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1 Leaves opposite; leaves either palmately compound, or simple (and then palmately lobed and/or toothed), or pinnately compound. |
..2 Leaves either simple (and palmately lobed and/or toothed) or pinnately compound; flowers radially symmetrical; fruit a schizocarp of 2 samaroid mericarps; [subfamily Hippocastanoideae, tribe Acereae] |
..2 Leaves palmately compound; flowers bilaterally symmetrical; fruit a capsule, usually with single large “nut-like” seed; [subfamily Hippocastaoideae, tribe Hippocastaneae] |
1 Leaves alternate; leaves compound (if unifoliolate and thus appearing simple [ Dodonaea], then unlobed and with entire margins). |
....3 Leaves unifoliolate, appearing simple; [subfamily Dodonaeoideae, tribe Dodonaeae] |
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......4 Herbaceous vines or lianas; leaves 3-foliolate or otherwise compound (biternately or pinnately compound); [subfamily Sapindoideae, tribe Paullinieae] |
........5 Leaves 3-foliolate |
........5 Leaves pinnately to biternately compound. |
..........6 Fruit a schizocarp with 3 winged mericarps; seeds lacking a pseudohilum |
..........6 Fruit an inflated, papery capsule; seeds with a white or pale tan heart-shaped or kidney-shaped mark (pseudohilum) |
......4 Tree or shrub; leaves 3-foliolate or pinnately or bipinnately compound. |
............ 7 Leaves palmately 3-foliolate; [subfamily Dodonaeoideae, tribe Doratoxyleae] |
............ 7 Leaves pinnately or bipinnately compound, with 5 or more leaflets. |
............ ..8 Fruits indehiscent, berry-like. |
............ ....9 Fruits 1 (-2)-coccate, with (1-) 2 rudimentary cocci, tardily schizocarpic, separating into indehiscent globose mericarps, with fleshy pericarp containing much saponin; seeds globose, lacking an aril |
............ ....9 Fruits ellipsoid or nearly globose, usually with a single locule; seeds arillate or sarcotestal. |
............ ......10 Leaves with (4) 8-10 (-18) leaflets; fruits light brown; seeds with a thin, translucent-white, fleshy aril, easily removable to show a shiny dark brown testa |
............ ......10 Leaves with (2-) 4 leaflets; fruits green; seeds with a fleshy testa; petals usually with 2 marginal projections or appendages on or above the base, or lacking appendages |
............ ..8 Fruits dehiscent, a capsule with papery, membranaceous, coriaceous, or woody valves. |
............ ........11 Leaves mostly odd-pinnate (with a definite terminal leaflet); [subfamily Sapindoideae, tribe Koelreuterieae] |
............ ..........12 Petals yellow; capsules papery or crustaceous, inflated (the capsule wall , with incomplete septae; seeds < 7 mm in diameter; [non-native, collectively widespread in our region] |
............ ..........12 Petals pink; capsules coriaceous, the capsule wall closely invested around the seeds, with complete septae; seeds 10-15 mm in diameter; [native, TX] |
............ ........11 Leaves mostly even-pinnate. |
............ ............ 13 Leaflet margins serrate; [subfamily Sapindoideae, tribe Cupanieae] |
............ ............ 13 Leaflet margins entire. |
............ ............ ..14 Locule 1-seeded; [subfamily Sapindoideae, tribe Cupanieae] |
............ ............ ..14 Locule 2- to several-seeded; [subfamily Dodonaeoideae, tribe Dodonaeae] |
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..2 Leaves 2-foliolate, with a branched tendril in the terminal position (this sometimes not developed, or withered); liana |
..2 Leaves 3-foliolate, lacking tendrils; shrub, liana, or tree. |
....3 Upright shrub or tree. |
......4 Leaflets entire, glandular-dotted; [n. FL southwards |
......4 Leaflets serrate or serrulate, not glandular-dotted; [collectively widespread]. |
........5 Leaflets 3-5 (-7), coarsely and jaggedly serrate, with < 5 teeth per leaflet side; fruit a schizocarp of 2 samaroid mericarps (maple “keys”) |
........5 Leaflets 3, evenly serrulate, with > 10 teeth per leaflet side; fruit an inflated capsule |
....3 Liana or sprawling shrub. |
..........6 Flowers yellow with fused petals; stems stiff, green |
..........6 Flowers either white, radially symmetrical, with separate petaloid sepals ( Clematis), or blue, bilaterally symmetrical, with fused petals ( Vitex). |
............ 7 Leaves 3-more-foliolate; flowers white, radially symmetrical, uniseriate, with white petaloid sepals and no petals |
............ 7 Leaves 1 (-3) foliolate; flowers blue, bilaterally symmetrical, biseriate, with green calyx and blue corolla |
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............ ..8 Leaves palmately compound. |
............ ....9 Leaflets serrate; flowers white, yellow, or red; fruit a leathery capsule, irregularly spheroidal, 2-9 cm in diameter, with 1-3 (-6) large seeds, each with a large pale hilum contrasting with the dark brown color of the rest of the seed |
............ ....9 Leaflets entire; flowers blue, pink, or purple; fruit either a 4-seeded drupe, < 0.5 cm in diameter, or an elongated capsule, 8-10 cm long and ca. 0.7 cm in diameter. |
............ ......10 Leaflets < 3× as long as wide, broadly rounded at the tip; fruit an elongated capsule, 8-10 cm long and ca. 0.7 cm in diameter [peninsular FL] |
............ ......10 Leaflets > 4× as long as wide, acute at the tip; fruit a 4-seeded drupe, < 0.5 cm in diameter; [widespread in our region] |
............ ..8 Leaves pinnately compound, bipinnately compound, or more complexly compound. |
............ ........11 Plant a liana (woody vine). |
............ ..........12 Leaves pinnately compound, with 7-15 coarsely serrate leaflets; perianth biseriate, with a green synsepalous calyx and an orange sympetalous corolla; fruit an elongate capsule, with many winged seeds; stems to 20 cm in diameter, with tan bark |
............ ..........12 Leaves either pinnately compound, the leaflets 3-7 and coarsely serrate, or more complexly compound, the leaflets 5-many, not serrate though often lobed; perianth uniseriate, with a white, pink, or purplish aposepalous calyx and no corolla; fruit an aggregate of plumose achenes; stems to 1 cm in diameter, brown or green |
............ ........11 Plant a tree or shrub, with stiff branches. |
............ ............ 13 Leaves 3-7-foliolate and strictly 1-pinnate; leaflets with a few very coarse teeth; 1st year stems green; fruit a pair of winged, asymmetrical samaroid mericarps |
............ ............ 13 Leaves 3-15-foliolate, 1-pinnate or partially 2-pinnate; leaflets evenly serrate with many teeth or entire; 1st year stems tan to brown (very new growth may be green); fruit either a symmetrical (winged) samara ( Fraxinus) or a purplish-black, many-seeded berry ( Sambucus). |
............ ............ ..14 Fruit a purplish-black or red, 4-seeded berry ( Sambucus); plant a shrub or small tree; stems hollow or pithy; petiole prominently grooved on the upper side; fresh leaves somewhat fleshy in texture |
............ ............ ..14 Fruit either a green or tan, symmetrical (winged) samara or a blackish 5-seeded dryish drupe; plant a small to large tree; stems solid and woody; petiole nearly round in ×-section (not grooved); fresh leaves membranaceous or coriaceous in texture. |
............ ............ ....15 Fruit a symmetrical samara; axillary buds suprapetiolar (though sometimes almost hidden within the strongly U-shaped petiolar attachment; [common native (also planted)] |
............ ............ ....15 Fruit a nearly spherical 5-seeded dry drupe; axillary buds infrapetiolar (hidden by the swollen petiole base; [rarely escaped exotic] |
1 Leaves pinnately lobed. |
..2 Leaves harshly scabrous on the upper surface; leaves typically a mix of alternate, opposite, and whorled |
..2 Leaves glabrous or glabrescent on the upper surface; leaves strictly opposite |
1 Leaves palmately lobed. |
....3 Plants climbing by twining; stems with retrorse prickles; foliage scabrous |
....3 Plants erect trees or shrubs; stems not prickly; foliage smooth or pubescent, but not scabrous. |
......4 Leaves 3-9-lobed, the margins generally serrate or sublobed; fruit either a drupe or a schizocarp of 2 samaroid mericarps (maple “keys”). |
........5 Fruit a schizocarp of 2 samaroid mericarps (maple “keys”); stamens (4-) 8 (-12); small to large trees; petioles >1× as long as the leaf blade |
........5 Fruit a drupe; stamens 5; shrubs; petioles < ¾× as long as the leaf blade |
......4 Leaves 3-lobed, the margins entire; fruit a capsule. |
..........6 Flowers white to yellow; capsules linear, >10× as long as wide; leaf undersurface with curly simple hairs; nectar glands present in the main vein axils on the undersurface of the leaf (visible from the underside or the upperside in fresh leaves and herbarium specimens) |
..........6 Flowers lavender; pods ellipsoid, < 2× as long as wide; leaf undersurface with branched (dendritic) stellate hairs; nectar glands absent |