Trochetia

Trochetia is a subgenus of flowering plants, now placed in the genus Ruizia and the family Malvaceae (formerly in the Sterculiaceae, but genera now usually subsumed in the Dombeyoideae and other subfamilies). Species are endemic to the Mascarene Islands. The original genus was first described by A.P. de Candolle in 1823, who named it in honour of French botanist Henri Dutrochet.

==Description and ecology== The genus Trochetia consists of scrubs or small trees, which can reach a height from two to eight metres. The hermaphroditic flowers are either white (T. triflora), pink (T. parviflora), or reddish orange (T. boutoniana). They are either single-standing, or grow in a cluster of three flowers. Some species have bell-shaped petals. All plants of this genus are imperiled due to the competition of invasive species, like the guavas from China but also by destruction caused by introduced monkeys and rats. Five species occur on Mauritius and one on La Reunion. The habitat consists of humid forests with a high annual rainfall or mountainous slopes which are directed windwards.