Calycanthaceae

Calycanthaceae
Calycanthus floridus
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Division:	Angiosperms
Class:	Magnoliids
Order:	Laurales
Family:	Calycanthaceae Lindl.[1]
Genera
Calycanthus Chimonanthus Idiospermum Sinocalycanthus (Chinese Sweetshrub)

The Calycanthaceae (sweetshrubs or spicebushes) are a small family of flowering plants in the order Laurales. The family contains three genera and only 10 species, restricted to warm temperate and tropical regions:

• Calycanthus (two species; western and southeastern North America)
• Chimonanthus (six species; eastern Asia)
• Idiospermum (one species; Queensland, Australia)
• Sinocalycanthus (one species; eastern Asia) - morphological and molecular data indicate this is a member of Calycanthus.

They are aromatic, deciduous shrubs growing to 2–4 m tall, except for Idiospermum, which is a large evergreen tree. The flowers are white to red, with spirally arranged tepals. DNA-based phylogenies indicate the Northern Hemisphere Calycanthus and Chimonanthus diverged from each other in the mid-Miocene, while the Australian Idiospermum had already diverged by the Upper Cretaceous and likely represents a remnant of a former Gondwanan distribution of Calycanthaceae that included South America, as indicated by the occurrence of Cretaceous Calycanthaceae fossils in Brazil.

References

• Calycanthaceae in L. Watson and M. J. Dallwitz (1992 onwards). The families of flowering plants.
• Flora of North America: Calycanthaceae
• Flora of China Draft text of Calycanthaceae
• "Molecular phylogeny and intra- and intercontinental biogeography of Calycanthaceae"