Monographs Details:
Authority:
1978. Notes Roy. Bot. Gard. Edinburgh. 36: 255.
1978. Notes Roy. Bot. Gard. Edinburgh. 36: 255.
Family:
Ericaceae
Ericaceae
Description:
Species Description - Terrestrial or epiphytic, much-branched shrub to 3 m, rarely reported as a small tree 12-20 m tall; stem terete, striate, bark cracking longitudinally, glabrous; twigs subterete, bluntly to sharply angled, glabrous or puberulent. Leaves subcoriaceous to chartaceous, elliptic to ovate-elliptic, or lanceolate, 3.5-10 x (0.8-)1.5-3 cm, base obtuse to narrowly cuneate, apex narrowly, long-acuminate, the tip shortly mucronate, margin revolute in proximal one-fourth, glabrous but with few caducous, scattered, glandular fimbriae beneath; 3(-5)-plinerved from near base, midrib strongly impressed above and raised beneath, lateral nerves impressed or plane to weakly raised above then inconspicuous, slightly raised beneath and inconspicuous to conspicuous, reticulate veinlets slightly raised on both surfaces but only conspicuous beneath; petiole subterete, slightly winged and flattened above, rugose, 1-3 mm long, puberulent above. Inflorescence axillary, essentially fasciculate or very short-racemose, 4-10-flowered, sometimes arising on older stems where leaves have fallen, surrounded at base by numerous, ovate, acute bracts to 2 mm long; rachis (when present) angled, glabrate, to 5-7 mm long; floral bract deciduous, ovate, acute, 1-2 mm long, glabrous but marginally glandular-fimbriate; pedicel subterete, striate or angled, 8-13 mm long, glabrate but with scattered glandular fimbriae; bracteoles located below or above the middle, caducous, narrowly lanceolate, acuminate, 1-2 mm long, marginally weakly glandular-fimbriate. Flowers 4-merous, with the calyx ca. 3 mm long and glabrous; hypanthium campanulate, terete, rugose, 2-2.5 mm long; limb ± erect-campanulate, ca. 1 mm long; lobes triangular, acute, apiculate, 0.2-0.5 mm long; sinuses broadly rounded to flat; corolla cylindric-campanulate, 5-6 mm long, glabrous, white, the lobes deeply, often irregularly split, strongly curled and reflexed at anthesis thus exposing tips of anthers, triangular, acute, 2-3 mm long; stamen 5, ca. 5-6 mm long; filaments distinct, 2.5-3.5 mm long, densely pilose in upper half and onto connectives; anthers 3-4 mm long, the base acute or obtuse; thecae ca. 2.4 mm long, separate to midpoint; tubules ca. 1.6 mm long, dehiscing by short clefts 0.6-1 mm long; style exserted to conspicuously long-exserted, 9-9.5 mm long, glabrous; nectariferous disc pulvinate, deeply cylindric, glabrous. Berry spherical, ca. 9 mm diam., lavender-purple, glabrous.
Distribution and Ecology - Colombia and Ecuador; premontane rainforest, lower montane rainforest, to montane wet and rainforest, at 1036-2900 m altitude.
Species Description - Terrestrial or epiphytic, much-branched shrub to 3 m, rarely reported as a small tree 12-20 m tall; stem terete, striate, bark cracking longitudinally, glabrous; twigs subterete, bluntly to sharply angled, glabrous or puberulent. Leaves subcoriaceous to chartaceous, elliptic to ovate-elliptic, or lanceolate, 3.5-10 x (0.8-)1.5-3 cm, base obtuse to narrowly cuneate, apex narrowly, long-acuminate, the tip shortly mucronate, margin revolute in proximal one-fourth, glabrous but with few caducous, scattered, glandular fimbriae beneath; 3(-5)-plinerved from near base, midrib strongly impressed above and raised beneath, lateral nerves impressed or plane to weakly raised above then inconspicuous, slightly raised beneath and inconspicuous to conspicuous, reticulate veinlets slightly raised on both surfaces but only conspicuous beneath; petiole subterete, slightly winged and flattened above, rugose, 1-3 mm long, puberulent above. Inflorescence axillary, essentially fasciculate or very short-racemose, 4-10-flowered, sometimes arising on older stems where leaves have fallen, surrounded at base by numerous, ovate, acute bracts to 2 mm long; rachis (when present) angled, glabrate, to 5-7 mm long; floral bract deciduous, ovate, acute, 1-2 mm long, glabrous but marginally glandular-fimbriate; pedicel subterete, striate or angled, 8-13 mm long, glabrate but with scattered glandular fimbriae; bracteoles located below or above the middle, caducous, narrowly lanceolate, acuminate, 1-2 mm long, marginally weakly glandular-fimbriate. Flowers 4-merous, with the calyx ca. 3 mm long and glabrous; hypanthium campanulate, terete, rugose, 2-2.5 mm long; limb ± erect-campanulate, ca. 1 mm long; lobes triangular, acute, apiculate, 0.2-0.5 mm long; sinuses broadly rounded to flat; corolla cylindric-campanulate, 5-6 mm long, glabrous, white, the lobes deeply, often irregularly split, strongly curled and reflexed at anthesis thus exposing tips of anthers, triangular, acute, 2-3 mm long; stamen 5, ca. 5-6 mm long; filaments distinct, 2.5-3.5 mm long, densely pilose in upper half and onto connectives; anthers 3-4 mm long, the base acute or obtuse; thecae ca. 2.4 mm long, separate to midpoint; tubules ca. 1.6 mm long, dehiscing by short clefts 0.6-1 mm long; style exserted to conspicuously long-exserted, 9-9.5 mm long, glabrous; nectariferous disc pulvinate, deeply cylindric, glabrous. Berry spherical, ca. 9 mm diam., lavender-purple, glabrous.
Distribution and Ecology - Colombia and Ecuador; premontane rainforest, lower montane rainforest, to montane wet and rainforest, at 1036-2900 m altitude.
Discussion:
Illustration: Luteyn (9116), plate. 4
Illustration: Luteyn (9116), plate. 4
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