Allophylus cobbe (L.) Blume

Sapindaceae

Blume, C. (1847) Rumphius 3 : 131.

Usually a small tree seldom exceeding 30 cm dbh, but often flowers and fruits as a shrub and occasionally grows as a vine. Vine stem diameters to 4 cm recorded. Blaze very fibrous. Dead bark often slightly layered.

Compound leaf petiole often hairy, about 1.5-8 cm long, shallowly channelled on the upper surface. Leaflet blades about 4-13.5 x 2-7.5 cm, leaflet stalks 0-10 mm long. Midrib and main lateral veins raised on the upper surface of the leaflet blade. Terminal buds clothed in pale, +/- prostrate hairs. Twigs marked by longitudinally elongated lenticels.

Outer pair of sepals larger than the inner pair, all sepals gland-dotted. Petals about 1.5-2 x 0.5 mm, with a long, tubular claw.

Fruits about 5-6 x 4-5 mm. Seeds globular, about 4-5 mm diam., aril absent.

Cotyledons fleshy, about 8-12 x 2-4 mm. apex emarginate, base attenuate. First pair of leaves trifoliolate, the middle leaflet much larger than the lateral leaflets. Leaflet blades about 4-6 x 2-2.5 cm. At the tenth leaf stage: leaflet blade margins serrate at least from the middle to the apex, a few prostrate hairs present on the upper surface. Domatia, if present, are tufts of hair. Seed germination time 26 to 166 days.

Occurs in NT, CYP and NEQ. Altitudinal range from sea level to 400 m. Grows in monsoon forest, beach forest and on the margins of mangrove forest. Also occurs in Africa, Asia and Malesia.

Schmidelia serrata (Roxb.) DC., Prodromus 1: 610(1824). Rhus cobbe L., Sp. Pl. 1: 267(1753), Type: Ceylon, collector unknown. Allophylus crenatus Radlk., Sitzungsberichte der Mathematisch-Physikalischen Classe der k. Bayer Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Munchen 38 (1908) : 234(1909), Type: Rob. Brown, Armstrong. Allophylus ternatus (G.Forst.) Radlk., Die Naturlichen Pflanzenfamilien 3(5) : 313(1893). Ornitrophe serrata Roxb., Pl. Coromandel 1: 44(1796), Type: India, collector unknown. Fide Reynolds (1985b). (Now probably the plate t. 61.).