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Begonia hooveriana in Reinwardtia 13(5): 445. 2013
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Diagnosis
- Begonia petermannia erecta glabra, petiola longa, folia nitida, inflorescentia femina biflora axilaria, tepalae 5 lobae alba, fructus 3 alae, infloresentis mascularis terminalis umbellatis, flos 5-8, tepalis masculis 2 lobes, glabris, albus. (Wiriadinata, H.: A new species of Begonia (Begoniaceae) from South Sulawesi, Indonesia, pp. 445-448. – In: Reinwardtia 13(5))
Description
- Stem cane like, stout, young stem green, old stem brownish green, glossy, glabrous, nodes thickened, internodes 3–4.5 cm long, 7 mm thick, once branched, up to 100 cm long; without a tuber. Stipules pale green, erect, leathery, glabrous, oblongtriangular, base truncate, apex acute, tip ending in a needle, 2.5–3 cm long, ca. 1.6 cm wide, margin entire. Leaves distant, erect then held almost horizontally; petiole pale green, 10–24 cm long, round in cross-section, 5–7 mm in diameter; blade asymmetric, flat, shining dark green above and dull plain mid-green below, leathery in life, papery when dried, 12–14 cm long, 11–15 cm wide, broad side 7.5–9 cm wide, base cordate, basal lobes overlapping, 5–6.5 cm long, margin broadly dentatesinuate, tip acuminate; venation palmate-pinnate with ca. 6–7 main veins, branching close towards the margin, veins shallowly impressed above, beneath prominent, the same colour as the blade. Inflorescences subterminal, protogynous. Female inflorescences with 2 flowers, erect, open for 4 days, peduncle 4.5 cm long, 3 mm in diameter, green with upper part compressed; pedicels 2 cm long, 1 mm diameter; ovary whitish green, shape triangular, locule ca. 1.8 cm long, 0.3 cm thick excluding the wings, wings 3 (rarely 4), equal, green; locules 3, placentas 2 per locule; tepals 5, pure white, glabrous, outer 2 tepals broadly ovate, margin entire, tip rounded, ca. 2.2 cm long, 2 cm wide; inner 3 unequal in size, ovate to ovate-oblong, the smallest tepal 1.8 cm long, 0.9 cm wide; styles 3, styles and stigmas yellow, 7 mm in diameter, stigmas spiral, densely woolly. Male inflorescences composed of 1–2 pseudo-umbels, basal bracts ovate, concave, thin, base flat or truncate, apex acute, glabrous, ca. 2 cm long, 1.5 cm wide, caducous; each pseudo-umbel compose of 6–8 flowers, peduncle 2–3 cm long, bracts in pairs, whitish green becoming green, ovate triangular, 6–12 long, 2–4 mm wide, glabrous, margin entire, tip narrowing and ending in a hair; pedicels up to 4 cm long; tepals 2, reniform, ca. 1.5 × 2.5 cm, margin entire, tip rounded, pure white, glabrous; stamens many, androecium sub-globose, 7 × 3 mm, on a 1 mm column; anthers pale yellow, narrowly oblong-obovate, ca. 1.2 mm long, tip notched, opening by slits. Fruits erect with stiff, terete stalks of 1.5 cm long; capsule 18–28 mm long, 3–5 mm wide excluding the wings, glabrous, 3 lobed, each lobe with a thin wing; wings 3 (rarely 4), equal, ca. 5 mm wide, stigma persisting, stalk 2 mm long, splitting between the locules and wings. Seeds barrel-shaped, ca. 0.3 mm long, collar cells ca. 2/3 of the seed length. (Wiriadinata, H.: A new species of Begonia (Begoniaceae) from South Sulawesi, Indonesia, pp. 445-448. – In: Reinwardtia 13(5))
Distribution
Asia-Tropical: Sulawesi (Sulawesi endemic)
Endemic to Indonesia, Sulawesi, South Sulawesi.
See 'Specimens' tab for map of point distribution data of georeferenced specimens.
See 'Specimens' tab for map of point distribution data of georeferenced specimens.
Etymology
- Among the collections from Rantepao is a new species which we named Begonia hooveriana Wiriad. in honor of Mr Walter Scott Hoover from New England Tropical Conservatory, USA who sponsored the expedition to look for new species of Begonia in Indonesia. (Wiriadinata, H.: A new species of Begonia (Begoniaceae) from South Sulawesi, Indonesia, pp. 445-448. – In: Reinwardtia 13(5))A
Notes
- The new species is characterized by its flat shining dark green leaves that make this species is an attractive plant. Unlike any other Begonia in Sulawesi, the Begonia hooveriana is very distinct. The stem erect then arching down. Stipules in pairs, oblong with needle tip, thick, glossy green. Leaf has very long stalk, leaf blade glossy or shining at the upper surface. Flowers protandrous; female flowers grow in pairs on an erect peduncle and each flower has 5 white incurved tepals which do not fully open when pop out, male flowers borned in separate branches, compose in pseudo-umbel inflorescences; each male flower has 2 white tepals. Fruit a capsule, it has 3 wings. It belongs to section Petermannia. (Wiriadinata, H.: A new species of Begonia (Begoniaceae) from South Sulawesi, Indonesia, pp. 445-448. – In: Reinwardtia 13(5))