Compilation
Ocotea gardneri

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Name

Identification
Ocotea gardneri (Meisn.) Mez [family LAURACEAE ] (stored under name); Mespilodaphne gardneri Meisn. [family LAURACEAE ]
Related name
  • Ocotea kenyensis
  • Mespilodaphne gardneri
  • Ocotea viridis
  • Ocotea gardneri

Flora

Entry for OCOTEA kenyensis (Chiov.) Robyns & R. Wilczek [family LAURACEAE]
Herbarium
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (K)
Collection
Flora of Tropical East Africa
Resource Type
Reference Sources
Entry From
Flora of Tropical East Africa, page 1, (1996) Author: Bernard Verdcourt
Names
OCOTEA kenyensis (Chiov.) Robyns & R. Wilczek [family LAURACEAE], in F.C.B. 2: 406, t. 40 (see note) (1951); Wimbush, Cat. Kenya Timbers: 59 (1952); K.T.S.: 242 (1961); Palmer & Pitman, Trees S. Afr.: 595 (1972); Palgrave, Trees S. Afr., ed. 3, revised: 176 (1990); Wilczek & Troupin in Fl. Rwanda 1: 265 (1978); Hamilton, Field Guide Trees Ug.: 144 (1981); Hepper et al., Annot. Check-list Pl. Mt. Kulal: 32 (1981); Beentje, K.T.S.L.: 56 (1994). Type: Kenya, Fort Hall District, E. Aberdare Mts., Tuso [Tusu], above Gasongori Hill, Balbo 672 (TOM, syn. (two sheets), BR, photo. & fragment!)
OCOTEA gardneri Hutch. & M.B. Moss [family LAURACEAE], in K.B. 1930: 70, fig. (1930), non Mez, nom. illegit . Type: Kenya, S. Nyeri District, Ruamuthambi [Ramusambi] R., Gardner in F.D. 1885 (K, syn.!, EA, isosyn.!)
OCOTEA gardneri Lebrun var. cuneata [family LAURACEAE], Ess. For. Rég. Mont. Congo Or.: 79 (1935), nom invalid. Representative specimen: Zaire, Ituri, between Kasindi and Lubango, Lebrun 4821 (BR)
Tylostemon kenyensis Chiov. [family LAURACEAE], Racc. Bot. Miss. Consol. Kenya: 107 (1935)
Ocotea viridis Kosterm. [family LAURACEAE], in B.J.B.B. 15: 83 (1938), nom. nov. Type as for O. gardneri
Ocotea sp. nov. [family LAURACEAE], sensu I.T.U., ed. 2: 162 (1952)
Ocotea argylei Robyns [family LAURACEAE], in B.J.B.B. 30: 2 (1960); Beentje, K.T.S.L.: 56 (1994). Type: Kenya, Kericho District, SW. Mau Forest, Posta Hill, Argyle H299/54 (EA, syn.!)
Information
Medium-sized to large tree 10-21(-30 fide Faden 74/891) m. tall; bole straight, cylindrical, up to ± 8 m. long, 0.45-1.5 m. diameter or sometimes many-stemmed (see note); ultimate branchlets drying plicate-sulcate, glabrous or minutely to distinctly pubescent when young; leaf-buds often silvery silky; bark variously described as grey to dark brown, grey-black or grey-red, rough and scaly, very deeply scored into small squares or separating into large irregular plates (or smooth fide Faden 74/891); slash yellow-brown (or greenish white, Ethiopia); sapwood white; wood yellow-cream with irregular spots and striae; Wimbush describes the bark as grey with white blotches, smooth, with conspicuous scattered lenticels, often with long vertical cracks, blaze white or light brown darkening rapidly with no scent. Leaf-blades aromatic, narrowly elliptic to broadly elliptic, ovate-elliptic or ovate, (4.5-)6.5-20 cm. long, 2-9.5 cm. wide, ± acute at the apex with tip narrowly rounded, or acuminate, cuneate to rounded at the base, the thin often red margin often ± decurrent, coriaceous, glabrous; petiole 0.5-1.6(-2) cm. long, channelled, glabrous or slightly pubescent. Flowers hermaphrodite or unisexual, greenish white, yellowish white or cream, fragrant, 4.2 mm. diameter, in axillary ± 7-flowered cymes at apex of branches and also usually grouped forming terminal panicles 4-8.5 cm. long and up to 11 cm. wide; peduncles 0.5-1(-2) cm. long, secondary and tertiary axes 1-4.5 cm. long; pedicels 1-5(-13 inT7, see note) mm. long, thickening in fruit; all axes adpressed grey pubescent; bractsovate-triangular, 1.5 mm. long and wide, deciduous. Receptacle obconic, 1-1.5 mm. long; lobes 6 (rarely 8), elliptic, ovate or round to obovate, ± equal, 2-3.5 mm. long 1.3-3 mm. wide, glabrous to pubescent inside, pubescent outside save near margins. Fertile stamens 7-9 (rarely 12), cream; first and second series 1.2-1.3 mm. long with filaments 0.2 mm. long, third series with anthers 0.8-1 mm. long and filaments 0.5-0.8 mm. long; staminodes 3, yellow, narrow, triangular or round, ± 1 mm. long or absent, pilose at base. Ovary globose, 1 mm. long, 0.8 mm. wide; style conic-subulate, 1-1.5 mm. long. Fruit olive-green becoming ochraceous when dry, oblong-ellipsoid to ellipsoid-ovoid, 1.7-2.7 cm. long, 0.8-1.4(-1.7 inT7, see note) cm. wide; cupule brown, 0.7-1 cm. tall, 1.2 cm. wide, fleshy in life; where only apical fruits have developed the inflorescence-axes resemble false pedicels, stalks up to ± 7 cm. long.
Range
DISTR. U 1, 2; K 1, 3-5, 7; T 3, 7 (see note);
Altitude range
1140-2400 m.
Distribution
UGANDA Acholi District SE. Imatong Mts., Aringa R. headwaters, 7 Apr. 1945, Greenway & Hummel 7309!;KENYA Northern Frontier Province Marsabit Mt., June 1958, T. Adamson 31!; S.TANZANIA Bukoba District Kigarama primary school, Dec. 1967, Kanywa 30!;UGANDA Kigezi District without exact locality, St. Clair-Thompson 2564!KENYA S. Nyeri District Chehe, Jan. 1930, Elliot in F.D. 2356!;KENYA Meru District Upper Imenti forest remnant, 18 Mar. 1964, Brunt 1560!TANZANIA Lushoto District W. Usambara Mts., Lushoto-Mkusi [Mkuzi] road near Magamba corner, 3 June 1953, Drummond & Hemsley 2834! & Kungurui [Kungului], Aug. 1955, Semsei 2293! & Shume-Magamba forest reserve near Magamba Gap, June 1954, Eggeling 6822!
Distribution (external)
E. Zaire
Rwanda
S. Sudan
Ethiopia
Malawi
Mozambique
Zimbabwe
South Africa (Natal Transvaal)
Notes
The taxonomy of this SPECIES is very difficult to unravel with the material available. I have accepted that there is one variable SPECIES extending from Ethiopia (Kaffa) to South Africa. As Robyns pointed out (B.J.B.B. 30: 1 (1960)) it appears to be very variable in all its organs and merits an in-depth study in the field. At least subspecific recognition might be given to some populations. For many years I considered the W. Usambara populations (at ± 1650 m.) formed a distinct SPECIES and sent specimens to Robyns under that impression. He annotated the material as O. kenyensis. These Usambara populations are, however, distinctive and uniform in having narrowly elliptic or elliptic leaves, 6.5-11.5× 2-4 cm., and narrowly ellipsoid-ovoid fruits, 2-2.7× 1-1.2 cm., also rough scaly bark. Although appearing very different from the ovate-leaved Mt. Kenya plants, those from Marsabit and E. Zaire have similar leaves, but I have not seen ripe fruit from these two localities. A survey of a range of material available from Ethiopia to South Africa including a dissection of the flowers confirms the wisdom of considering it to belong to one SPECIES. Adequate material particularly in fruit is not available from all the scattered populations, many of which may no longer exist. Rodgers & Hall 2265, Tanzania, Iringa District, Uzungwa Mts., Udekwa Village, forest block to east, west of Kilombero Forest Reserve, 1650-2100 m. in montane forest of Ocotea usambarensis, Beilschmiedia and Podocarpus, is distinctly different from the Usambara plants in having more ellipsoid fruits, 2.6× 1.7 cm., longer fruiting pedicels, 1-1.3 cm. long, and wider leaves, 13.5-18× 4.5-7 cm. D.W. Thomas 3907 (Iringa District, Mwanihana Forest Reserve, above Sanje Village, 1400-1700 m., forest on steep slope with small streams andswamp and associated patches of elfin forest on ridge-tops) has leaves 17× 7 cm. and ellipsoid fruits 2.5× 1.3-1.4 cm. Some Rwandan material, e.g. Troupin 15724, has the outer anthers ± thinly foliaceous at apex produced 2 mm. beyond the thecae; also in a flower dissected one outer organ was intermediate between tepal and stamen and had one theca. O. argylei has fruits 7-10 mm. long but I think they are not fully developed. Confirmation of this synonymy is still needed.Two collectors mention many-stemmed trees, Ib Friis from Ethiopia, Kaffa, and Chapman from S. Malawi where a single tree with 3 main stems, numerous other large stems and innumerable tall coppice shoots formed a clump 9 m. in circumference. Chiovenda in the original description gives stamens 6 but Robyns & R. Wilczek in a drawing attached to the BR photograph of the syntypes shows 3 whorls of stamens and one of staminodes.It yields a superior hard wood, pale golden to dark walnut brown with black markings which works well and takes a good polish. Wimbush reported it was not in use probably meaning it was too rare to be used. All in all it seems to be an ancient SPECIES which has managed to adapt to very different forests at different altitudes over a wide area without obviously speciating.

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