Prunus costata
Content
Description
Shrubs or small trees, up to 25 m, buttresses not reported, bark grey to brown, finely fissured and lenticelled.
Leaves elliptic to oblong, 3—13(—16) by 2-7 cm, base usually rounded, apex obtuse or bluntly acuminate, often retuse, stiff coriaceous, 6-10(-14) pairs of nerves, venation impressed above, inconspicuous below, puberulous only when young, both sides glabrous when mature, basal glands (0-)2-4, flat Petiole up to 1 cm long.
Stipules oblong, 2.5-9 by 1.2-3.5 mm, free.
Sepals triangular to ovate, 1-2 mm long.
Petals ovate to elliptic, 1-3 mm long, white.
Stamens 20-35, filaments up to 5.5 mm, anthers 0.5-1 mm long.
Ovary glabrous, style up to 4 mm long.
Fruits transversely ellipsoid, 6-10 by 8-11.5 mm, fruiting calyx (i.e. lower part of hypanthium) saucer- to cup-shaped, 3-5 mm diam., exocarp glabrous, red to purplish, endocarp usually hairy inside.
Seed with hairy testa.
Notes
The species is very similar to Prunus grisea var. grisea and differs only in the indumentum of the seeds, which is considered to be an important, usually decisive character for species delimitation. When in flower, the two species can hardly or not be distinguished. The indumentum of the hypanthium may give a clue: less hairy in costata.