Platea excelsa var. excelsa
Content
Description
Tall tree, (12-)25-37 m, trunk ± angular, deeply channelled or fissured, 30-60 (rarely-100) cm ø, with buttresses up to 1.5 m.
Bark dark grey to brown, smooth, with fine longitudinal fissures and small lenticels, thin, with a certain aromatic smell and bitter taste.
Tips of branchlets, young leaves and inflorescences densely covered with appressed star-shaped major and minor scales (each with a ± distinct dark, almost sooty centre), which disappear late.
Leaves oblong- or elliptic-lanceolate, apex subacutely acuminate, base ± broadly cuneate, subcoriaceous or thin-coria-ceous, at maturity glabrous and shining above, still rather densely scaly beneath especially on nerves and petiole, and of a dull pale yellowish-green colour in fresh state, flush deep pink, 10-17 by 3.5-4.5(-5.5) cm, midrib impressed above, bold beneath, nerves 10-14 pairs, rather straight from the midrib, ± flat above, not much raised beneath, reticulation fine, but slightly raised on both faces or beneath only;
Petals pale greenish yellowish or pale pink, glabrous, c. 2 mm.
Ovary glabrous, base included by the calyx lobes (c. 1.5 mm).