Trichosanthes emarginata
Content
Description
Climber, 5-20 m long, finely brown hairy, glabrescent, leafy stem 5 mm diam.;
Leaves:
Fruit green, whitish striped, ripening evenly red, broad-ellipsoid, 10-14 by 6-8 cm;
Seeds brown-black, ± compressed, narrowly elliptic, often ± parallel-sided, 15-18 by 7-10 by 3-5 mm, base irregularly truncate, apex conspicuously notched, margin faint, edge entire.
Distribution
Aceh present, Asia-Tropical: Malaya (Peninsular Malaysia present); Sumatera (Sumatera present), Ketambe present, North Sumatra present, Pahang present, Sibolangit present
Malesia: Sumatra (North Sumatra (Sibolangit) and Aceh (Ketambe)) and Peninsular Malaysia (Pahang, Krau).
Taxonomy
2 Trichosanthes emarginata superficially resembles T. montana, the latter differing in a shorter peduncle, 2.5-3 cm long, subcoriaceous bracts, and a thickened rachis.
1 Known from three collections: the type-collection, de Wilde & Duyfjes 14862, is monocarpous, with mature fruits on a died off plant; the second collection, Lörzing 8347, is a leafy plant with male flowers; the third collection (Peninsular Malaysia) consists of fruit on leafy twigs; the seeds were erroneously drawn as emarginate at both sides.
3 The 2-coloured fruiting pedicel reminds that of T. borneensis, a species with globose fruit, with seeds not notched at apex.