Passiflora moluccana

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Passiflora moluccana

Description

Climber to 6 m, sparsely to densely short-hairy. Leaves spirally arranged or distichous, rarely sub-opposite (in extra-Mal mostly subopposite), entire (very rarely faintly 3-lobed), mostly (sub) coriaceous, glossy above, dull pale green, densely velutinous to (sub)glabrous beneath, lanceolate (in juvenile shoots) to elliptic or ovate, top acute to obtuse or rounded, sometimes retuse or up to 1 cm acuminate, base obtuse to (sub)cordate, 5-16 by (1-)1½-10 cm, pinninerved; Stipules c. 1 mm. Inflorescences sessile, (2-)4-10(-15)-flowered, with a central tendril, the two lateral partial inflorescences up to 1 cm stalked; Flowers pubescent to subglabrous outside, 3-4½ cm ø; Sepals lanceolate(-triangular), subacute to obtuse, 10-20 by 4-6 mm. Petals lanceolate, obtuse, (sub)entire, 10-18 by 2-5 mm. Ovary (sub) sessile, globose to ellipsoid, glabrous to densely hairy, 2-4 by 1½-3 mm; Fruits 1-3 per inflorescence, globose to ellipsoid, 2-3 by 1½-2½ cm, glabrous or hairy; Seeds c. 30-50, suborbicular to obovoid, 3½-4½ by 3-4 by 1½ mm, 7-9 small pits per ø.

Distribution

Asia-Tropical: Jawa (Jawa present); Maluku (Maluku present); Philippines (Philippines present), Lesser Sunda Is present, Luzon present, S. Celebes present, S. China present
Indo-China, S. China, in Malesia: Philippines (Luzon), Java, Lesser Sunda Is., S. Celebes, Moluccas. .

Notes

After comparison of the Malesian material of P. horsfieldii with a large amount of specimens of P. cochinchinensis from the Asian continent and Hainan, there appeared to be only one differentiating character, viz the mostly subopposite leaves in the latter species; this is of course insufficient for distinction.