Sapindus rarak DC.

Habit

Tree

Family Description

Trees, shrubs or climbing herbs. Leaves alternate, simple, trifoliolate, 1-pinnate or biternate; leaflets opposite or alternate, pinnately veined, exstipulate. Flowers in terminal or often axillary racemes, panicles or cymes. Flowers minute, weakly zygomorphic or actinomorphic., bisexual or frequently functionally unisexual. Sepals 4-5, free or united. Petals 4-6 or absent, free, often with a nectary-scale at base within. Disc usually present. Stamens 6-8, inserted inside or rarely outside disc; anthers 2-celled. Ovary superior, 2-4-celled; ovules 1-2 (or more) per cell, axile; style 1, simple; stigma often lobed. Fruit indehiscent or capsular, seeds often arillate.

Genus Description

Trees. Leaves odd or even-pinnate; leaflets subopposite or alternate, entire, without axillary tufts of hair beneath. Flowers in terminal panicles, functionally unisexual. Sepals 5, free, unequal. Petals 4, concave, each bearing a large nectary-scale. Stamens 8, inserted around base of ovary. Ovary 3-celled; stigma 3-lobed. Fruit of 1-3 unequal fleshy indehiscent subglobose segments.

Species description

Deciduous tree 5-15m. Leaves odd or even-pinnate, 21-40cm, rachis pubecent. Leaflets 6-9 pairs, elliptic-lanceolate, 6-12 x 2.5-3.5cm, acuminate, base obliquely cuneate, lateral veins numerous, with fine reticulation, pubescent on midrib beneath; petiolules 3-7mm. Panicles axillary and terminal, 12-25cm, densely brownish pubescent throughout. Flowers c 3mm diameter. Sepals ovate, unequal, 2-3mm. Petals white, c 4mm, nectary-scale villous within. Fruit dirty orange, fleshy, globose, 2-2.5cm diameter, usually with 2 aborted carpels at base; seed very hard, black, globose, 1.4-1.5cm diameter.