OLEACEAE - OLIVE FAMILY
Scientific Description:
Usually trees or shrubs. Leaves exstipulate, deciduous or evergreen, simple, trifoliolate or pinnate, usually opposite or whorled, rarely alternate. Flowers hermaphrodite, rarely unisexual, 4(−9)-merous, actinomorphic. Calyx campanulate, mostly small or rarely absent. Corolla sympetalous, polypetalous or absent. Stamens 2, the anther cells back to back, filaments adnate to corolla, or (when corolla absent) stamens free. Ovary superior, 2-locular; styles usually short or absent; stigma thickened or capitate or mostly shortly bifid; ovules usually 2 per loculus, rarely 1 or 4−10. Fruit a bilocular 2-valved capsule, samara, berry or drupe; seeds 1−4.
Reference:
Davis PH (1978). Oleaceae, In: Davis PH (ed.), Flora of Turkey and the East Aegean Islands, Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh, 6: 145.
Public Description:
The “olive family” contains trees or shrubs, and is distributed throughout the world, except for the Arctic; they are especially abundant in tropical and temperate Asia. Many members of this family have economic and aesthetic qualifications: the olive tree (Olea europaea L.) is the source of olive and olive oil; the “ash (Fraxinus L.)” is used to obtain hardwood timber; and species belonging to the genera “jasmine (Jasminum L.)”, “privet (Ligustrum L.)”, and “teaolive (Osmanthus Lour.)”are widely used as garden ornamental plants.
References:
Anonymous 1 (2016). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oleaceae/, Accessed date: 27.02.2016.
Anonymous 2 (2016). http://global.britannica.com/plant/Oleaceae, Accessed date: 27.02.2016.
