纽子果 niu zi guo

Ardisia flaviflora C. Chen & D. Fang; A. maculosa Mez; A. maculosa var. symplocifolia C. Chen; A. oldhamii Mez; A. patens Mez; A. radians Hemsley & Mez; A. rectangularis Hayata; A. stellifera Pitard; A. tonkinensis Aug. de Candolle; A. virens var. annamensis Pitard; Bladhia oldhamii (Mez) Masamune; B. radians (Hemsley & Mez) Masamune; Tinus virens (Kurz) Kuntze.

Shrubs or small trees, 1-3 m tall. Branchlets subterete, 1-2 mm in diam., sparsely glandular papillate, early glabrescent. Petiole canaliculate, 1(-1.5) cm; leaf blade elliptic, lanceolate, or obovate, 9-26 × 2.5-5(-7) cm, papery, dull, glabrous or sometimes sparsely and minutely glandular papillate abaxially, base cuneate, margin crisped or undulate, with vascularized nodules, densely black punctate, apex acute to subacuminate; lateral veins 15-30 on each side of midrib, marginal vein evident. Inflorescences terminal compound umbels, glabrous, on specialized lateral branches (15-)30-50 cm. Flowers papery, white or pink, 7-8 mm. Pedicel 1.5-3 cm, sparsely glandular papillate in bud, early glabrescent. Sepals ovate to elliptic, subrounded, 2.5-3.5 mm, together with petals densely black punctate, glabrous abaxially, sparsely glandular granulose adaxially at base. Petals nearly free, ovate or broadly ovate, apex acute. Stamens subequalling petals; filaments shorter than anthers; anthers lanceolate or subovate, longitudinally dehiscent, punctate dorsally, apex apiculate. Pistil subequalling petals; ovary punctate, glabrous; ovules ca. 5, multiseriate. Fruit red or blackish red, globose, 7-9(-10) mm in diam., densely black punctate. Fl. May-Jul, fr. Oct-Mar.

Dense evergreen broad-leaved forests, hillsides, dark damp places, valleys, humus-rich soils; 300-2700 m. Guangxi, Guizhou, Hainan, Taiwan, Yunnan [India, Indonesia, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam]

Ardisia virens is extremely closely related to A. hanceana Mez. The separation of groups based on presence or absence of papillae on the inflorescence rachis and branchlets is tentative pending further study. Ardisia maculosa differs from A. virens only by minor quantitative characters.