• Aceratium pittosporoides Schltr.; Syn: A. breviflorum Schltr. – New Guinea
• Aceratium sericeum A.C.Sm. – W New Guinea
• Aceratium sericoleopsis Balgooy – Qld, Australia
• Aceratium sinuatum Coode – New Guinea
• Aceratium sphaerocarpum Kaneh. & Hatus.; Syn: A. erythrocarpum A.C.Sm. – New Guinea
• Aceratium tomentosum Coode – New Guinea

A. ferrugineum fruiting; cultivated plant at Roma Street Parkland, Brisbane, 11 Dec 2011, by Tatiana Gerus

References

1. Coode, Mark J. E. (1995) [originally published 1981]. "Elaeocarpaceae". In Henty, E. E. Handbooks of the Flora of Papua New Guinea. (Digitised, online, freely available via www.pngplants.org). Vol. 2 (reprinted ed.). Melbourne: Melbourne University Press. pp. 39–51. ISBN 0-522-84204-6. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
2. "Aceratium%". Australian Plant Name Index (APNI), Integrated Botanical Information System (IBIS) database (listing by % wildcard matching of all taxa relevant to Australia). Centre for Plant Biodiversity Research, Australian Government. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
3. Conn, Barry J. (2013) [2008+]. "Aceratium" (Online, from pngplants.org/PNGCensus). Census of Vascular Plants of Papua New Guinea. Retrieved 14 Nov 2013.
4. Hyland, B. P. M.; Whiffin, T.; Zich, F. A.; et al. (Dec 2010). "Factsheet – Elaeocarpaceae". Australian Tropical Rainforest Plants. Edition 6.1, online version [RFK 6.1]. Cairns, Australia: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), through its Division of Plant Industry; the Centre for Australian National Biodiversity Research; the Australian Tropical Herbarium, James Cook University. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
5. Cooper, Wendy; Cooper, William T. (June 2004). "Aceratium DC.". Fruits of the Australian Tropical Rainforest. Clifton Hill, Victoria, Australia: Nokomis Editions. p. 157. ISBN 9780958174213. Retrieved 21 June 2013.