ABSTRACT
The wood anatomy of Miconia cabussu Hoehne, Miconia cinnamomifolia (DC.) Naudin, Miconia rigidiuscula Cogn. and Miconia sellowiana Naudin is described. The four species show distinct growth rings; solitary and multiples vessels; simple perforated plates; small, alternate and vestured intervessel pits; paratracheal scanty axial parenchyma; rays are composed by square, upright and few procumbent cells; parenchyma-like fibre; septate and gelatinous fibres. The useful characteristics for separation the species are: growth rings boundaries in M. cabussu and M. sellowiana; vascular tracheids present in M. cabussu; vessel-ray pits in M. rigidiuscula and parenchyma-like fibres arrangement in M. cinnamomifolia. The shape of the intervessel pits and the ray width separate the species into two groups: one includes M. cabussu and M. cinnamomifolia, the other group includes M. rigidiuscula and M. sellowiana. Dendrograms done in the cluster analysis represent these groups.
Keywords:
wood anatomy; Miconia; Melastomataceae