绸缎藤 chou duan teng

Lianas, woody, throughout golden or shiny brown tomen­tose except for adaxial surfaces of young leaves and petals; ten­drils in pairs. Stipules caducous; petiole 5.5-6.5 cm; leaf blade orbicular, 9-11.5 cm in diam., leathery, abaxially thickly golden tomentose, adaxially glabrous except near veins, primary veins 15-17, convex abaxially, base deeply cordate, apex bifid to 1/2 on flowering branches, lobes acute or obtuse at apex. Inflores­cence a raceme, 9-12 cm with a peduncle ca. 2 cm, pyramidal, terminal; bracts and bracteoles linear, 8-10 mm; bracteoles opposite, inserted on pedicel near receptacle. Pedicel robust, 9-10 mm. Flower buds ellipsoid, 13-15 mm. Receptacle cupular, 5-6 mm; calyx lobes 5, not reflexed, lanceolate, 12-14 mm. Petals yellow, subequal, obovate and elliptic, 12-18 × 8-13 mm with a prominent claw 6-10 mm, margin crisped, abaxially rusty hairy, adaxially glabrous. Fertile stamens 3; filaments ca. 25 mm, glabrous except near base; anthers oblong, ca. 4 mm. Staminodes 6, unequal, glabrous or hairy near base. Ovary shortly stalked, densely rusty tomentose; style slender, gla­brous; stigma small. Legume oblong or oblong-strap-shaped, compressed, 10-15 × 4-4.5 cm; valves hard woody, densely silvery tomentose. Seeds 2 or 3, broadly ellipsoid, compressed, ca. 20 × 15 mm. Fl. May, fr. Oct.

● Open forests on karst hills. Guangxi.