Welcome to Thai Morinda

The genus Morinda was described by Linnaeus in 1753 [1]. The genus comprises c. 50 species, distributed mainly in the Old World tropics. The species occur in primary and secondary forests and scrubs in the lowlands as well as at higher altitudes. These plants are distinguished from other genera of the Rubiaceae by the following characters: the inflorescense is a stalked head of flowers which are fused together by their calyx tube; the corolla is infundibular to hypocrateriform, with a tube bearing 4-7 valvate lobes; stamens inserted in the tube or near the throat; the pollen is tricolporate with sexine usually finely reticulate; the ovary is 2-4-celled with 2 ovules basally attached in each carpel; style with 2-lobed stigma either included or slightly to distinctly exserted; the fruits are fused together as syncarps or fleshy head; pyrenes has two basal maginal slits [1]. About 50 species in the world and 12 species in Thailand [2], the majority widely distributed throughout tropical and subtropical regions.

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