Lagerstroemia L.

Timothy M. A. Utteridge and Laura V. S. Jennings (2022). Trees of New Guinea. Kew Publishing. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew

Distribution

A genus of 53 species ranging from China and Japan throughout South-East Asia and Malesia to New Guinea and northern Australia; c. three species in New Guinea.

Morphology General Habit

Shrubs and trees to 15 m tall

Morphology Leaves

Leaves opposite, petiolate (usually less than 1 cm long), entire, elliptic or ovate, usually rounded at the base and acute at the apex, pinnately veined. Inflorescences usually terminal, many-flowered, paniculate

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers

Flowers 4–9-merous; hypanthium smooth, warty, or ridged; calyx lobes triangular, valvate in bud; petals 6 or more, clawed, crinkled, inserted at the summit of calyx tube, white pink or purple; stamens many, exserted, inserted at the bottom of calyx tube, filaments thin; ovary 3–6-locular, placentation axile, style at least twice as long as the stamens, sinuous, persistent in fruit, stigma minutely capitate. Fruit a loculicidal capsule, exserted from the hypanthium

Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds

Seeds many, winged.

Ecology

In New Guinea, Lagerstroemia is often cultivated as an ornamental, but is also found as a native in primary rain forest, rain forest edges, riversides, secondary regrowth and on lateritic soil and coral rock, up to 500 m.

Recognition

Lagerstroemia can be recognised by the ovate leaves which are rounded at the base (as opposed to cordate like Duabanga), the paniculate inflorescence with showy flowers with crinkled, clawed petals, the woody capsular fruit and winged seeds.