Celtis is a genus of about 60–70 species of deciduous trees, commonly known as hackberries or nettle trees, widespread in warm temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The genus is part of the extended Cannabis family (Cannabaceae).
Celtis
Leaves and immature fruit of Chinese hackberry (C. sinensis)
Celtis species are generally medium-sized trees, reaching 10–25 metres (33–82 feet) tall, rarely up to 40 m (130 ft) tall. The leaves are alternate, simple, 3–15 centimetres (1+1⁄4–6 inches) long, ovate-acuminate, and evenly serrated margins. Diagnostically, Celtis can be very similar to trees in the Rosaceae and other rose motif families.[citation needed]
Small flowers of this monoecious plant appear in early spring while the leaves are still developing. Male flowers are longer and fuzzy. Female flowers are greenish and more rounded.[citation needed]
The fruit is a small drupe 6–10 millimetres (1⁄4–3⁄8 in) in diameter, edible in many species, with a dryish but sweet, sugary consistency, reminiscent of a date.[citation needed]
Several species are grown as ornamental trees, valued for their drought tolerance. They are a regular feature of arboreta and botanical gardens, particularly in North America. Chinese hackberry (C. sinensis) is suited for bonsai culture; a magnificent specimen in Daegu-myeon is one of the natural monuments of South Korea. The berries are generally edible when they ripen and fall.[14]C. occidentalis fruit was used by the Omaha, eaten casually, as well as the Dakota people, who pounded them fine, seeds and all. The Pawnee used the pounded fruits in combination with fat and parched corn.[15]
Hackberry wood is sometimes used in cabinetry and woodworking. The berries of some, such as C. douglasii, are edible, and were consumed by the Mescalero Apaches.[16]
Galleryedit
C. aetnensis with mature fruit
Caucasian hackberry (C.caucasica) with immature fruit
^MacPhail, M. K., N. F. Alley, E. M. Truswell and I. R. K. Sluiter (1994). "Early Tertiary vegetation: evidence from spores and pollen." History of the Australian Vegetation: Cretaceous to Recent. Ed. Robert S. Hill. Cambridge University Press. pp. 189–261. ISBN 0521401976.Partially available on Google Books.
^Manchester, S. R., Akhmetiev, M. A., & Kodrul, T. M. (2002). Leaves and fruits of Celtis aspera (Newberry) comb. nov. (Celtidaceae) from the Paleocene of North America and eastern Asia. International Journal of Plant Sciences, 163(5), 725-736.
^Celtis L. Plants of the World Online, Kew Science. Accessed 11 December 2022.
^MacVean, A.L. 2021. Celtis trinervia. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2021: e.T179045950A149309679. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2021-1.RLTS.T179045950A149309679.en. Downloaded on 28 April 2021.
^"GRIN Species Records of Celtis". Germplasm Resources Information Network. United States Department of Agriculture. Archived from the original on 2009-01-20. Retrieved 2010-12-04.
^Quattrocchi, Umberto (2000). CRC World Dictionary of Plant Names. Vol. I A–C. CRC Press. p. 468. ISBN 978-0-8493-2675-2.
^Ravikanthachari, Nitin (April 2018). "Larval host plants of the butterflies of the Western Ghats, India". Research Gate.
^Wahlberg, Niklas (October 2006). "Libythea myrrha Godart 1819". Tree of Life Web Project.
^Brower, Andrew V.Z. (2006). Problems with DNA barcodes for species delimitation: ‘ten species’ of Astraptes fulgerator reassessed (Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae). Systematics and Biodiversity4(2): 127–132. doi:10.1017/S147720000500191X PDF fulltext
^Hebert, P. D. N.; Penton, E. H.; Burns, J. M.; Janzen, D. H.; Hallwachs, W. (2004). "Ten species in one: DNA barcoding reveals cryptic species in the neotropical skipper butterfly Astraptes fulgerator". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 101 (41): 14812–14817. Bibcode:2004PNAS..10114812H. doi:10.1073/pnas.0406166101. PMC522015. PMID 15465915. PDF fulltext Supporting Appendices