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Chrysophyllum

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Chrysophyllum
Chrysophyllum oliviforme
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Ericales
Family: Sapotaceae
Subfamily: Chrysophylloideae
Genus: Chrysophyllum
L.[1]
Synonyms[1]
  • Cainito Plum. ex Adans., nom. superfl.
  • Chlorophyllum Liais, orth. var.
  • Cynodendron Baehni
  • Dactimala Raf.
  • Gambeyobotrys Aubrév.
  • Guersentia Raf.
  • Nycterisition Ruiz & Pav.
  • Villocuspis (A.DC.) Aubrév. & Pellegr.

Chrysophyllum is a group of trees in the Sapotaceae described as a genus by Linnaeus in 1753.[2][3]

The genus is native to the tropical Americas, from Mexico to northern Argentina, including the Caribbean.[1] One species, C. oliviforme, extends north to southern Florida.[4][1]

Description

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Chrysophyllum members are usually tropical trees, often growing rapidly to 10–20 m or more in height. The leaves are oval, 3–15 cm long, green above, densely golden pubescent below, from which the genus is named.[5] The flowers are small (3–8 mm), purplish white and have a sweet fragrant smell; they are clustered several together, and are hermaphroditic (self fertile). The fruit is edible; round, usually purple skinned (sometimes greenish-white), often green around the calyx, with a star pattern in the pulp; the flattened seeds are light brown and hard. The fruit skin is chewy like gum, and contrary to some reports, is edible. [citation needed][6][7]

In 1990 and 1991 T.D. Pennington adopted a wide circumscription of Chrysophyllum, giving it a Pantropical distribution. Later morphological and phylogenetic studies confirmed that the genus defined by Pennington was polyphyletic, and in 2017 De Faria et. al. proposed that Chrysophyllum be more narrowly circumscribed, and some some species placed in the revived genera Achrouteria, Cornuella, Martiusella, Nemaluma, Prieurella, and Ragala.[8]

Species

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As of April 2025, Plants of the World Online accepts the following 37 species:[1]

Formerly included[1]

References

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Chrysophyllum.
  1. ^ a b c d e f "Chrysophyllum L." Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. 2025. Retrieved 6 April 2025.
  2. ^ Linnaeus, Carl von. 1753. Species Plantarum 1: 192 in Latin
  3. ^ Tropicos, Chrysophyllum L.
  4. ^ Chrysophyllum L. World Flora Online. Accessed 3 December 2022.
  5. ^ The generic name is derived from the Greek words χρυσός (chrysos), meaning "gold," and φυλλον (phyllos), meaning "leaf." See Quattrocchi, Umberto (2000). CRC World Dictionary of Plant Names. Vol. I A-C. CRC Press. p. 534. ISBN 978-0-8493-2675-2.
  6. ^ Flora of North America Vol. 8 Page 245 Cainito Chrysophyllum Linnaeus
  7. ^ Flora of China, Vol. 15 Page 208 金叶树属 jin ye shu shu Chrysophyllum Linnaeus
  8. ^ Aparecida Donisete De Faria, José Rubens Pirani, José Eduardo Lahoz Da Silva Ribeiro, Stephan Nylinder, Mário Henrique Terra-Araujo, Pedro Paulo Vieira, Ulf Swenson, Towards a natural classification of Sapotaceae subfamily Chrysophylloideae in the Neotropics, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, Volume 185, Issue 1, September 2017, Pages 27–55,
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