Semiramisia speciosa (Benth.) Klotzsch

  • Family

    Ericaceae (Magnoliophyta)

  • Scientific Name

    Semiramisia speciosa (Benth.) Klotzsch

  • Primary Citation

    Linnaea 24: 25. 1851

  • Description

    Description: Terrestrial shrub to ca. 2 m or rarely epiphytic and sometimes climbing or scrambling to 5 m, rarely with lignotubers; stem terete to subterete, striate, glabrous, the bark cracking reticulately and peeling off in thin sheets; twigs subterete, complanate and bluntly angled, striate, glabrous. Leaves coriaceous, sometimes bullate, broadly to narrowly ovate, 5-10(-13) x 1.5-5.5 cm, basally rounded to truncate or subcordate, apically short- to long-acuminate, glabrous, margin flat and sometimes basally involute when fresh and then curling around and partially hiding the flowers; 3-5-plinerved from the base, midrib and lateral nerves impressed (sometimes strongly and conspicuously) above and raised beneath, sometimes with all nerves weakly raised on both surfaces or midrib and lateral nerves weakly impressed above and raised beneth, the reticulate veinlets often obscure; petiole terete or slightly flattened above, 2-5 mm long, glabrous. Inflorescence axillary, solitary, racemose, 1-3-flowered; rachis subterete, minutely striate, 0.5-2 cm long, glabrous; floral bract persistent, ovate, acute, 1-1.3 mm long, marginally glandular-fimbriate; pedicel terete, 14-24(-30) mm long, glabrous but rarely with a few, scattered glandular fimbriae; bracteoles nearly basal, sometimes subopposite, ovate, less than 1 mm long, marginally with few glandular fimbriae or these coalesced into one glandular area along margin. Flowers with calyx 8-11 mm long, glabrous but rarely with a few, scattered glandualr fimbriae, pale green; hypanthium obconic, strongly 5-ribbed at anthesis but becoming terete to spherical post-anthesis, 5-7 mm long; limb spreading campanulate, thin, 3-5 mm long; lobes to 1 mm long, bearing on each side a tiny, ± concave glandular area ca. 1 mm long; sinuses broadly rounded to flat; corolla cylindric-campanulate, 31-50(-65) mm long and 13-16 mm in proximal diam. to 20-25(-37) mm distal diam., glabrous, pale green grading to white in the proximal one-half but becoming progressively darker pink to red in the distal one-half, the lobes erect not reflexed, ovate, ca. 1-3 x 6-10 mm, but tearing to ca. 12 mm long when dry; stamens equal with each other, subequal to the corolla or sometimes only ca. 2/3 as long, 24-40 mm long; filaments connate, 4-6 mm long, glabrous; anthers 22-39 mm long; thecae 6-8 mm long, curved inwards at the base; tubules laterally coherent in basal half, 14-20 mm long, the tips acuminate and dehiscing by oblique, subterminal clefts 1-4 mm long. Berry not seen.

    Distribution: S Colombia to Peru, infrequent and scattered in montane forest, at 850-3810 m.

    Illustrated: Luteyn, 1984, fig. 3A-D and Luteyn, 1996, fig. 24 and pl. 1.

  • Floras and Monographs

    Semiramisia speciosa (Benth.) Klotzsch: [Article] 1851. Linnaea. 24: 25.

    Semiramisia speciosa (Benth.) Klotzsch: [Article] Smith, Albert C. 1952. Plants collected in Ecuador by W. H. camp. Vaceiniaceae. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 8 (1): 41-85.