Pseudeminia

Taxonomy

Pseudeminia B. Verdcourt Kew. Bull. 24: 393. Dec 1970.

Subfamily: Faboideae.
Phylogenetic Number: 3.10.30.
Tribe: Phaseoleae.
Subtribe: Glycininae.
Species Studied - Species in Genus: 2 studied; 4 in genus.

Description

Fruit: A legumelegume:
usually dry, dehiscent fruit derived from a single carpel that opens along two longitudinal sutures
; unilocular; 1.8–2.5 cm long; 0.7–0.9 cm wide; 0.3–0.5 cm thick; 2–9 times longer than wide; with deciduous androecial sheath; with persistent calyx; with calyx shorter than fruit; without orifice formed by curving of fruit or fruit segments; straight; not plicate; not twisted; asymmetrical; with 1 straight and 1 curved suture; slightly narrowest near middle, B-shaped; not inflated; compressed; with beak (short); straight; with solid beak the same color and texture as fruit; tapered at apex, or short tapered at apex; aligned with longitudinal axis of fruit, or oblique with longitudinal axis of fruit; short tapered at base; oblique 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; margin constricted; margin slightly 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; with surface texture uniform; pubescent and indurate; with hairs erect; with 1 type of pubescence; sericeous; with pubescence golden, or gray; with pubescence uniformly distributed; with simple hairs; pliable; with hair bases plain; eglandular; without spines; smooth; not 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; mottled; tan; with mottling over seed chambers; with brown overlay; scurfy and smooth; without adhering pieces of testa; subseptate; with septa thin (tissue paper-like), flexible; with septa eglandular; chartaceous; not exfoliating; remaining fused to mesocarp and epicarp; without wings; entire. Seed(s) 2; length parallel with fruit length; neither overlapping nor touching; in 1 series. Funiculus 0.5–1 mm long; of 1 length only; flattened; straight. Aril present; dry; when dry rim-aril and tongue-aril; entire; cream.

Seed: 6.5–9.5 mm long; 5–7 mm wide; 3–3.7 mm thick; not overgrown; not angular; asymmetrical; irregularly reniform; compressed; with surface smooth; without visible 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; mottled; with frequent mottles; brown; with black overlay; glabrous; not smooth; with elevated features; rugose; coriaceous. Pleurogram absent. Pseudopleurogram absent. Fracture lines absent. Rim absent. Raphe visible; from hilum through lens and base of seed to point opposite hilum; not bifurcating; darker than testa; black; raised. Hilum present; partially concealed; concealed by aril; with faboid split; with the lips of the faboid split the same color as the rest of the hilum; larger than punctiform; 1–1.6 mm long; with curved outline; elliptic; apical according to radicle tip but marginal according to seed length; recessed; within corona, or not within corona, halo, or rim; corona color lighter than testa. Lens discernible; 0.5–1.4 mm long; with margins straight; linear; not in groove of raphe; confluent with hilum; flush; similar color as testa; darker than testa; dark brown; within corona, or not within corona, halo, or rim; corona color darker than testa. Endosperm present; trace; not pluglike and not resembling tip of radicle; restricted to region of embryo; adnate to testa. Cotyledons not smooth; 1–3 grooves on each face; 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; without lobes; with the interface division terminating at base of radicle; with margin(s) recessed; with 1 margin recessed; recessed on same side as radicle; pale yellow; inner face flat; glabrous on inner face. Embryonic axis oblique; oblique to length of seed; without a joint evident between the radicle and the cotyledons. Radicle differentiated from cotyledon; bulbose; lobe tip curved; oblique to cotyledons; centered between cotyledons; less than 1/2 length of cotyledons. Plumule moderately developed; glabrous.

Distribution

Tropical Africa.

Old World; Africa.

Tribal Notes

Tribe Phaseoleae

Bruneau et al. (1995) carried out cladistic analyses of tribe Phaseoleae using chloroplast DNA restriction site data. Their results indicated that the tribe is not monophyletic and that the tribal delimitations between Phaseoleae and Desmodieae (11) and between Phaseoleae and Millettieae (7) are problematic.