The genus Callicarpa is part of the Verbenaceae family.

Description

Members of this family are found worldwide but are found mostly in tropical regions. There are several genera that thrive in subtropical regions with a few found in temperate regions. They are found especially in canyons, bottom areas, moist woodlands and dry fertile ground. There are approximately 75 different genera in this family and over 3,000 species. The specimens in this family have opposite or whorled leaves that are most commonly undivided. The flowers are usually found as spikes or clusters and consist of a tube flaring into four or five nearly equally separated lobes.(Heywood, 1978)

Species List

• Callicarpa acutifolia
• Callicarpa anisophylla
• Callicarpa arborea
• Callicarpa basitruncata
• Callicarpa bodinieri
• Callicarpa brevipes
• Callicarpa candicans
• Callicarpa cathayana
• Callicarpa collina
• Callicarpa dentosa
• Callicarpa dichotoma
• Callicarpa erythrosticta
• Callicarpa formosana
• Callicarpa giraldii
• Callicarpa gracilipes
• Callicarpa hungtaii
• Callicarpa hypoleucophylla
• Callicarpa integerrima
• Callicarpa japonica
• Callicarpa kochiana
• Callicarpa kotoensis
• Callicarpa kwangtungensis
• Callicarpa lingii
• Callicarpa loboapiculata
• Callicarpa longibracteata
• Callicarpa longifolia
• Callicarpa longipes
• Callicarpa longissima
• Callicarpa luteopunctata
• Callicarpa macrophylla
• Callicarpa membranacea
• Callicarpa minutiflora
• Callicarpa nudiflora
• Callicarpa oligantha
• Callicarpa pauciflora
• Callicarpa peichieniana
• Callicarpa pilosissima
• Callicarpa pingshanensis
• Callicarpa poilanei
• Callicarpa prolifera
• Callicarpa pseudorubella
• Callicarpa randaiensis
• Callicarpa remotiserrulata
• Callicarpa rubella
• Callicarpa salicifolia
• Callicarpa siongsaiensis
• Callicarpa tingwuensis
• Callicarpa yunnanensis

(This is from http://www.herbaria.harvard.edu/china/verben/callicar-spp.htm)

Identification Guide

One of the easiest ways to determine if you have found a true American Beauty Berry (Callicarpa americana) is the location at which you found it. The only variety of the Callicarpa genus indigenous to North America is the American Beauty Berry. This flower is characterized by one of the brightest purple-pink hues found in nature. The Callicarpa japonica. This species is endemic to East Asia.

General Information

The first observation that I found recorded any other species within this genus that is described in these pages is the Callicarpa species was in 1753. "The predominant inflorescence (flower cluster) is a raceme in which the lowest flowers of the branched system open first. Most Callicarpa produce bisexual flowers bearing both stamens and pistils. A representative flower is four- or five-parted, sepals are partially fused to form a bell-shaped calyx, and petals form a tubular corolla that is two-lipped. Typically two united carpels form the pistil, which consists of a basal ovary, a slender style, and the pollen-receptive stigma. After pollination and fertilization, the ovule becomes the seed and the ovary the fruit. The ovary in the Lamiales is deeply four-lobed with the style arising from the central depression. When mature, the fruit separates into four nutlets, a characteristic that distinguishes the mint family (Lamiaceae) from most members of the Verbenaceae. Members of Callicarpa are found in the Verbenaceae family. Fruits in the verbena family may also split apart, but many are berries or drupes. Drupes are characterized by a fleshy outer layer, but a stony inner layer."(The material in quotation marks come from http://www.eb.com:180/cgi-bin/g?Doc...=1&keywords=Callicarpa%20#first_hit) The seeds have a straight embryo and little or no endosperm is present. There are many uses for species in the Verbenaceae family that range from timbers (teaks), essential oils, teas, herbal medicines, fruits, gums, tannins and ornamentals. Special uses for certain Callicarpa species are a number of herbal remedies particular to fighting IZE=4>Goo, G. and Lee, K. "The structure of vegetation^M in Chamaecyparis-obtusa ^M

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