On the morphology of the ovules in Salacca (Palmae)

Female inflorescences in several stages of development of Salacca edulis Reinw. were collected from stands in the Kebun Raya at Bogor and near the village Depok, West Java. In addition to this, material of S. wallichiana Mart. collected in the Kebun Raya, Bogor, was used in this morphological study*). Salacca belongs to the subfamily Lepidocaryoideae of Palmae, which is distinguished by its large fruit scales. As one of the results of the present study I could observe that the early development of these scales takes place in the epidermal cells of the young ovaries. The Lepidocaryoideae are furthermore distinguished by the position of their ovules. In Palms there is one axillary basal ovule in each locule. Usually the ovules are ascendent and anatropous, the micropylae facing the dorsal walls of the locules. In Lepidocaryoideae, however, the micropylae face the central column of the ovary. Uhl & Moore (1971), who recently published a morphological study on the Palm gynoecium, think that the ovules in this group have turned 180 degrees. These authors studied Plectocomiopsis geminiflorus, and their results are very similar to mine in Salacca. The vascular bundle in the funicle is reported to be twisted, which is regarded as evidence of the turning of the ovule.