Eversmannia

Taxonomy

Eversmannia A.A. von Bunge In K. C. T. Goebel, Reise Steppen Südl. Russlands 2: 267. 1838.

Subfamily: Faboideae.
Phylogenetic Number: 3.18.01.
Tribe: Hedysareae.
Species Studied - Species in Genus: 1 studied; 1 in genus.

Description

Fruit: A legume (apparently breaking between seed chambers (like a loment)); unilocular; 3 cm long; 0.6–0.7 cm wide; 0.2 cm thick; 2–9 times longer than wide; with deciduous androecial sheath; with deciduous corolla; with deciduous calyx; without orifice formed by curving of fruit or fruit segments; slightly curved; plicate (loosely), or not plicate; not twisted; asymmetrical, or symmetrical; linear; with both sutures nearly straight; not inflated; compressed; without beak; short tapered at apex, or rounded at apex; aligned with longitudinal axis of fruit; short tapered at base, or rounded at base; aligned with longitudinal axis of fruit; with the apex and base uniform in texture; coriaceous; seed chambers externally visible; seed chambers with the raised seed chambers torulose; margin constricted; margin constricted along both margins; margin without sulcus; margin plain; wing(s) absent; nonstipitate; indehiscent (probably). Replum visible ("articles" falling free from replum). Epicarp dull; monochrome; reddish brown; with surface texture uniform; glabrous; eglandular; without spines; not smooth; with elevated features; veined; reticulately veined; not tuberculate; not exfoliating; without cracks; without embedded tissue, much thicker than epicarp, running from base to apex. Mesocarp present; thin; surface not veined; 1-layered; without balsamic vesicles; without fibers; without reniform canals; solid; coriaceous. Endocarp present; visible; dull; opaque; monochrome; tan; smooth; without adhering pieces of testa; nonseptate (seed fits into fruit like a ball in a socket and walls of fruit form pseudosepta); chartaceous; not exfoliating; remaining fused to mesocarp and epicarp; without wings; entire. Seed(s) 1–4; length parallel with fruit length; neither overlapping nor touching; in 1 series. Funiculus of 1 length only; triangular; straight. Aril absent.

Seed: 3–3.7 mm long; 3 mm wide; 1.3–1.5 mm thick; not overgrown; not angular; asymmetrical; D-shaped, or mitaform, or rhombic; compressed; with surface smooth; with visible radicle and cotyledon lobes; without external groove between radicle and cotyledon lobes; without hilar sinus; without umbo on seed faces; without medial ridge on each face. Cuticle not exfoliating; not inflated; not wrinkled. Testa present; without pieces of adhering epicarp; not adhering to endocarp; free from endocarp; dull; not modified by a bloom; colored; monochrome; reddish brown; glabrous; smooth; coriaceous. Pleurogram absent. Pseudopleurogram absent. Fracture lines absent. Rim absent. Wing(s) absent. Raphe not visible. Hilum present; fully concealed; concealed by funicular remnant; without faboid split; punctiform; between cotyledon and radicle lobe; recessed; within halo; halo darker than testa. Lens discernible, or not discernible; with margins curved; circular; not in groove of raphe; adjacent to hilum; 0.5 mm from hilum; mounded; similar color as testa; darker than testa; reddish brown; not within corona, halo, or rim. Endosperm present; thin; not pluglike and not resembling tip of radicle; covering entire embryo; adnate to embryo. Cotyledons smooth; both outer faces convex; both the same thickness; both more or less of equal length; not folded; margin entire 180 degrees from base of radicle; similar at apex; not concealing radicle; entire over radicle; without lobes; with the interface division terminating at base of radicle; without margins recessed; tan; inner face flat; glabrous on inner face. Embryonic axis deflexed; oblique to length of seed; without a joint evident between the radicle and the cotyledons. Radicle differentiated from cotyledon; linear; lobe tip straight; deflexed and parallel to cotyledon length; centered between cotyledons; 1/2 to nearly length of cotyledons. Plumule rudimentary; glabrous.

Distribution

Russia and Iran from the Caspian to Tien Shan (Russia-China border).

Old World; Russia to Southwest Asia to China (Asia (Iran)).

Generic Notes

The fruits of Eversmannia subspinosa (formerly E.  hedysaroides A.A. von Bunge) function as a loment, though they are not true loments. The fruit tissue between the seed chambers is thin and easily broken (but by no regular separation) into one-seeded fruit segments leaving the replum. Mironov and Sokoloff (2000) studied the fruit morphology and anatomy of E. subspinosa. They agreed with our conclusions on the fruits of this genus, and discovered that the pericarp anatomy of Eversmannia and Hedysarum is the same. They described the fruit dehiscence as, "there is no breaking into one-seeded segments in Eversmannia. The material of each valve is separated from a persistent replum which corresponds to dorsal and ventral regions of carpel. Rarely, especially in small fruits, the whole and undamaged valves are separated (as in some Carmichaelia—Fahn & Zohary 1955; Polhill 1981). However, usually each valve breaks transversally into separate parts. Each part corresponds usually to a single mature seed. There is no strict correspondence between the places of breaking in one and the other valve. Finally, the parts of one valve usually do not join together with parts of the other valve (i.e. the seed is usually not enclosed in one-seeded article after breaking of the valves).

 Cracks between the parts of the valve form usually in strictly transversal direction. Moreover, the crack margins are often very straight. This fact is of some interest because the location of the cracks are not strictly regular (see above). The cracks orginates usually associated with transversal veins of the valves".

Tribal Notes

Tribe Hedysareae

Polhill (1981j) primarily used fruit characters for his key to genera of this tribe.