16. Merremia Dennstedt ex Endlicher, Gen. Pl. 18: 1403. 1841. name conserved.
[Presumably for Blasius Merrem, 1763–1824, German professor]
Daniel F. Austin†
Perennials [shrubs]. Stems twining-climbing [erect or prostrate], glabrous or hairy. Leaves petiolate; blade usually palmately lobed or palmately compound, sometimes not lobed or compound, 15–70(–150) mm, surfaces glabrous or hairy. Inflorescences 2–12(–20+)-flowered cymes or umbelliform clusters or flowers solitary. Flowers: sepals oblong, ovate, ovate-lanceolate, or rhombic, 3–30 mm, glabrous or hairy; corolla usually cream, white, white with purplish throat, or yellow, rarely rose, campanulate to funnelform, 15–60 mm, limb subentire or 5-toothed, -angled or -lobed; anthers twisted after dehiscence; pollen usually 3–9-colpate, rarely aggrecolpate, not echinate; styles 1; stigmas globose or 2-lobed, lobes globose. Fruits capsular, usually ± globose, sometimes quadrangular, dehiscence irregular or valvate. Seeds 1–4(–6), ± trigonous, glabrous or hairy. x = 15.
Species 80+ (6 in the flora): s United States; Old World subtropics and tropics; introduced in Mexico, West Indies, Central America, South America.
Merremia hastata Hallier f. [≡ M. tridentata (Linnaeus) Hallier f. subsp. hastata Ooststroom, Xenostegia tridentata (Linnaeus) D. F. Austin & Staples subsp. hastata (Ooststroom) Parmar] was recorded from ballast in Georgia in 1902; it evidently did not persist in the flora area.
A. R. Samões and G. W. Staples (2017) treated Merremia aegyptia as Distimake aegyptius (Linnaeus) A. R. Samões & Staples, M. cissoides as D. cissoides (Lamarck) A. R. Samões & Staples, M. dissecta as D. dissectus (Jacquin) A. R. Samões & Staples, M. quinquefolia as D. quinquefolius (Linnaeus) A. R. Samões & Staples, M. tuberosa as D. tuberosus (Linnaeus) A. R. Samões & Staples, and M. umbellata as Camonea umbellata (Linnaeus) A. R. Samões & Staples.
SELECTED REFERENCE Austin, D. F. 1979. Studies of the Florida Convolvulaceae–II. Merremia. Florida Sci. 42: 216–222.
