Reinwardtia 1960. 5: 98.
WFO ID: wfo-0000405727
IPNI ID: urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:333570-1
Verified by:
Shrub to 80cm. Twigs 3–4mm in diameter, rounded, dark brown with a dense rough covering of scales; internodes 5–10cm. Leaves 8–10 together, in loose pseudowhorls, often with up to 4 leaves at some distance below the pseudowhorl. Blade 50–120 x 4–8mm, linear; apex gradually tapering, the extreme point rounded and often deflexed; margin irregular, distinctly revolute when living, strongly so when dry; base narrowly tapering; sub-persistently silvery scaly above with occasional dark spots visible from the centres of the largest scales; densely and persistently brown scaly below. Scales variously sized, with broad striate, lobed flanges, and broad swollen centres; the largest with very dark brown swollen centres. Mid-vein impressed above, strongly raised beneath throughout its length; lateral veins not visible, reticulation obscure. Petiole 5–10 x 1–2mm, grooved above, densely brown-scaly. Flower buds to 12 x 6mm, predominantly brown. Bracts to 12 x 5mm, smoothly appressed, ovate, densely brown-scaly outside with a narrow green glabrous, or minutely appressed hairy border and a white-ciliate margin; outer bracts densely appressed white-hairy inside, inner ones less densely hairy. Bracteoles to 10 x 1mm, narrowly subulate, glabrous. Pedicels 8–12 x 0.75mm, green, slender, laxly scaly. Calyx minute, disc-like, densely scaly. Corolla 22–24 x 16mm, reddish-purple, without scent; tube 18 x 4 x 5mm, cylindrical, laterally compressed, slightly keeled on the upper side and grooved in the basal ½, curved, laxly and inconspicuously scaly outside, glabrous inside; lobes 7 x 5mm (the upper three), 7 x 4mm (the lower two), the three upper overlapping to c.1⁄3, the two lower hardly overlapping, spreading horizontally, broadly elliptic to obovate, scaly in a broad central band outside. Stamens 17–19mm, clustered in a group on the lower side of the flower, exserted to c.4mm; filaments linear, filiform distally, slightly unequal, glabrous; anthers c.1.5mm, broadly obovate. Disc glabrous. Ovary c.4 x 1.5mm, obconical-cylindrical, densely scaly, gradually tapering distally; style 8–12mm, glabrous, scaly at the base or up to the proximal 1⁄3, green, lying on the lower side of the tube; stigma shortly club-shaped and obscurely lobed. Fruit c.22 x 3.5mm, fusiform, brown-scaly. Seeds 5.5–6.5mm, without tails 0.8mm, the longest tail 3mm.
Indonesia, Sumatra, Atjeh Province: Mt Lembuh region; Tapanuli, near Sidikalang; Mt Bandahara, above Lawe Peunaggalan; Northern Province: Karo District, near Brestagi.
Mostly epiphytic in sub-montane mossy forest ridges and on old volcanic vents, also on peat overlying limestone.
Argent, G. (2006) Rhododendrons of subgenus Vireya. RHS:London. Page:125