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FOC | Family List | FOC Vol. 19 | Campanulaceae

15. Lobelia Linnaeus, Sp. Pl. 2: 929. 1753.

半边莲属 ban bian lian shu

Authors: Deyuan Hong & Thomas G. Lammers

Cardinalis Fabricius; Dortmanna Hill; Laurentia Adanson; Rapuntium Miller.

Herbs, but some species lignified at base, and even some species in Africa and Hawaiian Islands trees and shrubs. Leaves alternate, in 2 rows or spiral. Flowers solitary and axillary, or in terminal racemes, or in panicles of racemes, bisexual [some Australian species dioecious]; bracteoles present or absent. Flowers pedicellate, solitary and axillary or in terminal racemes (rarely secund or corymbose) or panicles. Calyx lobes entire or serrate, persistent, rarely auriculate. Corolla zygomorphic, rarely with a narrow nectar spur; dorsal side typically divided longitudinally to base or nearly so, sometimes laterally fenestrate; limb commonly bilabiate, dorsal lip 2-lobed, ventral lip 3-lobed, or rarely ventrally unilabiate. Stamens connate, enveloping style, exserted from corolla dorsally; all 5 anthers or just ventral pair barbate at apex (rarely all nude). Ovary inferior or semi-inferior, very rarely almost superior, 2-locular; stigma 2-fid; ovules numerous. Fruit an apically 2-valved capsule or a berry. Seeds numerous, oblong or 3-angled, sometimes winged, smooth, foveolate, striate, or verrucose.

About 414 species: mainly in tropics and subtropics, particularly tropical Africa and America, with a few species extending to temperate regions; 23 species (six endemic) in China.

Doubtful species: Lobelia cavaleriei H. Léveillé (Repert. Spec. Nov. Regni Veg. 9: 455. 1911). Type: Guizhou, Cavalerie 2989 (isotype, E). See Lammers (World Checkl. Bibliogr. Campanulaceae, Kew, 2007).


1 Plants 0.02-0.5(-2) m tall; stems slender or rarely somewhat robust, herbaceous or rarely subshrubby toward base or throughout; flowers commonly entomophilous; corolla 1-20(-46) mm, commonly bilabiate or sub-bilabiate (if unilabiate then no more than 15 mm), lobes dimorphic or monomorphic; seed coat striate or reticulate   (2)
+ Plants (0.2-)1-9 m tall; stems robust and sometimes pachycaul, herbaceous, subshrubby, or woody; flowers often ornithophilous; corolla unilabiate or sub-bilabiate, rarely bilabiate, (12-)20-60(-103) mm, lobes monomorphic; seed coat reticulate or striate-reticulate, less often striate   (8)
       
2 (1) Plants low, stems commonly prostrate and seldom over 40 cm tall; corolla various shades of blue, purple, pink, or white, sub-bilabiate or unilabiate, lobes monomorphic; anther tube with a single elongate bristle or awn at apex of each ventral anther (sometimes also bearded with tufts of shorter filiform hairs, very rarely nude); seed coat commonly reticulate (1. L. sect. Hypsela)   (3)
+ Plants taller, stems erect, ascending, or decumbent, commonly over 40 cm (sometimes as much as 2 m) tall; corolla distinctly bilabiate, lobes dimorphic, dorsal pair much smaller and narrower than ventral 3 (that commonly form a trifid lip); anther tube bearded with tufts of filiform hairs at apex of at least ventral pair (rarely all nude); seed coat striate   (4)
       
3 (2) Leaves ovate or broadly ovate, commonly petiolate; corolla sub-bilabiate; fruit a berry.   1 L. nummularia
+ Leaves elliptic-lanceolate to linear; corolla unilabiate; fruit a capsule.   2 L. chinensis
       
4 (2) Pedicels typically bibracteolate at base; corolla tube commonly fenestrate laterally; seeds terete or irregularly angular (2. L. sect. Stenotium)   (5)
+ Pedicels typically bibracteolate at or below middle; corolla tube almost always entire laterally; seeds trigonous or compressed (3. L. sect. Delostemon)   (6)
       
5 (4) Stems winged; leaves adaxially sparsely puberulent; corolla small, only 3-5 mm.   3 L. heyneana
+ Stems terete or angular, not winged; leaves glabrous or villous; corolla larger or also small.   4 L. hainanensis
       
6 (4) Stems prostrate, rooted at nodes; leaves 1-4 × 0.8-3 cm; petiole 3-12 mm.   5 L. zeylanica
+ Stems erect, not rooted or rooted only at basal nodes; leaves smaller, subsessile   (7)
       
7 (6) Stems and leaves glabrous; bracteoles linear-lanceolate.   6 L. alsinoides
+ Stems and leaves villous; bracteoles absent or minute.   7 L. terminalis
       
8 (1) Flowers solitary in upper leaf axils (rarely supplemented by a terminal raceme); corolla tube straight or nearly so; fruit a berry; seeds cuboidal or quadrate, subterete to slightly compressed (5. L. sect. Speirema)   (9)
+ Flowers in terminal racemes or panicles; corolla tube curved or arcuate; fruit a capsule; seeds ovoid, lenticular (4. L. sect. Rhynchopetalum)   (11)
       
9 (8) Plants rhizomatous; corolla 12-18 mm, tube 3-6 mm; filament tube 6.5-8 mm; anther tube cream-colored, dorsal anthers 6-8 mm, slightly shorter to slightly longer than filament tube.   23 L. deleiensis
+ Plants lacking rhizomes; corolla (15-)18-26 mm, tube 6-13 mm; filament tube 8.5-12 mm; anther tube gray, dorsal anthers 4.8-7 mm, 2/5-3/4 as long as filament tube   (10)
       
10 (9) Stems sparsely to densely puberulent toward apex; leaves sessile; uppermost 10-25 flowers often subtended by bracts only 1/10-1/4 as long as foliage leaves, thus forming a terminal raceme; pedicels densely puberulent; hypanthium pubescent along veins; calyx lobes narrowly triangular or triangular, 1.5-1.9 mm wide, erect; corolla greenish with purple spots on lip; anther tube 1.4-1.8 mm in diam., glabrous; trichomes at apex of ventral anthers 0.5-1 mm.   21 L. fangiana
+ Stems glabrous (rarely sparsely scabrous); leaves petiolate; all flowers subtended by unreduced foliage leaves; pedicels glabrous; hypanthium glabrous; calyx lobes linear or linear-triangular, 0.5-1.4 mm wide, ascending, spreading, or recurved; corolla dark violet or purple to bluish lilac, lip often paler, or striped or blotched with white; anther tube 2-2.8 mm in diam., dorsal surface sparsely shortly pubescent at least toward apex; trichomes at apex of ventral anthers 1.2-2 mm.   22 L. montana
       
11 (8) Leaves truncate, rounded, or obtuse at base; pedicels ebracteolate; calyx lobe margins revolute.   20 L. sessilifolia
+ Leaves cuneate or attenuate at base; pedicels commonly bibracteolate; calyx lobe margins flat   (12)
       
12 (11) Stems densely pubescent   (13)
+ Stems glabrous or sparsely pubescent   (15)
       
13 (12) Stems tomentose; leaves hispidulous; pedicels 5-12 mm, densely pannose; hypanthium densely pannose; corolla white or faintly tinged with blue or pink.   13 L. clavata
+ Stems hispidulous or scaberulose; leaves glabrous adaxially and sometimes abaxially; pedicels 3-5 mm, hispidulous; hypanthium scaberulose; corolla purple-red or red-purple   (14)
       
14 (13) Capsule 6-10 × 6-8 mm; raceme 10-25 cm, densely flowered.   19 L. erectiuscula
+ Capsule 4-6 × 4-5 mm; raceme 20-50 cm, laxly flowered.   18 L. davidii
       
15 (12) Corolla 11-20 mm   (16)
+ Corolla 20-35 mm   (19)
       
16 (15) Leaves rounded and mucronate at apex; corolla glabrous.   16 L. colorata
+ Leaves acuminate (sometimes acute or obtuse) at apex; corolla pubescent at least internally   (17)
       
17 (16) Leaves 12-31 cm, attenuate at base; corolla white, sometimes suffused with pale blue or pink; anther tube densely white hirsute in sutures; flowering Jan-May.   10 L. pyramidalis
+ Leaves 6-12(-15) cm, cuneate at base; corolla purple-red, reddish, or blue-purple; anther tube sparingly pubescent on back; flowering Aug-Oct   (18)
       
18 (17) Stems and leaves glabrous; pedicels 3-5 mm; calyx lobes 13-21 × < 1 mm, entire.   8 L. melliana
+ Stems sparsely pubescent; leaves densely white hirsute; pedicels 5-13 mm; calyx lobes 6-14 × 1-1.5 mm, denticulate.   9 L. pleotricha
       
19 (15) Bracteoles leaflike, denticulate, 6-12 × 1-2 mm, at summit of pedicel.   15 L. foliiformis
+ Bracteoles subulate, entire, 1-2 × ca. 0.2 mm, near middle of pedicel   (20)
       
20 (19) Leaves 3.5-7 cm, obtuse or acute at apex.   17 L. taliensis
+ Leaves (6-)10-35 cm, acuminate at apex   (21)
       
21 (20) Raceme lax; hypanthium hemispheric.   14 L. iteophylla
+ Raceme dense; hypanthium campanulate, oblong, or obconic   (22)
       
22 (21) Leaves glabrous abaxially; hypanthium glabrous; calyx lobes entire.   11 L. seguinii
+ Leaves sparsely hispidulous abaxially; hypanthium scaberulose; calyx lobes denticulate.   12 L. doniana

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