头花赤瓟 tou hua chi bao

Vines, climbing, herbaceous. Stem and branches angular-sulcate, subglabrous. Petiole slender, 7-9 cm, glabrous; leaf blade abaxially pale green, broadly ovate or broadly ovate-triangular, 10-15(-20) × 8-12(-15) cm, membranous, both surfaces glabrous, adaxially scabrous, basal lateral veins along margin of sinus, margin sparsely dentate, apex acuminate; basal sinus 1.5-3 cm deep, 2-3.5 cm wide. Tendrils glabrous, 2-fid. Male flowers at apex of peduncle in congested subumbel, umbelliform raceme, or pseudocapitulum, usually 8-15-flowered; peduncle (2-)5-11(-17) cm, glabrous, sometimes with a bract; bract ovate, 1.5-3 × 1-2.8 cm; pedicels filiform, 4-8 mm; calyx tube obconical, ca. 5 mm; segments linear-lanceolate, ca. 10 × 1.5 mm, abaxially puberulent, adaxially glabrous, 1-veined, apex acute; corolla segments narrowly ovate, 10-12 × 5-6 mm, adaxially pubescent, 5-veined, apex acute; filaments 4-4.5 mm, puberulent; anthers ovoid-oblong, 2-2.2 mm. Female flowers solitary, or 2 or 3 flowers at apex of peduncle; pedicels 3-5 cm when flowers solitary; calyx segments linear-lanceolate, 8-12 × 1.5-1.8 mm, 1-veined; corolla segments oblong, 15-28 × 1-12 mm, 5-veined, apex acuminate; ovary narrowly oblong, 15-18 mm, smooth, base subtruncate, apex attenuate; style slender, ca. 5 mm, 3-fid; stigma enlarged, reniform, ca. 2 mm wide. Fruit oblong, ca. 4 × 2.5 cm. Fl. and fr. May-Nov.

● Forest margins, thickets, mountain slopes; 1000-2700 m. W Sichuan.