Hello, This small tree was photographed in the fall of 2013 along the Yalong river in south-western Sichuan. It was multi-stemmed and stood about 12' tall and wide. Any ideas what it might be? Thanks.
I would say a Cornus, dogwood of some type, though it gives me pause that no-one else has said that and there might be a reason why not. The branches look too dull for C. controversa, but if I'm on the right eFloras.org key page, and I ignore the first step since it begins with a flower characteristic, it looks like it would key to that. If it should take the other branch, then I'd have to know about the trichomes. There's a C. controversa photo on this Google-translated South China Botanical Garden page halfway down that shows the right number of veins. Two photos down from that is Swida poliophylla. I'm not sure of the relationship between Cornus and Swida. Cornus is the basionym, which I think means Swida once was called that (Cornus schindleri subsp. poliophylla) but has been moved to the different genus. I can't tell at all if that's a better fit, or if either of these names is correct.
Thanks for the help. Leaf characteristics and geographic distribution certainly seem to line up with Cornus koehneana. But the seed is not right for Cornus. There are no nutlets inside the fruit as per Cornacea but a multitude of almost microscopic seeds which germinate without pre-treatment. I will post some photos of seedlings tomorrow. They might help.
Habit not right for C. controversa, don't think dogwoods ever have that flat top to the fruits either. You are asking about a shrub from an area that probably has the world's most diverse temperate flora, it may still be possible to go there and come across something that has not been described. Point being there are numbers of genera present in China that have no representation (or familiarity, outside of planted collections) here in the West - if nobody comes along who happens to know this plant it may be necessary to start with a fairly general part of a regionally appropriate dichotomous key, plod through for some time in order to arrive in the right area.
Ron B, Indeed the mountains of south-western Sichuan are surely the world's greatest temperate refugium - full of mysteries and surprises. I was there at high elevation, looking for a hardier Davidia and new Rhodos. My hunch is that this particular tree might be in the Moraceae. Maybe even a kind of Ficus. Still hoping someone might know though.
I can't see it clear enough on your fotos: Are the leaves alternate or opposite? If the latter, I don't think it's a Moraceae. Is there any milk sap in the fruits?
