Blumea 1961. 11: 114.
WFO ID: wfo-0000400236
IPNI ID: urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:333147-1
Verified by:
Spreading shrub to 2.5m. Twigs c.2mm in diameter, slender, the youngest parts densely scaly; internodes 2–8cm. Leaves 4–5 together in pseudowhorls. Blade 30–50 x 16–30mm, elliptic; apex broadly sub-acuminate, or sometimes obtusely apiculate; margin entire, narrowly revolute; base broadly tapering, sub-densely scaly initially, glabrescent above with age, persistently scaly beneath. Scales small, round, marginal zone narrow; centre thick, yellowish, slightly impressed. Mid-vein narrowly impressed above, as thick as the petiole and very prominent in the proximal part beneath; lateral veins 4–6 per side, spreading, straight, faintly impressed above, very slightly raised beneath, or commonly obscure on both sides, without visible reticulation. Petiole 4–6 x c.1mm, grooved above. Bracts to 10 x 8mm, membranous, glabrous outside, fringed with scales towards the apices; outer ones ovate, apiculate or obtuse; inner ones obovate-elliptic to elliptic. Bracteoles to 8 x 1mm, linear sub-spathulate, glabrous. Inflorescence of 5–10 flowers. Pedicels 5–10mm, slender, sub-densely scaly. Calyx c.2.5mm in diameter, obliquely disc-shaped, shortly and irregularly 5-lobed. Corolla trumpet-shaped, pure white or greenish white, or pale pink at the tube and white at the lobes; tube c.25 x 2.5–3 x 2–2.5mm, straight or slightly curved, parallel sided except slightly expanded at the extreme base, densely scaly outside; inside with short retrorse hairs in the proximal 1⁄3, glabrous distally; lobes 5–6 x c.3mm, sub-spathulate, becoming reflexed in older flowers. Stamens exserted to c.15mm from the corolla tube when the flowers are young and the style is still included in the corolla tube, erect, and recurved with the upper part of the filaments as the flowers age, when the style becomes greatly exserted; filaments almost filiform, white, laxly or more densely hairy in the proximal ¼; anthers 1.8 x 0.5mm, oblong, the base obtuse. Disc slightly prominent, sparsely erect-hairy on the upper margin only. Ovary c.5 x 1.5mm, cylindrical, sub-densely sub-appressed, short-hairy and scaly, tapering distally; style slender, scaly almost to the top and sparsely hairy in the proximal 10mm; stigma sub-globose, very shortly 5-lobed. Fruit (immature) 25–30 x 2.5–3mm, narrowly fusiform, reddish, sparsely scaly and hairy, deeply 5-furrowed lengthwise.
Indonesia, New Guinea (W), Sibil River Valley.
In shrubberies on poor, impervious white clay, common.
Argent, G. (2006) Rhododendrons of subgenus Vireya. RHS:London. Page:65