Bark anatomy of Tambourissa (Monimiaceae) from Madagascar

Bark stucture of a mature tree of Tambourissa hildebrandtii Perk, and some other Tambourissa species (Monimiaceae) is described. The axial system of the conducting secondary phloem is composed for 40 percent of sieve elements and for about 60 percent of parenchyma cells of which many contain a granular oil-like substance. Storied structure and phloem fibres are absent. The bulk of the ray tissue is composed of wide multiseriate rays. Precocious sclerosis, at first horse-shoe shaped thickened sclereids, of parts of these rays is of common occurrence. Also the innermost phelloderm layers of the periderm are composed of such sclereids.