STYRACACEAE

'Styracaceae' is a small family of flowering plants in the order Ericales, containing 11-12 genera and about 150-170 species of trees and shrubs. The family occurs in warm temperate and subtropical regions of the Northern Hemisphere.

The family is characterised by spirally arranged simple leaves with no stipules; symmetrical white flowers with a corolla of 2-5 (-7) fused petals; and the fruit usually a dry capsule, sometimes winged, less often a fleshy drupe, with 1-2 seeds.
Most are large shrubs to small trees 3-15 m tall, but ''Halesia monticola'' (''H. carolina'' var. ''monticola'') is larger, with trees 39 m tall known in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina, United States.
Several genera include species popular as ornamental trees valued for their decorative white flowers. Storax resin, used in herbal medicine and perfumes, is extracted from the bark of ''Styrax'' species.

Contents

External Reference

External Reference

★ Styracaceae in L. Watson and M.J. Dallwitz (1992 onwards). The families of flowering plants.