Name:

Aspidistra graminifolia Aver. & Tillich – Wulfenia 23: 60. (2016).

Synonyms:

A. graminifolia is a synonym of Aspidistra cylindrica Vislobokov & Nuraliev.

Holotype:

 

28 August 2015, L. Averyanov, AL 84 [holotype: LE, isotype: MW]. Type prepared from cultivated plant collected in Vietnam in 2013 without indication of exact location (Vietnam anno 2013, sine location & collector, garden number 1285).

Distribution:

Vietnam.

Phenology:

Flowers in cultivation in August–September.

Description

from 

protologue:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Terrestrial perennial herb with epigeous few branching, plagiotropic rhizome. Rhizome thick, stout, 5–7(10) cm long, (0.8)1–1.5(2) cm in diam., densely covered by imbricate, light green leaf bases, later disintegrated into dull light brown, papyraceous or fibrous remains. Leafy shoot at apex of rhizome, creeping to ascending, stout, very short, simple, (0.6)1–1.5(2) cm tall, (0.8)1–1.4(1.6) cm in diam., densely nodal, with few thick underground roots. Cataphylls conduplicate, narrowly triangular (being flattened), acuminate, light green to whitish, herbaceous, scarious or papyraceous, usually straight, more or less upright, (5)7–12(16) cm long, (4)6–10(14) mm wide, suddenly broadening and often splitting at the base. Leaves on individual shoot (2)4–6(8), sessile, leathery, conduplicate, arching, lineate, tapering and acute at apex, (50)60–80(90) cm long, (1)1.2–1.5(1.8) cm wide, straight or slightly irregularly wavy along margin, uniformly grass-green on both sides, with prominent median vein. Flowers many, solitary, arising from basal part of leafy shoot, shortly pedunculate, odorless, (5)6–7(8) mm in diam., not opening widely. Peduncle arising obliquely, curved down at apex, white to light greenish, sparsely speckled with purple, (0.8)1–1.5(1.8) cm long, (1)1.2–1.8(2) mm in diam., with (3)4–5(6) sterile imbricate bracts; bracts broadly triangular ovate, concave, thin, uniformly light greenish or with small sparse purple speckles, scarious, papyraceous, blunt to obtuse, (4)5–6(7) mm long, (3.5)4–6(7) mm wide (being flattened), two distal bracts close to each other and to flower base. Perigone tube cupulate, outside white, fleshy, smooth and glossy, (2)2.2– 3(3.5) mm long, (4)4.5–5(5.5) mm wide, with 6(7) free lobes at apex. Perigone lobes subequal, fleshy, slightly concave, rather smooth, glossy, dull yellow and heavy speckled with purplebrown along margins outside, entirely dark dirty purple-brown inside, narrowly ovate to ovate, straight erect, with scarious and nibbled margin, (3.2)3.5–4.5(5) mm long, (1.6)1.8–2(2.2) mm wide, cucullate at apex, and thus reducing perigone opening to ca. 3.5 mm. Stamens 6, on short, fleshy, white filaments 0.8–1 mm long, inserted at the base of tube close to ovary; anthers narrowly conoid, (2)2.2–2.4(2.6) mm long, (0.8)1–1.2(1.3) mm wide, densely connivent to each other and to apical part of pistil forming a tube; pollen sacs introrse; pollen light yellow. Pistil white; style fleshy, cylindrical, hardly broadening to the base and apex, (2.8)3–3.2(3.4) mm tall, (1.2)1.4–1.6(1.8) mm in diam.; stigma truncate, discoid, (2)2.2–2.4(2.6) mm in diam., circular in outline, irregularly wavy along margin and on surface, fleshy, papillose, white. Ovary inconspicuous, very indistinct, white with olive-green tint. Fruits unknown.

Sourses:

Averyanov L.V. et al. (2016) – Wulfenia 23: 57– 67.

Gallery: