Pauldopia, a new genus of southeast Asian Bignoniaceae

During a cursory inspection of Asiatic Bignoniaceae in the Kew Herbarium in November 1946 I found that Tecoma bipinnata Coll. & Hemsl. from Yunnan still remained in the antiquated collective generic concept Tecoma. From its foliage it seemed to belong in the affinity of Radermachera and I tentatively referred it in sched. to that genus, anticipating a later, closer study. Shortly afterwards Chatterjee (1948) in a review of the family in India and Burma published this tentative transfer. In my opinion (1953) the species differs so much from the current circumscription of Radermachera that I accommodated it in a special section Exalatae. Recently some Bignoniaceous material from Thailand came to hand which at once reminded me of the Yunnan plant, because of the winged rachis of the leaves which is a unique feature among bipinnate Asiatic Bignoniaceae. Fortunately now also ripe fruit and seed was available which are so essential in the classification of this family. As will be seen below, the absence of fruit led to the description of this plant under three different names, referred to four generic names. Under these three names no mention was even made in the diagnosis of the arrangement of the ovules.