Anakasia simplicifolia
Content
Description
Glabrous shrub, 5 m, branches marked with prominent lenticels.
Leaves crowded at the ends of the branches, sessile or with a very short petiole, lanceolate, up to 135 by 18 cm, narrowed gradually to the base, apex acuminate, margin entire or undulate, midrib prominent, lateral veins arching upwards, reticulation rather indistinct.
Inflorescence rachis simple or forked, to 70 cm, at maturity 5 mm ø, bearing small lanceolate bracts.
Petals slightly fleshy, 2 mm long.
Stamens 5-6, filaments broad;
Ovary glabrous.
Fruit with (4-)5-6 prominent ridges when dry, c. 2 by 1.5 cm, with the persistent style arms in a terminal depression.
Distribution
Asia-Tropical, Vogelkop Peninsula present, West New Guinea present, near Babo present
Malesia: West New Guinea (Vogelkop Peninsula and near Babo).
Notes
Beccari described (in sched.) the inflorescence branches as erect in flower and reflexed in fruit. He noted that the outer flowers of the umbellules are probably male and those at the centre female, though he could not be certain of this. His observations cannot be confirmed from the material available. Evidently all flowers are structurally hermaphrodite, but all developing fruits seen are attached to central pedicels. The corolla is green and soon falls, the disk yellow, the anthers cream, and the mature fruit blue (azure- violet) and aromatic.