Palicourea acetosoides Wernham
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Authority
Maguire, Bassett. 1972. The botany of the Guayana Highland--part IX. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 23: 1-832.
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Family
Rubiaceae
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Scientific Name
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Type
Type. Colombia, Triana 126.
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Description
Latin Diagnosis - Inflorescentia valde elongata anguste thyrsoidea lineari-oblonga ad 27 cm longam basi ad 5.5-6 cm latam supra medium ad 5 cm latam attingens, axibus lateralibus sub anthesi 33-40 sub fructu ad 55 subadpresso-pubescentibus infimis 3-7 cm longis, rhachidi dense minuteque puberulenti vel glabra, axibus inferioribus 5—30-floris superioribus 7-10-floris; pedunculo nullo vel 0.5-2.5 cm longo; floribus pedicellatis vel sessilibus, pedicellis sub anthesi 1-2.5 mm longis sub fructu 2-4 mm longis puberulentibus; calyce hypanthioque 2-2.5 mm longo, hypanthio 1-1.1 mm longo 0.91.1 mm lato dense puberulenti; calyce 1-1.8 mm longo, lobis prominentibus ovato-suborbicularibus vel lanceolato-oblongis rotundatis vel subacutis 1.1-1.5 × 0.6-0.7 mm extus dense puberulentibus vel glabris, marginibus ciliolatis vel non ciliolatis; disco lobis calycis breviore; corolla anguste cylindrica sub anthesi 11 mm longa, tubo sub anthesi 10 mm longo basi 2 mm lato fauce 2.5 mm lato extus dense minuteque tomentello-puberulenti, lobis 1.5 × 0.5 mm anguste ligulato-oblongis apice acutis inflexis extus dense tomentellis; stipularum lobis 1.5-4.5 mm longis; foliorum petiolis 1.5-3 cm longis, nervis lateralibus utroque latere 15-20.
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Discussion
The Moritz specimen was identified by Standley as P. lyristipula and included under that species in the Rubiaceae of Venezuela (Field Mus. Publ. Bot. 7: 468. 1931).
In the original description the inflorescence was erroneously described as spicate. Actually, in mature developed inflorescences, as in Hurtado 108, it is found to be narrowly thyrsoid with numerous, short lateral branching axes. The tomentum of the type specimen is mostly obscured by the glue stuck to the inflorescence and calyces, but some short pubescence can be made out on a few calyces under a binocular dissecting microscope. In the Venezuelan specimen (Moritz 972) the pubescence is more developed on the rachis, calyx tube, and calyx lobes, but tends to disappear with age as in the more mature specimen collected by Hurtado. Wernham described his material from a young specimen in bud stage and various discrepancies are noted in his description as follows: in addition to the inflorescence being thyrsoid with numerous lateral branches, the calyx, which was described as obscurely lobate, has well developed and prominent lobes. An emendation of the species follows: