Fruit Micro-morphological Features of Ardisia Sect.Crispardisia (Myrsinaceae)from China

The fruit surface features of 16 species of Ardisia Sect.Crispardisia from China were examined with scanning electron microscopy(SEM).The fruits are spheroidal in shape,glabrous,rarely villous.Mostly punctate,rarely not puncate or unconspicuous,in the form of verrucate,granulata or transverse claviform,usually corresponding with protuberance on fruit surface.The surface ornamentation falls into 3 types:subsmooth,rugose,and undulate-reticulate.Some species have two types of ornamentation.The differentiation of ornamentation is obvious in some species.These results are very helpful in distinguishing between the species in the genus,and do not support the reduction of A.maculosa into A.polysticta.