Pilocarpus pennatifolius Lem.
-
Authority
Kaastra, Roelof C. 1982. A monograph of the Pilocarpinae (Rutaceae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 33: 1-198. (Published by NYBG Press)
-
Family
Rutaceae
-
Scientific Name
-
Description
Species Description - Usually a shrub or small tree (1-)2-12 m tall with the trunk to 10 cm in diam, (two records; to 20 cm according to Hassler 416); branchlets 4-7(-9) mm thick, green- or brown-reddish-grayish, shining when young, perules of terminal buds densely pubescent with tawny hairs. Leaves alternate, imparipinnate, occasionally the terminal leaflet lacking, 3-jugate, occasionally some 1-, 2-, or 4-jugate, sometimes 1-foliolate just below inflorescence, with stalked sometimes shifted leaflets, often (broadly) elliptic or subcircular, 11-34(-39) × 10-25 cm; petiole (semi-)terete, slightly canaliculate, strongly ribbed and sometimes subwinged, (2-) 3-10(-13) cm long and 0.1-0.3 cm thick; rachis 1.5-14 cm long, the interspaces 1.5-6 cm, strongly ribbed like the petiole, continuing beyond the upper pair of leaflets without joint, but occasionally the uppermost interspace doubly articulate; terminal petiolule (0-) 1-7 mm long, sometimes to 20 mm long in upper leaves; lateral petiolules inserted at 45-90°, 2-10 mm long; leaflet blades often (narrowly) elliptic or oblong, sometimes slightly (ob)ovate, 4-18 × 2-5.4(-6.5) cm, occasionally some smaller, attenuate and unequal at base, obtuse or rounded at apex, the very tip emarginate, margin revolute and often slightly undulate-crenulate, the blade dull green, much paler beneath, venation slightly brochidodromous to subcamptodromous, principal veins prominulent above, prominent beneath, midvein (occasionally slightly) impressed above. Racemes nearly always solitary, terminal, erect, flexuose, 30-50 × 2-4 cm, with numerous flowers developing in basipetal fashion soon flowering all together; peduncle mostly absent, or obsolete; rachis 2-4 mm thick at base; bracts depressedly triangular, ca. 0.2-0.9 mm long (basal bracts rarely to 1.5 mm) and ca. 1 mm broad, subglabrous; pedicels at anthesis inserted at 90°, (5-)6-17 (in fruit to 18) mm long and 0.7-1.1 mm thick, (sub)glabrous; bractlets 2, transversely or occasionally obliquely inserted 1/3 to mostly 1/2 from base of the pedicel, occasionally higher, alternate or rarely subopposite, rarely beset with glandular hairs at the margin. Flowers 8.5-11 mm in diam.; calyx 5-toothed with apert or valvate to subquincuncial aestivation, 0.5-1(-1.7) mm long; teeth at anthesis occasionally not overlapping, depressedly triangular, 0.2-0.5(-1.4) × 1.1-1.5 mm, obtuse, very thickly coriaceous, beset with few hairs 0.05 mm especially at margin, otherwise glabrous; petals subvalvate, adnate to the gynophore, 3.8-5 × 1.9-2.7 mm, inflexed at tip through 0.3-0.5 mm, thickly coriaceous, bordeaux, the upper side carinate towards tip and slightly or obsoletely impressed, glabrous, venation parallel to slightly actinodromous, the nerves branched towards tip, the median nerve thicker; filaments subulate, slightly flattened towards base, 3-4.8 mm long and 0.5-0.8 mm thick, thick, purplish, glabrous; anthers ovoid, 1.5-2.8 × 0.7-1.5 mm, frequently 1.5 × 1.2 mm, dark ochrous or yellow, with internal gland usually not observable externally; disc 0.5-1.1 mm high and 1.8-3.5 mm in diam., irregularly plicate, glabrous; carpels inserted on a gynophore (0.4-0.5 mm in diam.), 1.1-1.6 mm high, projecting 0.5-0.8 mm beyond the disc, brown-violet, with discharging internal glands, glabrous; ovules 2, superposed; style inserted below tips of carpels, clavate or terete, 0.4-0.8 mm long and 0.5-0.8 mm thick, the free part 0.3-0.7 mm, glabrous; stigma clavate, 0.2-0.4 mm long, green. Mericarps 8-13 x 6-8 mm, dorso-apically blunt usually with an angle of ca. 90°, truncate or slightly convex at apex, shortly mucronate at the very tip, punctate with glands, glabrous, externally wrinkled longitudinally at 90° to the nerves, loculicidally dehiscent up to the dorso-apical angle; mericarps receding from the axis when ripe; axial part of endocarp persistently connected with the immature seed; seeds 1 or rarely 2 per mericarp, kidney-shaped, 7-10 x 4-6 x 3-5 mm, with flattened base and with curved apex ca. 0.2-0.5 mm, dorsally slightly keeled or doubly keeled, testa thinly coriaceous, very dark brown, shining, externally finely colliculate, with flat, irregular roundish collides ca. 0.03 mm long, hilum just below apex, 2.5-3.5 × 1-1.5 mm; embryo ochrous, cotyledons usually ± unequal, ears 0.8-1.2 mm long, radicle conical, 0.8-1.3 × 0.5-0.8 mm and often totally enclosed, plumule obsolete, to 0.2 mm long.