1. Taxonomy and naming

2. Description

3. Distribution and habitat

4. Cultivation

5. References

Cenarrhenes is a monytypic genus in the family Proteaceae containing the single species Cenarrhenes nitida, known as the Port Arthur plum or native plum. Cenarrhenes nitida is an evergreen shrub to small tree endemic to the rainforests and scrublands of western Tasmania. It bears white flowers in late spring followed by the development of fleshy fruit.

Taxonomy and naming

The French naturalist and explorer Jacques Labillardière described Cenarrhenes nitida in 1805, from a location described as in capite Van Diemen (Tasmania).^[2] It still bears its common name today.^[1] The genus name is derived from the Ancient Greek words kenos "empty" and arrhen "male", referring to the four staminode-like hypogynous glands.^[2] The genus only bears the one species,^[2] its name the Latin adjective nitida "bright/shining", referring to its glossy leaves.^[3]

Although it resembles the persoonias in appearance, it does not appear to be related to them.^[3] Instead, it has been grouped with the Australian genera Agastachys, Symphionema and New Caledonian genera Beauprea and Beaupreopsis in the subtribe Cenarrheninae by Johnston and Briggs in 1975. It remained in its own subtribe in the publication of Flora of Australia in 1995, within the tribe Conospermeae and subfamily Proteoideae.^[4] In 1998 Sara Hoot and Andrew Douglas analysed chloroplast sequences and found that Cenarrhenes was sister to a clade comprising the three genera Stirlingia, Conospermum and Synaphea.^[5] Peter H. Weston and Nigel Barker reviewed the suprageneric relationships of the Proteaceae in 2006, using molecular and morphological data. In this scheme Cenarrhenes is located within the subfamily Proteoideae on account of it having cluster roots, a solitary ovule and indehiscent fruits.^[6] In a phylogenetic study including all the Proteaceae genera, it was found that it was most closely related to the genera Beaupreopsis (New Caledonia) and Dilobeia (Madagascar).^[7]

Port Arthur plum and native plum are common names given to the species.^[1]

Description

Hence the common name, the fruit of Cenarrhenes nitida are a fleshy drupe which closely resemble commercial plums from the genus Prunus. The fruit are roughly {{convert|1.5|cm|in|abbr=on}} in size,^[8] but can get up to {{convert|3|cm|in|abbr=on}}. They have a smooth, deep purple skin, edible but chalky tasting pink-white flesh and a large stone at the center. Much like plums, the fruit have a groove running down one side of the fruit and a fine dusty layer on the skin giving it a bluish colour which is easily removed by rubbing. Fruit ripen in autumn from March to May.^[11]

The flowers are produced in early summer from November to December and are small, symmetrical, and unscented. Each flower has four, pointed, fleshy petals which curl backward when open. Closed flowers have pink tips but turn all white when open. The flowers are stalkless and arranged on woody spikes which are shorter than the leaves. The flowers are insect pollinated and have four, thick, cream-yellow stamens. The pollination is spring-loaded and is triggered by a touch sensitive hair on one of the four anthers. Often, only 1 to 3 flowers per stalk will develop into mature fruit with the remainder forming stunted woody balls.^[12]

Distribution and habitat

Cenarrhenes nitida is endemic to southern and western Tasmania and some of its islands, growing to an altitude of {{convert|800|m|ft|abbr=on}},^[8] the margins of the alpine zone. It occurs most often as an understory tree to small shrub in wet sclerophyll forests and rainforest with poor soils and occasionally in heath, button grass sedgeland and scrub.^[11] Offshore populations occur inland on South Bruny Island and in forested areas of the De Witt Islands which closely resemble environments on mainland Tasmania.

Cultivation

References

• Southern Gentleman (song)
• Southern Ghale
• Southern giant mouse lemur
• Southern gilia
• Southern giraffe
• Southern Girl City Lights
• Southern Girl City Lights (song)
• Southern Girls (play)
• Southern gliding hawkmoth
• Southern golden bulbul
• Southern Golden-bulbul
• Southern golden-bulbul
• Southern Golden-Bulbul
• Southern goldenrod
• Southern Gondi
• Southern Gothic (2007 film)
• Southern Gothic (disambiguation)
• Southern Gothic music
• Southern (Govia)
• Southern gracile blind snake
• Southern Grass emerald
• Southern Grass Emerald
• Southern grass Emerald
• Southern grass emerald
• Southern Grass-skipper