方叶五月茶 fang ye wu yue cha

Trees up to 20 m tall; young twigs pubescent. Stipules needlelike, 3-6 × 0.5-1 mm, pubescent, caducous; petiole 4-10(-20) mm, pubescent; leaf blade oblong, more rarely ovate or obovate, (2-)3-7(-16) × (2-)3-5(-9) cm, papery to thinly leathery, pubescent to glabrous especially adaxially, often only major veins and margin pubescent, dull or shiny adaxially, dull abaxially, drying olive green to reddish green, base rounded to cordate, rarely obtuse, apex rounded, more rarely obtuse or acute, sometimes mucronate or retuse; domatia sometimes present; midvein flat adaxially, lateral veins 5-7 pairs, tertiary veins reticulate to weakly percurrent. Inflorescences axillary and terminal, axes reddish pubescent, males 4-8 cm, 10-20-branched, females 2-3 cm, (1-)10-20-branched; fruiting 4-7 cm. Male flowers sessile; sepals (4 or)5(-7), free, 0.5-1 mm, deltoid to oblong, pubescent outside, ± glabrous inside, apex acute to obtuse; disk consisting of 4-7 free alternistaminal obconical lobes, pubescent; stamens (4 or)5(-7), 2-2.5 mm; rudimentary ovary obconical. Female including fruiting pedicels 0-1 mm; sepals as in male; disk glabrous to pubescent especially at margin; ovary pubescent; stigmas (2 or)3(-5). Drupes ellipsoid, laterally compressed, 3-4(-5) × 2.5-3(-3.5) mm, sparsely pubescent; style terminal to more rarely subterminal. Fl. Mar-Sep, fr. Jun-Dec. x = 13.

Sparse forests, open scrub, deciduous, evergreen, or mixed dry forests; 200-1100 m. Guangdong, Guangxi, Hainan, Yunnan [Bangladesh, ?Bhutan, Cambodia, India (including Nicobar Islands), Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam; N Australia].

The leaves are used as a medicine for headaches; the stem is used as a medicine to stimulate the menstrual flow. The fruit is eaten locally or used as a purgative.