Blumea 1963. 12: 94.
WFO ID: wfo-0000405482
IPNI ID: urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:333373-1
Verified by:
Erect shrub, sprawling, one- or few-stemmed, to 1.5m. Twigs covered with dense dark-brown, stellate scales, which disappear quickly in the wild; internodes 4–7cm. Leaves 4–6 together in pseudowhorls. Blade 65–120 x 35–60mm, broadly elliptic, or elliptic, sometimes sub-obovate-elliptic; apex rounded or broadly obtuse occasionally slightly retuse, often very shortly mucronate; margin slightly sinuate, flat or weakly recurved; base broadly tapering to rounded; mature leaves glabrescent above, remaining scaly for longer below especially on major veins. Scales dendroid, with the marginal zone stellately divided; the small centre deepened and protracted downwards into a short foot, which sits on top of an epidermal tubercle. Mid-vein raised and rapidly tapering for 10–15mm above, then becoming grooved and impressed for the remainder of the proximal ½, finally narrowly impressed distally to the apex; beneath very strongly raised throughout its length; lateral veins 7–9 per side, irregular and often deeply forked, wide-spreading, anastomosing quite a distance before the edge, dissolving into a coarse network of veins, all veinlets deeply impressed above, sharply prominent beneath, the leaves distinctly rugose, dark green above, yellowish-green below. Petiole 10–20 x 3–4mm, not or sometimes very weakly grooved above, densely brown-scaly initially, often becoming pink with age as the scales disappear. Flower buds to 20 x 12mm, ovoid, densely brown scaly, the outermost bracts spreading out, others appressed. Bracteoles 10–15 x 1–2mm, linear to sub-spathulate, with a fragile scaly fringe. Inflorescence of 4–6 flowers in an open or one-sided umbel. Pedicels c.15 x 1mm, densely brown-scaly. Calyx c.3mm in diameter, obliquely rimmed, the lobes sometimes elongate. Corolla 50–80 x 40–45mm, trumpet-ventricose, expanded towards the lobes, white; tube 40–75 x c.4–6 x c.7–12mm, curved, densely brown, stellately scaly outside, densely covered with retrorse hairs inside; lobes c.15–20 x 15–20mm, obovate-spathulate, scaly outside, except near the margins. Stamens c.50mm, at first clustered on the lower side of the mouth becoming exserted from the throat to c.10mm, and irregularly spreading; filaments linear, laxly hairy in the proximal ¾, glabrous distally; anthers 3–3.5mm, oblong, the base obtuse. Disc glabrous below, hairy on the upper margin. Ovary c.10 x 2.5mm, sub-cylindrical, densely covered with yellowish hairs and scales, tapering gradually distally; style densely to laxly hairy and scaly in the proximal ¾, glabrous distally, lying on the lower side of the tube and becoming exserted to 20mm. Fruit c.30 x 7mm, fusiform, the valves irregularly twisting and the placentae breaking away from the central column at the top. Seeds variable, 3.5–5mm, without tails c.1mm, the longest tail to 2.4mm, the tails often broad with irregularly divided margins, crimped especially distally.
Papua New Guinea, Morobe District, Edie Creek and Merri Creeks; common on Mt Kaindi. At present known only from this very small area. Growing terrestrially on eroded gold workings, on open, Vaccinium shrubbery and grass-covered slopes
Argent, G. (2006) Rhododendrons of subgenus Vireya. RHS:London. Page:99