Peteria

Taxonomy

Peteria A. Gray Pl. Wright. 1: 50. Mar 1852.

Subfamily: Faboideae.
Phylogenetic Number: 3.8.10.
Tribe: Robinieae.
Group: Robinia.
Species Studied - Species in Genus: 4 studied; 4 in genus.

Description

Fruit: A legume; unilocular; 3.5–7 cm long; 0.4–0.65 cm wide; 0.25–0.3 cm thick; 2–9 times longer than wide; with persistent androecial sheath, or deciduous androecial sheath; with deciduous corolla; with persistent calyx, or deciduous calyx; with calyx shorter than fruit; without orifice formed by curving of fruit or fruit segments; straight; not plicate; not twisted; symmetrical, or asymmetrical; linear; with both sutures nearly straight; not inflated; compressed; with beak, or without beak; declined, or hooked; with solid beak the same color and texture as fruit; tapered at apex; right-angled with longitudinal axis of fruit; long tapered at base, or tapered 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 not torulose, or torulose; margin not constricted (usually), or constricted (through seed abortion); margin constricted along both margins; margin without sulcus; margin plain; wing(s) absent; nonstipitate; with all layers dehiscing; splitting along suture(s). Dehiscence of valves along both sutures; apical and down; active; with valves twisting. Replum invisible. Epicarp dull; monochrome; brown (reddish); 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; chartaceous; not exfoliating; remaining fused to mesocarp and epicarp; without wings; entire. Seed(s) 2–7; length parallel with fruit length; neither overlapping nor touching; in 1 series. Funiculus of 1 length only; flattened; straight. Aril present; dry; when dry rim-aril (better developed along one side of hilum); entire; white.

Seed: 3–6 mm long; 2.5–3.5 mm wide; 2–2.6 mm thick; not overgrown; not angular, or angular; asymmetrical; oblong, or quadrangular, or reniform (somewhat); compressed, or terete; with surface smooth; with visible radicle and cotyledon lobes, or without 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, or mottled and streaked; with frequent mottles; with frequent streaks; brown (reddish); with black overlay, or purple overlay; glabrous; smooth; coriaceous. Pleurogram absent. Pseudopleurogram absent. Fracture lines absent. Rim absent. Wing(s) absent. Raphe not visible. Hilum present; visible; with faboid split; with the lips of the faboid split the same color as the rest of the hilum; punctiform, or larger than punctiform; 0.3–0.5 mm long; with curved outline; circular, or elliptic; marginal according to radicle tip, or between cotyledon and radicle lobe; recessed; within rim; rim color of testa, or darker than testa (to blackish). Lens discernible (obscure), or not discernible; 0.5–1 mm long; with margins straight; linear; not in groove of raphe; adjacent to hilum; 0.7 mm from hilum; flush; same color as testa, or dissimilar color from testa; darker than testa; brown (reddish); not within corona, halo, or rim. Endosperm present; thin; not pluglike and not resembling tip of radicle; covering entire embryo; adnate to testa. 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; partially concealing radicle; notched at radicle; with lobes; with lobes not touching; without basal groin formed by lobes; with the interface division terminating at base of radicle; with margin(s) recessed; yellow; 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; bulbose; lobe tip straight; deflexed and parallel to cotyledon length; centered between cotyledons; less than 1/2 length of cotyledons. Plumule rudimentary; glabrous.

Distribution

Southwestern United States and northern Mexico.

New World; southwestern United States to Mexico (northern).

Generic Notes

Porter (1956) and Lavin and Sousa (1995) monographed the genus.

Tribal Notes

Tribe Robinieae

The genera, generic groups, and related data follow the tribal treatment of Lavin and Sousa (1995; Polhill, 1994a, 1994b), not Polhill and Sousa (1981).