Abstract

LEON H, Williams J. Wood anatomy of 14 species of the genus PouteriaAubl. (sapotaceae) in Venezuela. Acta Bot. Venez. [online]. 2009, vol.32, n.2, pp.433-451. ISSN 0084-5906.

Wood anatomy of 14 species of the genus Pouteria Aubl. (Sapotaceae) growing in Venezuela was studied. The following species were studied: P. amygdalicarpa, P. caimito, P. coriacea, P. cuspidata subsp. dura, P. decorticans, P. egregia, P. eugeniifolia, P. guianensis, P. hispida, P. macrophylla, P. procera, P. reticulata, P. trilocularis and P. venosa. Wood description was done according IAWACommittee list. An one wayANOVA and Tukey test for multiple comparisons was performed regarding quantitative features. Secondary xylem shows homogeneity in Pouteria genus; the main distinctive features between species are pore diameter, pit diameter, rays width and number of wide cells in parenchyma bands. According to these features, a dichotomous key was elaborated. Pouteria decorticans and P. hispida can only be separated using quantitative features like diameter of intervessel pits. Similar case was observed between P. egregia and P. procera, separated by fibre length.

Keywords : Anatomy; Pouteria; Sapotaceae; silica bodies; Venezuela; wood; xylem.