Habit and leaf form. Shrubs; bearing essential oils. Leaves evergreen; small; alternate; leathery; shortly petiolate; non-sheathing; not gland-dotted; aromatic, or without marked odour (?); simple. Lamina lanceolate to oblanceolate, or ovate to obovate; one-veined, or pinnately veined (?). Leaves exstipulate. Lamina margins entire.
Leaf anatomy. Stomata present; mainly confined to one surface (abaxial), or on both surfaces; anomocytic.
Lamina dorsiventral. Minor leaf veins without phloem transfer cells (Cneorum).
Stem anatomy. Internal phloem absent. Secondary thickening developing from a conventional cambial ring. `Included' phloem absent. Xylem with libriform fibres. Vessel end-walls simple. Wood partially storied (VP); parenchyma predominantly paratracheal.
Reproductive type, pollination. Hermaphrodite.
Inflorescence, floral, fruit and seed morphology. Flowers solitary, or aggregated in `inflorescences'; when aggregated, in cymes, or in corymbs. The terminal inflorescence unit cymose. Inflorescences axillary (the peduncle sometimes adnate to the petiole); small, few flowered axillary corymbs. Flowers small; regular; 3 merous (Cneorum), or 4 merous (Neochamaelea). Floral receptacle developing an androphore (this nectariferous, shortly columnar). Free hypanthium absent.
Perianth with distinct calyx and corolla; 6, or 8 (Neochamaelea); 2 whorled; isomerous. Calyx 3, or 4; 1 whorled; polysepalous, or gamosepalous (basally); regular; persistent (small). Corolla polypetalous (the petals elongate); imbricate.
Androecium 3, or 4. Androecial members free of the perianth; all equal; free of one another; 1 - whorled. Androecium exclusively of fertile stamens. Stamens 3, or 4; isomerous with the perianth; oppositisepalous; filantherous (the filaments seated in pits in the androgynophore). Anthers dorsifixed; dehiscing via longitudinal slits; introrse; tetrasporangiate. Pollen shed as single grains. Pollen grains aperturate; 3 - aperturate, or 4-6 - aperturate; colporate; 3-celled.
Gynoecium 3, or 4. Carpels isomerous with the perianth. Gynoecium syncarpous; synstylovarious to eu-syncarpous; superior. Ovary 3 locular, or 4 locular. Gynoecium stylate. Styles 1; apical. Placentation apical. Ovules (1-)2 per locule; pendulous; epitropous; with ventral raphe; collateral (the two commonly more or less separated by an intrusion from the carpellary midrib); amphitropous; bitegmic; crassinucellate. Embryo-sac development Polygonum-type. Polar nuclei fusing prior to fertilization. Antipodal cells formed; 3; not proliferating. Synergids pear-shaped. Endosperm formation nuclear. Embryogeny asterad.
Fruit fleshy, or non-fleshy; a schizocarp; comprising drupelets (the 1-2 seeded mericarps separating). Seeds copiously endospermic. Endosperm oily. Embryo well differentiated. Cotyledons 2. Embryo achlorophyllous (1/1); strongly curved.
Seedling. Germination phanerocotylar.
Physiology, biochemistry. Not cyanogenic. Iridoids absent. Proanthocyanidins absent. Flavonols present; kaempferol and quercetin. Ellagic acid absent (Cneorum).
Geography, cytology. Holarctic and Neotropical. Temperate (warm), or sub-tropical to tropical. Cuba, Canaries, Mediterranean. X = 9.
Taxonomy. Subclass Dicotyledonae; Crassinucelli. Dahlgren's Superorder Rutiflorae; Rutales. Cronquist's Subclass Rosidae; Sapindales. Takhtajan's Subclass Rosidae; Rutanae; Rutales. Species 2. Genera 2; Cneorum, Neochamaelea.
Illustrations. cneor327.gif
Additional, to be intercalated. Flowers when solitary, axillary.
