Temperate to tropical family.Tropics of the old world and Australasia(Australia, New-Zealand and Papua-New Guinea) 8 from 9 genus are endemic in Australia.
Floral characters
-Solitary or aggregated in cymes and corymbs. -Radiated -Five not persistant sepals -Five petals -Hermaphroditic -Hypogynous ovary -Two bracteoles -Androecial members free of the perianth. -Pollen grains aperturated (3-4), colporate
Leaf characters
Evergreen and leathery, margin entire.Leaves extipulated, usually alternate or whorled. Petiolate.Pinnatelly veined.Leaves without a persistant basal meristem.Multicellular hairs uniseriate.Minor leafs veins without phloem transfer cells.
Stipules
absent
Fruit characters
Loculicidal capsules or berries.Seeds endospermic, oily.Browny and sticky slime. Germination phanerocotylar
Glands
absent
Hairs
present
Latex
absent
Uses
Economical value is not very large,just the wood from Pittosporum is used for building. And some of it are used in gardening. The only edible part of the Family are the blue berries of Billardiera longiflora(appleberries).
Chemical characters
-Calcium oxalate crystals (druses)contened in the mesophyll. Not cyanogenic. Polyacetylenes recorded (falcarinone). Alkaloids present (commonly), or absent. Iridoids not detected. Arthroquinones detected (Pittosporum); polyacetate derived. Proanthocyanidins absent. Flavonols present; kaempferol and quercetin. Ellagic acid absent (7 species, 2 genera). Sugars transported as sucrose, or as sugar alcohols + oligosaccharides + sucrose (in different species of Pittosporum).
Distribution maps
(online von http://www.mobot.org/MOBOT/research/APweb/ . Dort zitiert wie unter jedem Diagramm vermerkt):
Pittosporaceae
map: from van Steenis & van Balgooy 1966; Good 1974; Coates Palgrave 2002; Trop. Afr. Fl. Pl. Ecol. Distr. 1. 2003
