Eugenia luschnathiana (O.Berg) Klotzsch ex B.D.Jacks. (Myrtaceae) species, commonly known as pitomba-da-baía, occurs in Restinga region in the state of Ceara and has medicinal potential. The present study aimed to characterize the anatomy of E. luschnathiana leaves in the rainy and dry seasons, as well as in the sun and shade in the Restinga region of Ceara, aiming to generate useful information to understand the adaptive value of morphoanatomic responses to the natural conditions of occurrence of the species. Collections were performed at the State Botanical Park of Ceara, and leaves were completely expanded and fixed in FAA70, being replaced by 70% ethanol after 24 h. Samples were submitted to standard plant anatomy methodologies in order to qualitatively and quantitatively analyze the leaf blade and petiole structures. As a result, there were differences among sun and shade leaves, rain and dry. In relation to luminosity, most determinations were higher in sun leaves: trichome density and frequency; trichome scar frequency; stomatal frequency, stomatal index, length, width and area of stomata; thickness of leaf blade, mesophyll, cuticle, epidermis, palisade and spongy parenchyma; length and width of the central vein, area of the central vein vascular bundle, number of secretory cavities in the central vein; length and width of the petiole, area of the petiole vascular bundle; amount and area of secretory cavities in the petiole. In shade leaves, only the number of druses in the central vein and petiole were larger. Regarding seasonality, all determinations were higher in the rainy season, except for the length and width of the central vein; number of druses in the central vein and petiole; length of the petiole, area of the vascular bundle and secretory cavities of the petiole. Therefore, it could be concluded that E. luschnathiana has great acclimative capacity to conditions of intense luminosity and periods of water deficit.

Although the conservation of tropical biodiversity depends on protected areas, there is still a very large 'gap' of knowledge on the flora of Brazilian reserves, especially in the Northeast region of Brazil. Field and herbarium surveys of the phanerogamic flora of the Ubajara National Park, located on the Brazilian Northeast, were made and analyses on phenology and dispersal syndromes were performed. 418 taxa (213 trees and shrubs, 100 terrestrial herbs, 68 climbing plants, 33 sub-shrubs, two epiphytes, one hemiparasite and one aquatic herb) were recorded. The most representative families were: Fabaceae, Malvaceae, Asteraceae, Rubiaceae and Euphorbiaceae. The annual flowering / fruiting peak hypothesis was not fully confirmed, therefore, the forest may be an important food resource for the fauna all year long (especially in the moister region). Zoochory was the predominant dispersal syndrome in the moister area, whereas, autochory and anemochory together, predominated in the drier area.

Resumo Neste trabalho é apresentado o levantamento dos representantes de Solanum (Solanaceae) como parte do projeto “Flora do Ceará”. Estudos morfológicos, coletas e observações de campo foram realizados. As identificações foram baseadas em bibliografia especializada, complementada pela análise de coleções de herbários nacionais e internacionais, incluindo espécimes-tipo. No Ceará, Solanum está representado por 31 espécies, das quais 26 ocorrem em Unidades de Conservação, e dez táxons são novos registros. Chave de identificação, comentários, ilustrações e imagens das espécies são fornecidas.

Extrafloral nectaries are known from many plant groups but have rarely been recorded in the large genus Solanum or, in fact, in the family Solanaceae. This study set out to explore the functional role of the extrafloral nectaries recently described in Solanum fernandesii, a species endemic to north-eastern Brazil. Light and scanning electron microscopy was used to study the morphoanatomical structure of the nectaries and histochemical analyses were performed to study the chemical composition of the exudates recovered from the glands on the basis of field studies. Light and scanning electron microscopy show that although the petiolar glands in S. fernandesii appear sessile to the naked eye, the glands are short stalked. The epidermis of the glands is composed of short, tightly packed multicellular trichomes. The gland secretions contain a mixture of polysaccharides, pectins, mucilage, proteins, lipids, essential oils, resins, and phenolic compounds on the basis of histochemical tests performed. These findings confirm that the petiolar glands in S. fernandesii are in fact resin glands and not extrafloral nectaries as previously claimed. Our study is the first report of resin glands in the large genus Solanum and we confirm that the glands found in S. fernandesii are unique in the genus.

A new spiny species of Solanum L., member of the Gardneri clade, is described from northeastern Brazil. Solanum fernandesii is found in open disturbed areas of coastal plains (tabuleiros) in the caatinga biome of the states of Alagoas, Bahia, and Ceará, from sea level to 900 m of altitude. It is morphologically similar to S. agrarium Sendtn., a neotropical species known from hot and dry areas of Colombia, Venezuela, the Caribbean, and central-eastern Brazil. The two species differ mainly in their habit, blade margins, shape of the calyx in fruit, and seeds. The new species is here described and illustrated. According to IUCN, Solanum fernandesii should be regarded as Least Concern (LC).

Alterações físico-químicas durante o crescimento dos frutos da ubaia-azedaPhysicochemical changes during ubaia-azeda fruit growth

The Northeast region of Brazil has the second highest number of species of the Myrtaceae family. It is mostly covered by the Caatinga biome, which is very degraded, making it difficult to preserve species of this family. Thus, the objective of this work was to describe the seed, seedling, and fruit morphology, and seed germination of Psidium sobralianum Landrum & Proença plants of the São Francisco Valley, Brazil. The fruits were collected in an area of the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa Semiarid), in Petrolina PE, Brazil. The evaluations consisted of determinations of fruit shape, consistency, and number of seeds; seed form, cotyledons, hilum, hypocotyl-radicle axis, and embryo type; epicarp, mesocarp, endocarp, and seed staining; longitudinal, transversal, and ventral diameters of fruits and seeds; fruit, pulp, and seed fresh and dry masses; germination test; first count of germinated seeds; germination speed index; shoot and root lengths; shoot and root fresh and dry masses; and imbibition test. Psidium sobralianum has polyspermic, berry fruits, subclassified as solanidium, with persistent sepals and globular shape, consisting of epicarp, mesocarp, endocarp and seeds. The fruits have green with orange epicarp, pale-green mesocarp, and white endocarp. The seeds have a pilose and bony aspect, a pimentoid type of embryo, foliaceous cotyledons, presence of operculum and hilum, and pale-yellow tegument. The germination is epigeal phanerocotiledonar, with root protrusion from 26 days after sowing (DAS); it presents a short, glabrous, thick radicle, and a rounded, pale-green apex. The germination is slow, probably due to the mechanical barrier of the tegument, and stabilizes at 90 DAS.

O Campus do Itaperi da Universidade Estadual do Ceará (UECE) localiza-se em Fortaleza-CE (3º47’09”S e 38º33’06”O), com área urbanizada de 18,37 ha e pertence ao Complexo Vegetacional da Zona Litorânea. Objetivou-se identificar a flora presente na área urbanizada do Campus do Itaperi da UECE, conhecer formas de vida, origem, endemismo dos táxons e nome vernacular. Realizaram-se visitas de novembro/2017 a outubro/2019, fazendo caminhadas aleatórias. As espécies foram fotografadas, tratadas no GNU Image Manipulation Program (GIMP) 2.10.18 e identificadas através de consultas à literatura especializada, especialistas e sites, seguindo o sistema APG IV. Registraram-se 135 espécies pertencentes a 122 gêneros e 57 famílias botânicas, onde se observou que a família mais representada foi a Fabaceae (15 espécies), seguida por Malvaceae (dez), Asteraceae (sete), Apocynaceae e Bignoniaceae (seis cada), Euphorbiaceae, Convolvulaceae, Solanaceae e Rubiaceae (cinco cada), Amaranthaceae e Cactaceae (quatro cada), somando aproximadamente 53% da flora encontrada no Campus. Constatou-se que 62% das espécies são plantas nativas do Brasil e quanto à forma de vida dos vegetais, observou-se que 32% representam árvores, seguido de 28% de ervas, 25% de arbustos, 9% de trepadeiras e por fim 6% de subarbustos. Conclui-se que o levantamento florístico possibilitou a identificação da flora presente na área urbanizada do Campus do Itaperi da UECE e demonstrou uma riqueza na variedade de espécies, que em sua maioria são nativas do Brasil, contribuindo para a preservação da biodiversidade local.